High Court: Chancery Division judgments, 2014

A regulator has no inherent general power to restrain public wrongs within its regulatory sphere. Such relief requires an applicable statutory power, unless a…

Article 8 of the Insolvency Directive does not impose a universal requirement that every pension scheme member receive at least 50% of contractual benefits…

Victims may obtain a proprietary declaration under Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, section 281, only to the extent that the claimed property or its traceable…

Under section 44 of the Arbitration Act 1996, the court has a wider discretion to support arbitral proceedings than its power under section 42 to enforce a…

A worldwide freezing order supporting foreign proceedings requires a good arguable case and clear, strong evidence of a real risk of dissipation. Civil…

Under the Communications Act 2003, an enforcement authority may enforce an approved premium-rate-services code, including recovery of fines and administrative…

On an appeal from the Pensions Ombudsman limited to points of law, factual findings and evaluative judgments may be disturbed only where unsupported by…

An equitable account is available against a person who holds or has held another’s money in a fiduciary capacity. It is not generally available against an…

A stay under section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996 requires the relevant court proceedings to involve the parties to the arbitration agreement, or persons…

EU law required a dual credit when calculating corporation tax on qualifying dividends from EU-resident subsidiaries: credit for underlying foreign tax and…

A claim issued by a person who lacks title to sue is not necessarily an abuse of process. The Pickthall form of abuse requires actual knowledge, when…

An income payments order under section 310 of the Insolvency Act 1986 may capture pension payments actually made or to which a bankrupt has become entitled. It…

Without prejudice communications remain inadmissible when the court assesses costs, including where the communications are relied on to show an allegedly…

Interim mandatory relief should ordinarily be refused where the claimant can be adequately compensated in damages and the defendant can pay. If the defendant’s…

For limitation purposes, constructive knowledge under section 14A of the Limitation Act 1980 requires two stages. The court must first identify what the…

A binding settlement may arise from negotiations even where the parties expect a consent order or formal agreement to follow. The question is whether…

A stay imposed because Ethiopia was the natural forum should be lifted only where cogent evidence, assessed on the balance of probabilities, establishes a real…

A duly executed deed may bind the parties to admissions concerning the transaction it records, including an acknowledgement of indebtedness, even where the…

A harassment claim under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 may be a hybrid claim for insolvency purposes. A claim confined to distress and anxiety is…

A voluntary disposition may be rescinded in equity for a distinct, causative mistake sufficiently serious to make it unconscionable for the recipient to retain…

A bank is not in breach of contract by refusing a payment which would exceed an agreed overdraft limit, absent an agreement or other obligation to permit the…

On an application to set aside a statutory demand, the debtor must show a genuine dispute on grounds that appear substantial. The evidence must identify the…

Section 12(3) of the Human Rights Act 1998 generally requires an applicant for interim relief affecting expression to show that success at trial is more likely…

Under a contract for the sale of land, a seller’s unconditional right to a further deposit arising after service of a notice to complete is an accrued…

Consent to trade mark registration need not be in writing. Under section 5(5) of the Trade Marks Act 1994, consent must demonstrate unequivocally an intention…

A bank’s agreement to allow time for refinancing and the sale of specified secured properties must be construed from its written terms. A restriction on the…

Where an exclusive jurisdiction clause governs most of a dispute, the court should ordinarily enforce it unless substantial justice cannot be achieved in the…

A conditional order granting permission to defend may require payment into court where the defence appears possible but improbable. The sum must test the…

Where new evidence establishes that websites are operating as counterfeiting websites, the court may make website-blocking orders against internet service…

For a substantial lifetime gift, mental capacity is assessed under the common-law principles in Re Beaney, rather than directly under ss 2 and 3 of the Mental…

Under Luxembourg law, a binding contract requires agreement on its main obligations, identified parties and an intention to be legally bound. Later written…

For the purposes of Article 6(1) of the Brussels Regulation, a defendant domiciled in England may serve as an anchor defendant where it has a real, rather than…

Where a court determines a discrete preliminary issue, the unsuccessful party will ordinarily pay the costs of that issue when it is decided. The fact that the…

Under the common-law rules governing contracts made before 1 April 1991, the proper law is the law expressly chosen, the law inferred from the circumstances…

In a possession claim against trespassers, a claim is not genuinely disputed on substantial grounds merely because occupiers rely on environmental, political…

For class composition in a creditors’ scheme, the court first compares creditors’ legal rights against the company. Differences in personal interests or…

A contractual indemnity covering claims, losses, costs and legal fees may extend to the contracting party’s own unsuccessful claim against the indemnified…

A copyright licence may be oral, implied from agreed terms, or inferred from conduct. The person asserting a licence bears the burden of proving it. A director…

On an application to sanction an insurance business transfer scheme, the court must independently decide whether sanction is appropriate. It must first be…

The court may order internet service providers to block access to websites whose operators or users use the providers’ services to infringe intellectual…

Section 375(1) of the Insolvency Act 1986 permits a court to review, rescind or vary an order made by that court in its insolvency jurisdiction. It does not…

After dissolution, a partnership business continues for the purpose of winding up, and each partner ordinarily retains the right to participate in that…

On an application to cancel a caution against first registration, the court should adopt an approach analogous to an application for an interim injunction. It…

An indemnity costs order requires conduct or circumstances taking the case out of the norm. Where unreasonable conduct is relied upon, the conduct must be…

Trustees must exercise administrative powers in the interests of the beneficiaries and must exercise reasonable care and skill when carrying out discretionary…

Declaratory relief is discretionary. The court should consider whether there is a real and present dispute, whether the parties affected have had an…

A written loan agreement and guarantee will be enforced according to their terms where the alleged collateral oral agreement is not proved. A party cannot…

Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, the court must make an objective value judgment by applying the statutory factors. An…

A trust deed establishing a university institute may impose trusts extending beyond property initially transferred, where the instrument and its context show…

When directing distribution under section 382 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the court must consider the statutory purpose, the persons who…

A commercial agreement should be construed to give it practical effect where the parties clearly intended it to bind. The court may imply machinery needed to…

An enforceable building scheme may arise where land is sold by a common vendor under substantially uniform restrictions intended to benefit purchasers within a…

When deciding whether a statutory demand should be set aside because a debt is fully secured, the court must assess whether the security currently equals or…

A contractual break clause requiring tenants to use all reasonable endeavours to secure planning consent does not necessarily require them to accept a scheme…

A freezing order may extend to assets held by a trust or other third party where there is good reason to suppose that the defendant retains beneficial…

Inordinate and inexcusable delay alone does not amount to abuse of process. It becomes abusive when combined with an additional factor, such as wholesale…

Where parties succeed on different issues after discontinuance, costs should principally reflect the relative importance and outcome of those issues. The court…

The court’s jurisdiction to authorise an administrator to dispose of third-party goods depends on the statutory conditions being satisfied. The power to take…

Applications for strike-out or summary judgment should not determine difficult, fact-sensitive issues prematurely where the relevant evidence is substantially…

A national court may disclose a confidential European Commission infringement decision within a tightly controlled confidentiality ring where this protects…

Section 236 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has a broad jurisdictional scope. Documents held by third parties may fall within the jurisdiction where they have some…

A solicitor’s negligent failure to provide material information in a property transaction does not automatically make the client’s overpayment the measure of…

A third-party costs order may be made where, viewed objectively, a non-party was the real party responsible for generating and pursuing unsuccessful litigation…

An implied waiver of legal professional privilege arising from a solicitor-and-own-client costs assessment may be limited to the purposes of that assessment.…

Under section 97A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, the High Court may order an internet service provider to block access to websites where users…

Applications under the Variation of Trusts Act 1958 are subject to the fundamental principle of open justice. The private and family character of trust…

A term should be implied into a contract only where the instrument, read as a whole and against its relevant background, would reasonably be understood to mean…

A novation deed must be construed by reference to what it substantively does and to the language and structure of the instrument as a whole. A general…

Relief from sanctions under CPR 3.9 requires a structured three-stage inquiry: assess the seriousness and significance of the breach, consider why it occurred…

A conveyancing solicitor’s duty when certifying title for a mortgage lender is governed by the retainer properly construed and by the standard of a reasonably…

The High Court has jurisdiction to grant a website-blocking injunction against an internet service provider whose services are used by third parties to…

A signed bill or costs schedule ordinarily permits the court to assume that the indemnity principle has been observed, unless evidence justifies rejecting the…

In complex litigation, the court may order a preliminary issue to be tried before the remaining issues where the parties agree that it is likely to have a…

On an application concerning a provisional liquidator, the winding-up court retains jurisdiction despite an outstanding appeal to the First-tier Tribunal…

A debt created by Pensions Act 1995, section 75 is assignable by pension scheme trustees or managers. The statutory language creates an ordinary debt, and the…

An appeal is against the order, not merely the reasons, and ordinarily involves review rather than rehearing. The appellate court may intervene where the…

A settlement agreement is construed objectively as an ordinary contract, in the context in which it was made. Where the parties settled litigation in its…

A valuer’s duty of care is ordinarily confined to the purpose for which the valuation report was prepared. A valuation obtained for secured lending purposes…

An object fixed to land becomes part of the land according to the objective circumstances, principally the degree and purpose of annexation. The parties’…

The without-prejudice rule requires both a genuine dispute and a genuine attempt to resolve it. Marking correspondence “without prejudice” is a strong…

An informal arrangement between adjoining landowners may establish or modify boundary rights where it is proved or properly inferred from the parties’ conduct.…

A freezing injunction requires three cumulative conditions: a good arguable case, a real risk of dissipation, and that it is just and convenient to grant…

A claimant challenging the validity of a will must demonstrate a substantive common-law interest in the estate. The requirement is mandatory and cannot be…

Where a consent order postpones enforcement until specified conditions are breached, the court must identify the precise contractual or order-based event…

Compensation for misuse of confidential information must reflect the economic loss caused by the particular misuse. Sales of products directly embodying the…

In construing an overage clause tied to planning permission, the court must consider both the physical character of the permitted development and the uses…

Costs should reflect the parties’ relative success on discrete issues and the proportion of costs attributable to matters such as expert evidence. A reduction…

Where a trust defines beneficiaries as the company’s employees “from time to time”, the natural meaning is ordinarily employees at the time relevant to the…

Permission to amend pleadings should be determined objectively and fairly, by reference to the case previously advanced and the prejudice or procedural…

Where a detailed assessment includes an additional liability, the receiving party must serve the relevant supporting information with the notice of…

A mortgagee who takes possession of property and finds chattels there becomes an involuntary bailee. Its duty is to do what is right and reasonable in all the…

A bank may give advice or recommendations in substance, even where it does not describe its communications as advice. An assumption of responsibility and a…

The Forfeiture Rule applies to every case of unlawful killing, including manslaughter arising from diminished responsibility. Where the rule applies, relief is…

Confidential information may consist of a valuable combination of material, insight and presentation, even where some underlying elements are public. A…

A claimant alleging fraud must prove it on the balance of probabilities, supported by cogent evidence. The court should test witness evidence against…

For the inheritance-tax charity exemption, property is not held on trust for charitable purposes only merely because the trust’s purposes are charitable under…

A solicitor’s duty in drafting a commercial contract is assessed against the terms’ true construction and the circumstances of the retainer. The claimant must…

Where a contract gives either party a right to rescind by notice within a specified period, the right must ordinarily be exercised within that period. Time is…

Under CPR 31.14, a party may inspect a document mentioned in a witness statement only where the statement makes a direct allusion to specific documents…

The civil court has jurisdiction under Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, section 2, even where the convicting criminal court considered and refused…

An application to amend pleadings after a pre-trial review is ordinarily a late amendment. The court must strike a fair balance, having regard to the…

A person’s capacity must be assessed by reference to the particular transaction, even where the person may have capacity for other purposes. A transaction…

A claim under the Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations 1993 is a statutory claim relating to a contract, not a contractual claim. The Regulations…

Registered proprietors are entitled to possession of land occupied by trespassers and may obtain a declaration confirming that entitlement. On an interim…

A mortgagee’s powers, including the right to take possession, must be exercised in good faith for the purpose of obtaining repayment of the secured debt or…

An anti-suit injunction restraining foreign proceedings is discretionary and must be granted cautiously. Concurrent proceedings do not, by themselves…

A nomination made under a statutory pension scheme is made in accordance with an enactment for the purposes of section 8(1) of the Inheritance (Provision for…

For the purposes of the Lugano Convention, mandatory conciliation forming an integral first stage of a civil claim may constitute proceedings before a court.…

When considering an application under section 115(5) of the Charities Act 2011, the court exercises an original jurisdiction. A Charity Commission refusal is…

A liquidator must exercise the care and diligence expected of an ordinary, skilled insolvency practitioner. That requires an enquiring and neutral approach…

A contractual obligation to treat commercially sensitive information as confidential ordinarily prohibits disclosure outside the permitted confidentiality…

A trade mark injunction must be specific, fair and proportionate. It should not include a carve-out that effectively declares non-infringement for forms of use…

Charges arising under deemed gas or electricity contracts after an insolvency event are not administration expenses merely because supply continues during the…

Where related public-interest claims raise substantially common issues, the court should ordinarily address duplication and expense through active case…

Where pension scheme rules define the relevant index as RPI or any similar index satisfactory for HMRC, the wording can confer a power to select another…

An informal agreement reached during negotiations does not become contractually binding merely because the parties later complete the transaction to which it…

A trade mark proprietor may rely on use of a mark in a form differing from the registration where the differences do not alter the mark’s distinctive…

A Norwich Pharmacal order may require a bank to disclose the identity of an account holder who has received money paid by mistake. An unjust-enrichment claim…

A residuary gift in a will is construed from the language of the will read as a whole and in its factual context, applying the ordinary principles used for…

In an unfair-prejudice share purchase, the court has a wide discretion to fashion relief that cures the established prejudice. The general approach is to value…

Exclusive burial rights under the Cemeteries Clauses Act 1847 may extend beyond individual burial plots to a larger area set aside for that purpose. Such…

An alleged tenancy is void for uncertainty where the rent for the period after an initial term is to be negotiated as an unspecified percentage of profits…

The statutory threat provisions require an objective assessment of whether a communication would convey to a reasonable recipient that intellectual-property…

A contractual indemnifier may be ordered to pay the indemnified party before the indemnified party has paid the creditor. Equity permits payment to the…

A person described as a “salaried partner” may be either a true partner or an employee. The court must determine the substance of the relationship, not the…

A claim for professional negligence may amount to an abuse of process where proving the alleged loss would require the claimant to challenge factual findings…

An unless order requiring disclosure is not complied with merely by delivering documents to solicitors. The documents must be made available for inspection and…

In fraudulent misrepresentation, the representor must rebut the presumption that the misrepresentation materially induced the transaction. It is insufficient…

On an application to adduce fresh evidence on appeal, the court’s discretion under CPR 52.11(2)(b) must be exercised in accordance with the overriding…

A barrister’s fees may be recoverable from a foreign lawyer on an express or implied contractual basis, or by way of quantum meruit. The former rule concerning…

Where a qualifying floating charge holder appoints an administrator after a winding-up petition has been presented, the petition is suspended rather than…

Intervention in an employment disciplinary process is available where its continuation would constitute a breach of contract caused by serious procedural…

A freezing order may be continued where the applicant has a good arguable case, solid evidence of a real risk that assets will be dissipated so as to frustrate…

Where professionally drafted contractual language is clear, the court must apply it. Commercial considerations and the surrounding circumstances may assist…

Donations received through a charitable giving website may be held on trust even where the website does not use formal trust language. The court must assess…

Permission to rely on consumer survey evidence in a trade mark case is governed by the same gatekeeping principles whether the survey concerns confusion or…

A defective deed may still take effect as an equitable mortgage where it is otherwise a valid written agreement containing the agreed terms. Registration of a…

A defendant who admits repeated breaches of an injunction may be sanctioned for contempt even where some breaches have been rectified. The court must assess…

Where a professionally drafted contract contains poor or uncertain language, the court must construe it objectively in its commercial context. Business common…

Where administrators have power to enter a particularly momentous settlement, the court may give directions or liberty to proceed without taking over their…

Where a continuing care agreement refers to a price fixed under an expired umbrella agreement, the former price does not necessarily continue for the…

Collective enfranchisement is not excluded merely because companies were created and leases granted to facilitate the claim. The statutory tests in the…

Summary judgment may be granted where the claimant has no real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason for a trial. The court may test…

A judge should recuse himself only where the circumstances would lead a fair-minded and informed observer to conclude that there was a real possibility or…

Trustees are ordinarily entitled to reimbursement from trust assets for expenses properly incurred in administering the trust and conducting litigation on its…

On a without-notice application for exceptional interim relief, applicants and their legal advisers must present the case fully, fairly and accurately. Counsel…

Disputes within a religious association are justiciable where a member seeks enforcement of a civil or private right arising from the association’s…

In an urgent commercial dispute suitable for determination on a short issue of lease construction, the court may expedite a summary judgment application where…

Where a person claims a beneficial interest under a common intention trust, the legal interest is the starting point and the claimant bears the burden of…

Under Insolvency Act 1986, section 423 does not require dishonesty. A transaction at an undervalue falls within the section where a substantial purpose is to…

A bankrupt’s proceedings are not a nullity merely because the cause of action is vested in the trustee in bankruptcy. At most, commencing or pursuing such…

Franchise agreements are detailed commercial contracts. Broad duties of good faith, mutual support or continued expansion will not be implied unless necessary…

A party who has clearly been warned that work will continue unless a statutory demand is withdrawn in writing may reasonably proceed with an application before…

Legal advice privilege attaching to confidential instructions and advice given by a beneficiary to her solicitor is not lost merely because the solicitor later…

Under article 22 of the Brussels I Regulation, exclusive jurisdiction depends on the principal subject matter of the proceedings. A dispute about beneficial…

A solicitor’s undertaking governing client money must be performed according to its terms. Where funds are to be returned if a specified insurance policy or…

A trustee may compromise trust claims where the trust instrument or governing statute does not exclude the statutory power of compromise. On an application for…

Statutory charitable trusts created by repealed legislation cease on repeal unless preserved by the legislation. A valid transfer of property before repeal is…

A winding-up petition should be restrained where the company has a genuine and serious cross-claim which exceeds the petitioning creditor’s debt. The court…

For creditors’ schemes, class composition depends on whether creditors’ rights, viewed as the rights affected by the scheme, are the same or sufficiently…

For calculating average pensionable pay under the Firemen's Pension Scheme Order 1992, pay “for” a year means pay referable to work or employment during that…

A professional adviser’s duty depends on the particular retainer and circumstances. A patent attorney’s ordinary duties concern patent drafting, prosecution…

In construing a commercial intellectual-property agreement, the court must read related provisions together and identify the objective commercial purpose of…

A contractual deadline may be extended under a unilateral contractual power only where the parties have objectively reached an effective determination to…

A donatio mortis causa is an exceptional present gift conditional on death. It requires a clear intention to give, contemplation of impending death, and…

Relief under article 21 of the Cross-Border Insolvency Regulations 2006 is principally procedural. Article 21(1)(a) does not permit the court to restrain a…

A professional adviser’s knowledge that an individual may suffer loss through a company does not, by itself, create a parallel duty of care to that individual.…

Cancellation of registration under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965 removes a society’s corporate status and limited liability, but does not…

The four-month period in Civil Procedure Rules 1998, rule 7.5(1), applies where a claim form is served within the jurisdiction. The six-month period in rule…

Fraudulent misrepresentations inducing a contract may justify annulment and rescission under the Maltese Civil Code where the fraud involved sufficiently…

A bankrupt generally lacks standing to challenge a pre-bankruptcy judgment against her. That challenge belongs to the trustee in bankruptcy, because the…

For the purposes of section 1(1A) of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, living in the same household does not require continuous…

Relief from sanctions under CPR 3.9(1) requires particular weight to be given to efficient and proportionate litigation and compliance with rules and court…

A registered trade mark specification is not invalid merely because its boundaries have some uncertainty at the margins. The question is whether it creates an…

A claimant must plead and prove its own loss. Loss suffered by a subsidiary cannot ordinarily be treated as loss suffered pound for pound by its parent…

Under r 7.34 of the Insolvency Rules 1986, the responsible insolvency practitioner may agree costs payable from an insolvent estate instead of requiring…

Insolvency proceedings are not generally the appropriate forum for determining factual disputes about a petition debt or crossclaim. A bankruptcy petition…

A binding commercial agreement depends on the parties’ objective intentions, assessed from what they said and did. No contract arises while essential terms…

Applications to adduce expert evidence and to adjourn a fixed trial should be determined under the overriding objective in Civil Procedure Rules 1998…

A former director’s fiduciary obligations do not inevitably end when the directorship ends. The court must examine the circumstances, including whether company…

A Pallant v Morgan equity may arise in a commercial as well as a domestic transaction. It requires a pre-acquisition arrangement or understanding, contemplated…

A guarantee may be rescinded for negligent misrepresentation only where the claimant proves an actionable statement of fact, its untruth, reasonable reliance…

A contract is interpreted objectively by asking what it would convey to a reasonable person with the relevant background knowledge. The court must construe the…

When a creditor seeks more time to challenge an administrator’s rejection of a proof of debt, the court applies the modern approach to compliance with time…

Rectification is an exceptional remedy requiring convincing proof of the parties’ actual intention at the time an instrument was executed. The court will not…

A company director’s sole ownership of the shares does not authorise him to misapply company property, particularly where the company is insolvent or…

An expert determination clause referring any dispute on any matter arising out of an agreement may extend beyond disputes expressly identified elsewhere in the…

A statutory appeal may be the exclusive means of challenging a regulatory penalty where the statutory scheme provides a full merits appeal within a defined…

Under the Community Trade Mark Regulation, the requirement for the same cause of action adopts the autonomous EU-law test of the same facts, the same rule of…

Claims for misuse of private information and breach of confidence are not plainly abusive merely because the facts also cause reputational damage. At an…

A company director may be liable jointly with the company for copyright infringement where he procures, directs and shares a common design to commit the…

The court’s jurisdiction over the Registrar of Companies is limited. There is no general inherent supervisory jurisdiction, but ordinary public law principles…

The existence of an income payments agreement under Insolvency Act 1986, section 310A, does not remove the court’s jurisdiction to make an income payments…

Commercial lease service-charge provisions must be applied according to their express structure. Unless the landlord nominates another date, the final…

Under Insolvency Rules 1986 r 4.85, only the liquidator, or a creditor where the liquidator declines to act, may apply to expunge or reduce an admitted proof.…

A claim under Companies Act 2006, section 994 requires conduct of the company’s affairs, prejudice to the petitioner’s interests as a member, and unfairness.…

A court order is construed by reference to the natural and ordinary meaning of its words, read in their syntax, context and background. Its interpretation…

A pension trust is void for uncertainty where its governing deed directs the trustee to calculate benefits by reference to statutory provisions that contain no…

In a misrepresentation claim concerning a proposed property investment, pre-contract communications must be read objectively, as a whole and in their…

For a pension scheme to be excluded from Pension Protection Fund protection under regulation 2(1)(d) of the Pension Protection Fund (Entry Rules) Regulations…

An administration order requires satisfaction of both statutory conditions: the company must be unable, or likely to become unable, to pay its debts, and…

Rectification of a unilateral instrument is a discretionary remedy exercised with caution. The claimant must provide convincing evidence of the specific…

A final injunction should be proportionate, sufficiently effective to cure the infringement established, and should not create an unjustified barrier to…

A right of way is not granted by general words referring to liberties, privileges or advantages of a continuous nature where the instrument, read as a whole…

When confirming a reduction of capital involving payment to shareholders, the court may dispense with settling a list of creditors if no creditor could…

For the purposes of the Companies (Cross-Border Mergers) Regulations 2007 and Directive 2005/56/EC, a merger by absorption may remain a cross-border merger…

A commission under an agency agreement is payable only where the agent’s services were the effective cause of the transaction, subject to the contract’s proper…

A party must obey a court order unless and until it has been varied. A party which considers an order erroneous should apply for variation, or comply first and…

Commercial contracts are construed objectively, by considering the ordinary meaning of the language in the context of the agreement and its commercial purpose.…

Rectification of a voluntary unilateral settlement depends on the settlor’s subjective intention. An outward expression or objective communication of that…

A representation of law can in principle found an estoppel by representation. The position remains subject to reasonable reliance, the nature of the statement…

Where a party seeks to advance in later proceedings a point that was essential to an earlier cause of action, the proper starting point is the second category…

An application made before expiry of a court-ordered time limit is not an application for relief from sanctions and should not be treated as closely analogous…

For registered land, adverse possession requires factual possession, exclusivity and an intention to possess. Before the Land Registration Act 2002, the…

A company that becomes an Obligor under an intercreditor agreement by satisfying the accession requirements retains that status unless the agreement clearly…

When sanctioning a scheme of arrangement, the court must verify statutory compliance, proper class representation, bona fide voting without coercion, and…

Contractual notice provisions in the 1992 ISDA Master Agreement prescribe the permitted methods of giving notice. They are mandatory, not merely evidential…

A compromise of proceedings generally settles the matters actually in dispute, but it does not waive a separate, admitted contractual right unless the…

A contractual termination date is effective according to the parties’ agreement unless a valid extension is proved. A party asserting an oral variation must…

A contractual assurance that customer information will remain confidential may override inconsistent standard terms where it was intended to induce entry into…

Sections 235 and 236 of the Insolvency Act 1986 confer wide inquisitorial powers. The court may order production of documents reasonably required by…

Meeting the statutory preconditions for administration does not compel the court to make an administration order. The court retains a discretion and must…

A solicitor acting for a mortgage lender must report information obtained through required title investigations where it has a material bearing on the…

On an application to sanction a scheme of arrangement, the court must first establish jurisdiction by verifying compliance with the convening order, the…

Where related companies are controlled by the same people, the court may take contemporaneous accounting records at face value when the alleged inter-company…

In a Part 8 claim, a directions hearing is not necessarily a case management conference. The costs-management provisions applicable to a case management…

Contractual interpretation begins with the ordinary, natural and grammatical meaning of the words, read in their documentary and commercial context. Where the…

Summary judgment is appropriate where a claim is fanciful and has no realistic prospect of success, provided the court considers the evidence reasonably…

Membership of a joint Hindu or Sikh family does not itself make the family’s assets joint family property. There must be a recognised source of joint family…

In an application to restrain presentation of a winding-up petition, the court asks whether the alleged debt is bona fide disputed on substantial grounds. A…

A contract made by a person lacking capacity is not automatically void. It may be avoided where the other contracting party knew, or ought to have known, of…

Costs in trust and estate litigation depend on the substance of the dispute and the parties’ conduct. Applications genuinely concerned with the administration…

HMRC could not reopen admitted issues concerning overpaid VAT where doing so would constitute an abuse of process. EU law required an adequate indemnity for…

At the convening stage of a scheme of arrangement, the court makes only a preliminary assessment of class constitution and jurisdiction. Creditors belong in…

A will is construed by identifying the testator’s intention from the words used, read in their documentary and factual context. Where the statutory conditions…

A conspiracy to compete is not necessarily a conspiracy to injure. The tort of conspiracy to injure by unlawful means requires a combination, an intention to…

An English court should not restrain a party from continuing proceedings before the court of another Convention state where the order would interfere with that…

In a default judgment, the court must determine the relief to which the claimant is entitled solely by reference to the pleaded case. Deemed admissions cannot…

Security for costs is discretionary, even where a condition in CPR 25.13(2) is satisfied. Where opposing claims arise from substantially the same issues, the…

On an application under paragraph 74 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, the statutory test is whether the administrator has acted, or proposes to act…

A Pensions Ombudsman may find maladministration where a pension scheme administrator’s automated systems cannot provide accurate and important information to…

The court has power under Senior Courts Act 1981, section 51, to make a costs order against a person who is not yet a substantive party. Civil Procedure Rules…

Relief from sanctions depends on the nature of the default, the reason for it and all the circumstances, with particular weight given to efficient litigation…

In an unlimited company’s insolvency, members’ liability to contribute extends to all company debts and liabilities, including statutory interest and…

A trial should be adjourned where, viewed at the time of the application, the existing timetable offers no realistic prospect of a fair and orderly hearing.…

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

When fixing an interim payment on account of costs, the court should make a reasonable estimate of the sum likely to be recovered. It need not identify the…

When an estate may be insolvent, an executor must balance the interests of beneficiaries against those of potential creditors and claimants with valid claims.…

A demise described as “the Garage” ordinarily includes the garage’s physical structure, including its roof, unless the lease indicates otherwise. Where a…

A detailed pitch for a television programme may possess the necessary quality of confidence even though it is less developed than a full treatment. However…

A post-termination restraint is enforceable only so far as it is reasonably necessary to protect a legitimate interest, such as confidential information…

A solicitor is liable where contractual drafting departs from the client’s instructions, even if the instructions were unclear and the solicitor misunderstood…

In a possession claim against trespassers occupying privately owned land, Articles 10 and 11 do not ordinarily provide an arguable defence where the protest…

Where proceedings determine liability or declaratory issues but a related financial outcome remains to be established, the court may reserve costs if there is…

Norwich Pharmacal relief may be granted against a bank’s English branch to obtain information held or accessible through an overseas branch. The remedy is…

A court may grant declaratory relief for breach of a freezing order against an existing party without a committal application, but the remedy is discretionary.…

Permission to amend pleadings should be refused where the proposed amendment is late, disproportionate, prolix, inadequately particularised, or lacks a real…

Particulars of claim in a software copyright action must identify the copyright work relied on with sufficient clarity, including the relevant statutory…

A court has a discretion to stay copyright infringement proceedings where a related licensing dispute has been referred to the Copyright Tribunal. The court is…

A will is construed objectively, using its natural meaning, the document’s purpose, its provisions, the surrounding circumstances and common sense. Where…

Where the court imposes a sanction for the first time by an order made without a hearing or on its own initiative, an application to set aside or vary that…

A stay of proceedings will be granted under Spiliada Maritime Corp v Cansulex Ltd where the defendant shows that another forum is clearly or distinctly more…

On an appeal from a case-management decision, the appellate court may interfere only for an error of law or principle, failure to consider relevant matters…

On an account of profits for passing off, once substantial public misrepresentation has been established, the account ordinarily extends to all profits made…

A harbour authority may regulate port safety, but cannot use that power as a Trojan horse to prohibit lawful animal shipments on animal-welfare grounds. Where…

A consent order is construed by the ordinary principles applicable to a commercial contract. Its meaning is determined from the perspective of a reasonable…

Dishonest assistance requires participation in a breach of fiduciary duty and conduct falling below the objective standards of ordinary honesty, assessed in…

A contractual pension settlement is not varied merely because legislation later changes the benefits that may generally be provided. A pension commencement…

Fame or decorative use of a fictional character does not, without more, establish trade mark significance. The issue is factual and turns on what the relevant…

For relief from sanctions, the court must first characterise the relevant non-compliance. A deadline missed by a short period may be trivial when viewed alone.…

For a directors’ disqualification application arising from MTIC fraud, the court must first determine whether the company participated in transactions…

A party who undertakes to arrange building works is not necessarily liable as a main contractor for every defect in the contractor’s work. The contractual…

In civil proceedings alleging bribery and economic loss, the claimant must prove both the unlawful conduct and loss caused by it. Where the alleged loss…

Fraudulent misrepresentation requires a clear representation of present fact or law, materiality, intended reliance, falsity, the requisite knowledge or…

An application under section 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996 requires a serious irregularity that has caused, or will cause, substantial injustice. The…

The court has an unfettered case-management power to order a preliminary issue. The decision requires a case-specific assessment of the likely advantages and…

A statement under section 77A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 must comply materially with the statutory requirements and the prescribed regulations. Subject to…

Under section 97A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, the court may grant a blocking injunction against an internet service provider where four…

Words describing a martial art may remain generic and descriptive even where they appear within a registered composite mark. Registration does not allow the…

Rent review clauses are construed using ordinary contractual principles, giving primary weight to their language read in the context of the lease and its…

For a family company operated as a quasi-partnership, the court may wind up the company on just and equitable grounds where mutual trust and confidence have…

Under Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, pooling and management as a whole are separate alternative characteristics of a collective investment scheme.…

On an application for an interlocutory injunction concerning repair works by a landlord, the landlord’s repairing rights and the tenant’s entitlement to quiet…

A common-law double derivative claim remains available outside Companies Act 2006 Part 11, including where the holding company is foreign. The claimant must…

In group litigation, the default equal sharing of common costs may be varied where substantial differences in claim value make it unfair. The court should seek…

For annulment of a bankruptcy under section 282(1)(b) of the Insolvency Act 1986, an unproved creditor’s debt need not be paid or secured where the creditor…

Trade mark infringement under Article 5(1)(a) requires use of an identical sign in the course of trade in relation to identical goods, with use liable to…

A colour claim is not a limitation of a trade mark unless the registration expressly restricts the rights conferred. A monochrome device mark may encompass use…

Costs on an interim application are governed by the general rule that the successful party should receive its costs, subject to the court’s discretion having…

For registration challenges, the court must assess the fair, notional use of the applied-for mark in all circumstances in which it might be used if registered.…

A party’s confidence in its case, the binary nature of liability, distrust between litigants, or a substantial difference in valuation will not ordinarily…

Rectification cannot be ordered merely to clarify wording. The court must determine that the written instrument failed to record the parties’ true agreement…

For security for costs under rule 25.13(2)(g), the defendant must first identify an objective step taken by the claimant in relation to assets which has made…

A testamentary gift to a registered political party may constitute a donation under the Political Parties Elections and Referendums Act 2000, including where…

When deciding whether to admit a late supplementary witness statement, the court must exercise its case-management discretion in accordance with the overriding…

The rule in Pigot’s Case is confined to material alterations potentially prejudicial to rights or obligations under an instrument. It does not apply where an…

Trade mark infringement by likelihood of confusion requires a global and contextual assessment through the eyes of the average consumer. The court must…

In an insolvency application, the court may give summary judgment where an allegation has no real prospect of success, including because the factual or legal…

The court should be cautious before granting declarations by consent where there is no dispute, particularly where the declaration concerns the operation of…

An unincorporated association is not dissolved merely because it has become inactive, if it retains assets and its trustees continue to administer them.…

The power to rescind a winding-up order is discretionary and must be exercised cautiously. The applicant must show exceptional circumstances involving a…

A trustee’s power to transfer trust property to another settlement must be exercised for the benefit of the beneficiaries of the transferring trust. A transfer…

Trade mark infringement is assessed by comparing the sign and the goods identified in the relevant registration. A device containing a prominent word is not…

A dominant undertaking may abuse its position by distorting competition in a downstream market even where it does not itself operate in that market. A…

A professional trustee is not necessarily entitled to charge normal or standard professional rates. Reasonable remuneration requires an evaluative assessment…

Authorisation under section 115 of the Charities Act 2011 may be granted retrospectively where the statutory language does not make prior authorisation a…

Confidential information may be used in substantive proceedings where it is necessary for their fair disposal and no adequate alternative exists. The court may…

Where the Board has promulgated detailed levy rules under section 175(5) of the Pensions Act 2004, the rules must be applied according to their proper…

Where jointly owned property secures a debt connected with one co-owner, the equity of exoneration depends on the parties’ presumed intention and the equitable…

A product shape is not inherently distinctive merely because it is unusual for the goods concerned. The relevant question is whether the average consumer would…

Proceedings challenging the admission, amount or ranking of a claim in an insolvency distribution fall within the insolvency exclusion in article 1(2)(b) of…

Summary judgment should be refused where the defence has a realistic, rather than fanciful, prospect of success. The court must avoid conducting a mini-trial…

For a pension protection levy, the relevant Measurement Time may differ according to the purpose for which information is assessed. Under the 2011/2012 Levy…

In a patent validity and infringement action, a prior disclosure is anticipatory only if made available to a person free in law and equity to use it and if it…

On a winding-up petition, a company’s insolvency does not establish the petitioner’s standing where the petition debt is genuinely disputed on substantial…

On an application to sanction a scheme of arrangement, the court must consider compliance with statutory and procedural requirements, the fairness of the…

Where proceedings concern the administration or operation of an apparent charity, the court must first determine whether the entity is a charity and whether…