Saint Benedict Land Trust Ltd v London Borough of Camden & Anor

An appeal may be struck out where mandatory requirements for filing the appeal bundle are not met. Informal correspondence with court staff does not constitute a formal application for an extension of time. Nevertheless, where the failure resulted from procedural default rather than deliberate disregard, the court may allow a short period to cure the default and preserve the possibility of an appeal being heard. Any further extension request should be made formally and supported by evidence explaining the delay.

The applicant sought to appeal an order made by District Judge Obodai on 22 February 2019. The appeal was struck out on 26 April 2019 because no appeal bundle had been lodged by the required date and no formal extension of time had been sought.

The applicant later applied to vary or revoke that order. The High Court considered the defective service of the strike-out order, the applicant’s informal correspondence with court listing staff, and the deficiencies in the subsequently produced appeal bundle.

1. The strike-out was regular. The appeal bundle had not been lodged by the prescribed date, no extension of time had been formally sought, and the applicant’s assertion that an extension had been granted was unsupported. The informal email correspondence did not amount to a grant of an extension.
2. Informal requests were inappropriate. The rules governing appeal bundles were clear. A party unable to comply should make a formal application, identifying the relevant requirement and supporting the request with evidence. Vague communications to listing staff should not be used to circumvent that process.
3. Opportunity to remedy default. Although the strike-out was valid, it would be unjust to deprive the applicant of the potential to have the appeal heard solely on formal grounds, particularly given that the strike-out order had not initially been properly served. The applicant was therefore given seven days to file a complete appeal bundle, including the transcript and judgment.
4. Further extension applications. A proper application made before the deadline would be considered if supported by evidence explaining why the required material could not be filed. If the bundle was not filed, the appeal would be struck out again.

• District Judge Obodai: Order dated 22 February 2019, which the applicant sought to appeal.
• High Court (Chancery Division): The appeal was struck out on 26 April 2019 for failure to lodge the appeal bundle and seek a formal extension. On this application, the court allowed seven days to remedy the default, subject to the appeal being struck out again if the requirements were not met.