High Court: Chancery Division judgments, 2005

A Norwich Pharmacal order may be made where a respondent has become mixed up in the apparent wrongdoing of others and is able to disclose their identity. The…

For an interim third-party debt order against a bank, a judgment creditor need not prove that the judgment debtor’s account remains open and in credit on the…

A dominant undertaking may abuse its position by refusing, or constructively refusing, to supply an existing customer unless the refusal is objectively…

A petition under section 459 of the Companies Act 1985 requires unfair prejudice to the petitioner’s interests arising from the conduct of the company’s…

On an appeal on a point of law from a Pensions Ombudsman determination, an estoppel may arise from clear pension communications even where the governing trust…

Declaratory relief may properly determine whether a proposed commercial agreement will breach existing contractual rights where there is a real dispute between…

For torts committed abroad, the transitional rule in section 14(1) of the Private International Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1995 refers to the…

A tax provision denying hold-over relief because a transferee company is foreign-controlled does not, without more, restrict freedom of establishment. Article…

The scope of a duty of care depends on the kind of loss against which the duty requires protection. The principle in South Australia Asset Management…

In a civil claim, a subsisting criminal conviction against a non-party is admissible under section 11 of the Civil Evidence Act 1968 and is treated as proving…

A court may grant a negative declaration in copyright proceedings under its inherent jurisdiction, even though the Copyright Designs & Patents Act 1988…

For zero-rating under Group 5 of Schedule 8 to the VAT Act 1994, the intended use of a building must be assessed in its statutory context. A home providing…

A claimant who discontinues is ordinarily liable for the defendant’s costs under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, rule 38.6. The burden lies on the claimant to…

Under the Consumer Credit Act 1974, the cancellation notice accompanying a regulated credit agreement must be construed within the statutory scheme governing…

Persons exposed to asbestos by a company before a scheme, CVA or liquidation may be creditors for the purposes of a scheme of arrangement or company voluntary…

Where a claimant accepts a Part 36 payment without requiring the court’s permission, the entitlement to costs under rule 36.13(1) is automatic and mandatory. A…

The iniquity exception to legal professional privilege requires a definite allegation of fraud or illegality supported by prima facie evidence. A mere…

Section 212 of the Insolvency Act 1986 provides a summary procedure for enforcing existing rights; it does not create new substantive rights. A director’s…

A director who funds and controls litigation brought by an insolvent company may be ordered to pay the successful defendant’s costs under section 51(3) of the…

Recusal is required where the circumstances would lead a fair-minded and informed observer to conclude that there was a real possibility of bias. The…

In an unfair-prejudice petition, the court has a wide discretion to grant relief suited to the prejudice proved and is not confined to the remedy sought in the…

An ombudsman may determine a pensions maladministration complaint from documentary evidence where the parties have had a fair opportunity to address the…

A trustee power to apply capital for a beneficiary’s benefit may, in principle, support a charitable payment made to discharge a moral obligation recognised by…

Making copyright sound recordings available to members of a peer-to-peer network through a shared computer directory is an act of communicating the works to…

Permission to amend a defence is refused where the proposed defence has no real prospect of success. Under section 64 of the Patents Act 1977, the prior act or…

A post-employment restraint is enforceable where it protects a legitimate business interest and is no wider than reasonably necessary, assessed from the…

In civil contempt proceedings, the applicant must make the court sure of each alleged breach. The court may assess individual allegations against the overall…

In insurance contracts based on utmost good faith, a circumstance is material if it would influence the judgment of a prudent insurer in assessing or accepting…

A consent order may be set aside where it was made on an erroneous basis of fact, including misrepresentation, or where a material and unforeseen change of…

Section 371 of the Companies Act 1985 permits the court to order a meeting only where it is impracticable either to call the meeting in an authorised manner or…

Where a will is prepared by a person who takes a substantial benefit under it, that circumstance raises suspicion but does not impose a separate or criminal…

In a professional negligence claim involving a lost commercial opportunity, damages are assessed by identifying the real chance lost and valuing it according…

A charge imposed under section 313 of the Insolvency Act 1986 takes effect as a charging order and, through the Charging Orders Act 1979, as an equitable…

not stated in the judgment.

Where a property is acquired for joint domestic use and both parties contribute, the court must determine whether they communicated a common intention that…

An adjournment should be refused where the applicant has deliberately delayed preparation, could reasonably have obtained representation earlier, and further…

A court should hesitate before materially altering a judgment after it has been handed down. Reconsideration may be justified in exceptional circumstances…

Costs ordinarily follow the event. A successful claimant should not suffer a reduction merely because subsidiary issues were unsuccessful where the litigation…

A claimant cannot recover merely by pleading that the defendant was enriched at his expense in circumstances said to be unjust. The claim must be based on an…

The court may sanction an English scheme of arrangement even while related proceedings concerning the arrangement remain pending in a foreign court. The…

For the purposes of a summary judgment application, a causation defence may be struck out where the defendant’s alleged intervening act could not reasonably be…

A contractual restriction preventing an adviser from acting for a company on a flotation may extend beyond work directly resulting from the introduction, where…

Where goods are deemed condemned under paragraph 5 of Schedule 3 to the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, a tribunal hearing an appeal against refusal to…

On an appeal under section 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996, leave requires a substantial effect on the parties’ rights, a question determined by the tribunal…

On the proper construction of a commission agreement, seed originally returned by retailers or left unsold does not remain within the contractual definitions…

On restoration of a dissolved company to the register, it is treated as having continued in existence as if it had not been struck off. Dealings during the…

Summary judgment is appropriate where the defendant has no real prospect of successfully defending the claim and no other compelling reason requires a trial. A…

Under Article 3(1) of the Council Regulation 1346/2000/EC, the registered office of a company is presumed to be the centre of its main interests (COMI). The…

An application under Insolvency Act 1986, s.236 requires the liquidator to show a reasonable requirement for the documents or information sought. The court has…

When deciding whether England is the appropriate forum for service out of the jurisdiction, the court must identify the likely issues and compare the competing…

Where a will last traced to the testator’s possession is not found at death, the presumption is that the testator destroyed it with intent to revoke. The party…

A loan is repayable even where no express repayment date is agreed. In the absence of an express term, the law ordinarily treats it as immediately repayable…

Repayment of VAT wrongly paid may be refused under Value Added Tax Act 1994, section 80(3), only where repayment would unjustly enrich the taxpayer. There is…

An extended civil restraint order may be made where a party has persistently issued claims or made applications which are totally without merit. The court’s…

Proceedings are an abuse of process where they seek to reopen issues already finally determined, pursue matters that are academic, or use fresh proceedings to…

For summary judgment, a party cannot rely on a contract to retain money received for services which it had no right to provide. Where the evidence shows that…

The court may refuse or regulate a very late detailed assessment of costs where the delay, evidential difficulties and practical consequences make continuation…

At an inter partes hearing for freezing or search relief, the claimant must establish a good arguable case. That does not require showing a better than 50 per…

A statutory time limit requiring a party to require General Commissioners to state a case is mandatory where the regulatory scheme shows that validity depends…

An appellate court should interfere with a discretionary refusal to adjourn only where the discretion was wrongly exercised. An adjournment serves no proper…

On taking partnership accounts after dissolution, a partner who improves partnership property is entitled to credit for the increase in value attributable to…

The registration and maintenance of a domain name which is likely to make the public believe that its holder is connected with another business may constitute…

A will is not invalid merely because the testator is elderly, seriously ill, or physically frail, or because a prudent solicitor failed to obtain medical…

Misfeasance in public office requires proof that a public officer exercised public power with the specific intention of injuring the claimant or the relevant…

In an application for an interim injunction in a passing-off claim, the claimant must show a serious issue to be tried and then establish that the balance of…

In an ancillary English liquidation of a foreign company, the court may generally remit locally realised assets to the principal foreign liquidation to…

Whether contractual tax-related redemption conditions are satisfied is determined objectively. Where the condition requires that tax consequences cannot be…

A stay on forum non conveniens grounds should not fragment closely connected civil proceedings where a single tribunal can determine the dispute more reliably…

A bankruptcy order may be annulled or rescinded despite an earlier decision that the petition debt was due. The powers are broad but must be exercised…

For taper relief under section 2A of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, the qualifying holding period is generally the period after 5 April 1998 for…

On an appeal from a detailed assessment of costs, proportionality is assessed by the costs rules, principally Civil Procedure Rules 1998 rules 44.4 and 44.5. A…

A breach of Article 81 of the EU Treaty does not, without a sufficient nexus, provide a defence to trade mark infringement or make trade mark rights…

The court has jurisdiction to sanction a scheme of arrangement under Companies Act 1985, ss.425 and 426, where the scheme company is a foreign corporation…

Articles of association must be construed so that a shareholder is not compulsorily deprived of shares unless the articles clearly authorise that result. A…

A contractual requirement for consensus of the entire management board refers to all members of the board, including a suspended bondholder-nominated director.…

Unfair prejudice under section 6 of the Insolvency Act 1986 must result from the terms of the voluntary arrangement itself. The court must consider all the…

An agent’s fiduciary duties depend on the contractual relationship and the purposes for which authority was granted. A power of attorney or voting mandate does…

Permission to continue a derivative claim should be refused where the pleaded case is unsupported by credible evidence and continuation would amount to an…

For the purposes of Article 21 of the Lugano Convention, an English court is ordinarily definitively seised when proceedings have been issued and served.…

An express declaration of trust in a conveyance normally conclusively determines the beneficial interests, absent fraud or mistake. The parties may…

A person who performs managerial functions equivalent to those of a director owes fiduciary duties to the company. Those duties include acting bona fide in the…

A disclaimer of an element of a registered trade mark affects the assessment of likelihood of confusion in both infringement proceedings and opposition or…

A stay of directors’ disqualification proceedings concurrent with criminal proceedings is discretionary. The civil court must protect the fairness of the…

Permission to amend a defence may be refused where the amendment is made substantially out of time and would unfairly enlarge the trial, particularly where it…

For VAT purposes, services connected with a payment or transfer may be exempt even though the supplier does not itself effect the debit and credit. The…

Where a trial judge has failed to determine a material defence and the findings are insufficient to enable a fair appellate decision on the facts, the appeal…

A deed restricting building heights must be construed as a whole, including the accompanying drawing and every relevant parameter shown on it. Where the deed…

An application concluded by a consent order cannot later be restored merely because a party may have a fresh claim. A fresh claim must be issued and considered…

Under paragraph 99 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, wages or salary includes sums treated as earnings for the relevant period under social security…

An enemy national resident in an enemy state is generally unable to sue in the English courts during a technical state of war, unless licensed by the Crown.…

A customs authority may revoke binding tariff information under Article 9(1) of the Community Customs Code even where a directly applicable classification…

An order for the sale of jointly owned property must be construed in its procedural and factual context. Where the order directs payment of the net proceeds of…

A cross-undertaking in damages is the price of an interim injunction. The court cannot compel an applicant to give one, and cannot retrospectively enlarge an…

A retrospective valuation must assess the figure that a reasonable valuer, using information available at the relevant date, would have reached. Later sale…

At a pre-trial stage, witness evidence should be struck out for irrelevance or disproportionality only where it is quite plain that it could never be relevant…

In construing a commercial agreement, “accumulated net worth” naturally means net asset value rather than accumulated or undistributed profits where the…

A solvent insurer’s scheme of arrangement must be assessed against the realistic alternative of continuing solvent run-off where liquidation is not a realistic…

For the purposes of Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 section 717(2)(a), a security carries the same fixed rate throughout the period from issue to…

For the cultural-services VAT exemption, management and administration must be assessed at the highest decision-making level. The condition contains two…

The power under section 371 of the Companies Act 1985 is discretionary and is not confined to correcting technical defects in the machinery of meetings. The…

Whether a compliance failure is minor and technical under the statutory construction industry certificate scheme is a composite, purposive question of fact and…

On an application to strike out or obtain summary judgment in a complex competition claim, the court should avoid conducting a mini-trial. The claim should…

For software expenditure to qualify for research and development tax relief, the work must seek a scientific or technological advance and form part of a…

A trade mark proprietor may prevent the importation and sale in the United Kingdom of genuine goods first marketed outside the EEA without its consent. The…

Where an independent contractor creates copyright software for a client, commissioning alone does not transfer copyright or create exclusivity. The court…

The court may grant a freezing injunction against a non-party where there is good reason to suppose that the non-party holds, controls or can access assets…

A solicitor acting solely for a lender in a property transaction owes no duty of care to a co-owner whose signature appears validly on the transfer and consent…

On a strike-out or summary-judgment application, the court must assume the pleaded facts are true and ask whether the claim has a real prospect of success. A…

A beneficial interest may arise through common intention constructive trust or proprietary estoppel where assurances or conduct induce detrimental reliance.…

Where a person contributes directly or indirectly to the purchase price of property acquired in another person’s sole name, the contribution may give rise to a…

A bare licensee occupies premises under a licence terminable on reasonable notice. The relevant question is whether sufficient time elapsed for a person in the…

A person who challenges the existence, scope or constitution of an arbitration may apply to the court under section 72 of the Arbitration Act 1996 without…

Under section 14A of the Limitation Act 1980, knowledge may include knowledge that a legally consequential state of affairs has caused damage. It is not always…

Where a lease contains a break clause whose wording makes the landlord’s right to terminate conditional on the tenant’s compliance with the lease, the court…

Adverse possession requires both factual possession and an intention to possess. Factual possession is assessed objectively by asking whether the occupier…

A final court order should generally be challenged by appeal and should not be reopened years after the appeal period has expired. The recognised exception is…

Amendments should generally be permitted where they enable the real dispute to be tried and any prejudice can be compensated in costs, provided the amendment…

A contractual principle preventing a party from benefiting from its own wrongful act does not, without more, create a free-standing defence to a loan claim.…

Where one person provides purchase money for property acquired in another’s name, a resulting trust may arise in proportion to the parties’ contributions…

Where trustees voluntarily exercise a discretionary power, the Re Hastings-Bass principle may apply if the exercise has an effect different from that intended…

A liquidator may inquire into the substance of a judgment debt when adjudicating a proof, because the interests of all creditors must be protected. The…

A fixed sum allowed for a patient’s maintenance will ordinarily be paid without an obligation to account for its expenditure. An account may nevertheless be…

An agreement giving a party the right to call for the transfer of land may create an equitable interest even though the precise part of an identified larger…

Permission to appeal from an arbitration award under section 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996 requires the proposed question to satisfy the statutory conditions.…

Domestic VAT legislation may prescribe how payments are apportioned between separate supplies of goods and credit, even where the parties’ agreement or…

For VAT zero-rating of works to a protected building, the relevant question is what was physically altered. The works must be supplied in the course of…

Summary judgment is appropriate where the defendant has no real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason for a trial. The court must avoid a…

A statutory prohibition on disposing of objects in a national museum’s collection cannot be displaced by a moral obligation or by the Re Snowden jurisdiction.…

A partnership requires a contract between the alleged partners. A contractual joint enterprise likewise requires a consensual arrangement governing its…

Under Competition Act 1998, section 18, and Article 82 of the Treaty of Rome, high prices are not necessarily unfair prices. A pleading alleging abuse through…

Compliance with an approved price-indications code does not prevent an advertisement from being misleading under the Control of Misleading Advertisements…

Permission to amend pleadings should generally be granted where the proposed case is sufficiently clear, unless amendment would cause prejudice or unfairness.…

A claim concerning ownership of an asset and a security interest may fall within the jurisdiction conferred by the Judgments Regulation where a necessary…

A lease provision requiring an underlease to contain like covenants and conditions may define the circumstances in which the tenant has any right to seek…

Where liquidators allege that payments were loans or transactions at an undervalue, they bear the burden of proving that case on the balance of probabilities.…

The High Court has jurisdiction to order evidence to be taken overseas by a special examiner, even without the consent of every party. The judge hearing the…

On discontinuance under CPR Part 38, the normal order is that the claimant pays the defendant’s costs. The claimant bears the burden of showing a good reason…

Summary judgment should not determine disputed patent construction or prior-art meaning where the issue requires the perspective of the skilled person and…

In a claim arising from negligent legal advice, diminution in value is the prima facie measure of loss, but it is not an inflexible rule. The court may adopt…

Part II of Schedule 1 to the Limitation Act 1980 provides a complete code for limitation where the claimant derives title through the Crown. The Crown’s…

A completed transaction is not rendered unenforceable merely because an executory land-related agreement did not comply with section 2 of the Law Reform…

Permission is not required for a first appeal from a High Court registrar’s decision in disqualification proceedings under section 6 of the Company Directors…

A claimant who has an existing civil claim within group litigation should normally challenge the validity of legislation in that claim rather than by judicial…

Rectification is unavailable where a trust instrument accurately records the parties’ intention at the time of execution, but the parties failed to consider a…

A payment deadline may be extended by a creditor’s written agreement, judged objectively from the terms and context of the communication. Where payment is made…

Input tax is recoverable under Value Added Tax Act 1994, section 24(1), only where the relevant goods or services were supplied to the taxable person and were…

For VAT purposes, the expression “leasing or letting of immovable property” has an autonomous Community-law meaning and must be construed strictly by reference…

A creditor’s right to inspect documents in winding-up proceedings does not arise under rule 12.17 merely because a winding-up petition has been presented.…

A disciplinary scheme’s express powers to publish information do not necessarily exclude an incidental power to issue other press notices. Where the scheme…

Norwich Pharmacal relief against an innocent third party is a remedy of last resort. The applicant must show an arguable wrong, a genuine need for information…

For the settlement provisions to apply, an “arrangement” may exist without a trust or legally binding obligations. A structure can constitute an arrangement…

Testamentary capacity requires proof that the testator understood the nature and effect of making a will, the extent of the property disposed of, and the…

Standard transfer wording stating that a survivor may give a valid receipt for capital money does not, without more, establish a beneficial joint tenancy. A…

British citizenship does not arise by operation of law unless the statutory conditions governing the relevant nationality status are satisfied. A person born…

An agreement made by a company through the unlawful management of an undischarged bankrupt is not thereby unenforceable. The public policy underlying Company…

Under Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, a bank may be required to stop operating a customer’s account where it suspects that an arrangement may facilitate the…

A share transfer is ineffective where the signature is accompanied by words or conduct showing that completion is conditional upon further negotiations. A…

Patent claims are construed by asking what the skilled person would understand the patentee to mean, giving particular weight to the language chosen in the…

Informal arrangements made during the establishment of a business venture do not necessarily create a contract. A binding funding obligation requires…

For limitation purposes, occupation does not amount to adverse possession where the occupier genuinely believes that it continues by permission of the person…

In committal proceedings, contempt must be proved beyond reasonable doubt and the respondent is answerable only for the breaches charged in the application…

Article 6 applies to proceedings for a civil evasion penalty under section 60 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994, but that classification does not make the…

Contractual wording which is clear and grammatically coherent should ordinarily be given its ordinary meaning, even if its operation produces commercial…

A contractual right requiring a party to offer property to the other party is governed by the precise wording of the clause. Where the clause is conditional on…

For a construction-industry tax certificate, past failures to comply with tax obligations engage two separate requirements: the failures must be minor and…

Under section 6 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, unfitness involves establishing the alleged conduct and deciding whether it falls below the…

Taxable trading profits are first computed using accepted principles of commercial accountancy, subject to statutory adjustment. Section 74(1)(f) of the Income…

Corporate residence is determined by the location of a company’s central management and control. A foreign subsidiary does not become resident where its parent…

In a joint commercial venture, an express agreement for equal ownership need not be established before equity can arise through constructive trust or…

In a joint commercial venture, an equity may arise through constructive trust or proprietary estoppel even where no express agreement fixes the parties’…

The pre-2003 law of adverse possession could transfer registered land to a trespasser without compensation, even where the registered owner was blameless and…

A person may challenge a will in a probate claim only if able to show an interest, or possible interest, in the deceased’s estate. Mere financial interest in…

In determining beneficial ownership, the registered proprietor’s apparent ownership may be displaced by evidence establishing another person’s beneficial…

Fair dealing for criticism or review under Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 30(1), is assessed in context. Criticism may concern the copyright…

Whether a food supply is made in the course of catering is ordinarily a question of fact, once the statutory concept has been identified. Under Note (3) to…

A pension scheme’s power to amend its trust deed and rules may impose additional funding obligations on all employers falling within a wide defined class of…

In a copyright claim, the relevant copyright work is determined objectively by the court, not by the claimant’s choice of description. A claimant cannot…

Beneficiaries’ claims concerning an incompletely administered estate were governed by the limitation provisions applicable to claims to a deceased person’s…

Permission to serve proceedings out of the jurisdiction requires the claimant to establish three matters: a cause of action with a reasonable prospect of…

Presentation of a winding-up petition should normally be restrained where the company establishes a substantial dispute about the whole of the alleged debt.…

Where a tenant holds several flats under one lease of a building, that arrangement does not prevent the tenant from being a qualifying tenant under the…

A rent-review clause stating that time is of the essence must be applied according to its express timetable. An out-of-time initiating notice cannot be rescued…

Conduct is unfairly prejudicial where company controllers breach the members’ constitutional agreement or violate wider equitable constraints governing their…

Section 375 of the Insolvency Act 1986 confers a wide discretion to review, vary or rescind an order made in the bankruptcy jurisdiction. Its exercise…

A national court has a discretion to refer questions of European Union law before trial. The appropriate stage depends on procedural organisation and…

When an interim injunction would affect freedom of expression, the court must be satisfied that the claimant is likely to establish at trial that publication…

A first-instance court must apply binding authority as it stands. It cannot permit an amendment advancing a claim which established authority makes legally…

A rent review clause is construed principally from the language used in the lease. Commercial assumptions about the purpose of rent review may assist in…

The forfeiture route and the restoration route are distinct. A prior condemnation decision generally prevents a tribunal in restoration proceedings from…

A defective Part 36 offer may still attract the enhanced costs and interest consequences of Part 36 where the court so orders. The defect is not necessarily…

A ground-sharing licence may remain contractually in force while ceasing to qualify as a ground-sharing agreement for rent purposes if its essential right of…

An agency agreement providing for commission on a completed transaction may contain an implied requirement that the agent was an effective cause of the…

In a winding-up petition based on an undisputed debt, a genuine and serious cross-claim may justify dismissal or a stay where it is closely related to the…

A bankruptcy petition should ordinarily result in a bankruptcy order where the petition debt is clearly established. The court may adjourn the petition for…

A proprietary estoppel may arise during negotiations for a land transaction even where the parties know that no binding contract exists and expect a formal…

Variation of a freezing order to permit payment from frozen assets is governed by what is just and convenient. The applicant must establish that the proposed…

Member States may impose reasonable time limits on claims to recover input tax, provided the rules comply with the principles of equivalence and effectiveness.…

Fair dealing under s.30 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 is assessed by considering the statutory purpose and fairness together. Comparative…

Performer’s rights under Part II of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 apply to performances given before the relevant commencement date. A…

Information kept in unstructured manual files is not “data” under the Data Protection Act 1998 merely because modern technology could make it searchable. For…

The privilege against self-incrimination may be claimed in civil proceedings before any criminal charge or investigation exists. It protects against disclosure…

A claimant seeking to establish a beneficial interest under a resulting or constructive trust must prove the alleged contribution, agreement and surrounding…

In a professional-negligence claim concerning legal advice, the claimant must prove that the circumstances required the solicitor to explain the implications…

A notice exercising a contractual break option is construed objectively in its contractual and factual context. The question is whether a reasonable recipient…

Section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 permits subordinate legislation to implement Community obligations and to select appropriate forms and…

A vendor under a specifically enforceable contract is a qualified trustee for the purchaser. The vendor’s equitable duties arise from the contract and protect…

Statutory redundancy and unfair dismissal liabilities arising after an administrator terminates employment are not wages or salary under paragraph 99 of…

A party cannot insist that case-management directions require his personal consent where his legal representatives agreed them and the court would have imposed…

United Kingdom courts cannot determine the validity or constitutional operation of legislation after the relevant territory has become an independent sovereign…

In a probate claim concerning an alleged codicil, apparent due execution creates only a rebuttable presumption. The court must assess the whole evidential…

A cross-undertaking in damages is assessed on contractual principles of causation, remoteness, quantum and mitigation. The claimant must establish that, on a…

Contractual pension benefits are construed by asking what a reasonable person, with the relevant background knowledge, would understand the agreement to mean.…

At the summary judgment and strike-out stage, a claim should proceed where the claimant has a real, rather than fanciful, prospect of success or a reasonable…

Under section 42 of the Partnership Act 1890, an outgoing partner’s “share of the partnership assets” means the partner’s proprietary share in the partnership…

The discretion to award interest on costs is broad. It may be exercised from dates before judgment where that is necessary to compensate the receiving party…

A registered trade mark should be challenged on all grounds properly belonging to the validity dispute. An unsuccessful challenge in Registry proceedings may…

A pension-scheme amendment is construed objectively, in its factual context, but clear and ordinary words will not be given a different meaning merely because…

Rectification of a transfer requires proof of a common continuing intention, an outward expression of accord, continuation of that intention when the…

A right to light is not infringed merely because the available light is reduced. The question is whether sufficient light remains for ordinary purposes, having…

A creditor has no standing to present a winding-up petition where the debt relied on is disputed on substantial grounds. An injunction may restrain…

When sanctioning an insurance business transfer scheme, the court has an overriding discretion under Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, section 111. It…

For inheritance tax, liabilities are deducted from the property legally answerable for them. An insolvent personal estate cannot generate a further negative…