High Court: Chancery Division judgments, 2022

A director who procures the company’s breach of contract is ordinarily protected by the Said v Butt principle if acting bona fide within the scope of authority…

Indemnity costs require conduct sufficiently outside the ordinary and reasonable conduct of proceedings. A party’s failure to prove several issues, refusal to…

A pre-commencement Part 36 offer need not exactly mirror the relief claimed. It complies if made by reference to identified claims and containing a genuine and…

A member’s petition under Companies Act 2006, section 994 requires both relevant prejudice and unfairness. In an insolvent company, the member will generally…

On an escheat following disclaimer of company property, subordinate interests in the land survive. A vesting order under Law of Property Act 1925, s. 181…

At a scheme convening hearing, creditors may form one class where their rights are sufficiently similar to enable consultation in pursuit of a common interest.…

Forfeiture requires a material breach of covenant. A lease right of access limited to purposes connected with the lease and the landlord’s interest in the land…

A group litigation order is discretionary. The existence of numerous claims raising common or related issues does not itself justify making one. The court must…

In a trade mark and passing off dispute, a proprietor must prove genuine use for the relevant goods or services. Use confined to an independent subcategory…

Failure to ask about technical limitations before electronic service is not automatically fatal. The court must identify the requirement, consider the…

Under rule 3(a) of Schedule 4 to the Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982, the court must identify the principal contractual obligation forming the basis…

Standard-basis assessment is the usual costs order. Indemnity costs require conduct or circumstances taking the case out of the norm, assessed by reference to…

Summary judgment may be granted where the defendant has no real prospect of successfully defending the claim and there is no other compelling reason for trial.…

An unfair prejudice petition may theoretically include relief belonging to the company, but such relief should ordinarily be pursued through a derivative…

At a scheme convening hearing, the court does not determine the merits of the scheme. It considers whether any jurisdictional or other roadblock makes sanction…

A sewer is private unless it is vested in a sewerage undertaker as a public sewer. Where an undertaker asserts a right to charge for sewerage services, it…

Where a lease reserves rights to carry out works or development subject to a proviso protecting the flat’s value, the proviso may operate as a contractual…

An equitable charge created by a company must be registered within the statutory period. If it is not registered, it is void as security against the company’s…

Strike-out and summary judgment applications should not determine a developing or fact-sensitive question where pleaded evidence could realistically affect the…

An application under section 303 of the Insolvency Act 1986 should not be used to obtain relief inconsistent with an existing direction. The proper routes are…

Rule 21 of a pension scheme’s rules need not provide an exhaustive mechanism for eliminating a funding shortfall. Where the rule requires the shortfall to be…

A freezing order may continue where the applicant has a good arguable case, a real risk of unjustified dissipation and relief is just and convenient. The risk…

Where a court proposes to make serious, legally consequential findings against a non-party, procedural fairness ordinarily requires notice of the case…

Permission to amend a claim introducing a new cause of action should be granted where the proposed case discloses reasonable grounds and has a real prospect of…

On applications for strike out and summary judgment, the court must apply a common test: whether the claim has a realistic, rather than fanciful, prospect of…

When assessing conceptual similarity between trade marks, the court must consider the perception of the relevant average consumers. It must identify any likely…

Under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006, a foreign company may seek an English restructuring plan where it has a sufficient connection with England and Wales.…

An interlocutory appeal has a clear outcome when the appellant succeeds on the issue determined by the appeal. The usual approach is to deal with the costs of…

Pre-judgment interest normally runs from accrual of the cause of action because it compensates for being kept out of money. The court may depart from that…

A claimant who provides services may recover on a quantum meruit where the defendant has been enriched and has freely accepted the services. Free acceptance…

A contractual rent provision tied to an underlease may require an implied alternative mechanism if that underlease is later determined. Construction of the…

Equitable compensation for breach of fiduciary duty is assessed by identifying the actual loss caused by the breach, using hindsight and common sense.…

Permission to add a new party and alternative claims after expiry of limitation periods is discretionary. A proposed amendment introducing a new cause of…

At a convening hearing for a scheme of arrangement, the court considers notification, creditor identity, class composition, jurisdiction, meeting directions…

A party waives legal professional privilege where it relies on the substance or effect of privileged advice to advance its case on an issue the court must…

The unsuccessful party is generally liable for the successful party’s costs, assessed in the court’s discretion having regard to all the circumstances.…

When sanctioning a scheme of arrangement, the court must be satisfied that the statutory requirements are met, the relevant class has been fairly represented…

Summary judgment or strike-out of part of a claim is discretionary. The court may determine a short legal or construction point summarily where the evidence is…

A professional art dealer is judged by the standard of the ordinary skilled dealer possessing the relevant special skill. A dealer is not negligent merely…

A costs indemnity may extend beyond the handing down of judgment to consequential matters dealt with directly before the judgment order is made, including…

An appellate court should not retry factual disputes or substitute its assessment of witnesses and documents merely because it might have reached a different…

Relief from forfeiture may be available where an option over land is terminated for breach of obligations in a related lease. The grantee need establish only a…

In assessing costs, the court should identify the overall successful party, rather than treating success on individual issues as necessarily decisive. The…

A tenant’s contractual break notice may be served years before the break date where the lease requires only a minimum period of notice and contains no maximum…

When appointing the effective time for an energy transfer scheme, the court’s role is principally jurisdictional and concerned with timing. It must ascertain…

An oral profit-sharing agreement may be concluded and enforceable even where it has no fixed end date and the relevant customer introduction involves an…

A bankruptcy restrictions order is mandatory where the court considers it appropriate having regard to the bankrupt’s conduct. Conduct which places assets…

On an application to amend a pleading, the court may consider whether alleged criminal conduct forms part of a civil claim. It may determine the relevant facts…

For an adult child’s claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, reasonable financial provision is assessed objectively and is…

A declaration is discretionary. The court should grant one where it has real utility, is grounded in concrete facts, and is the most effective way to resolve…

Where an administrator thinks that the purpose of an administration has been sufficiently achieved, the decision is reviewable on a good-faith and rationality…

An appeal on a point of law from a Pensions Ombudsman determination may raise illegality, procedural impropriety or irrationality, including a material…

Under section 4 of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, the court has an unfettered discretion to permit an Inheritance Act claim…

An individual voluntary arrangement may be challenged where creditor votes rest on debts that have not been proved. A challenged creditor should have an…

In an unfair-prejudice petition, conduct authorised by the company’s articles and related contractual arrangements will ordinarily not be unfair. The court…

Under Paragraph 76(2)(a) of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, the court may extend an administrator’s term for an appropriate specified period. The…

Under Insolvency Act 1986, section 303, dissatisfaction with a trustee’s conduct is insufficient. The applicant must have a legitimate and substantial interest…

An unless order imposing an automatic strike-out sanction remains effective according to its clear terms, even if it was not served. Non-service is instead a…

Permission to appeal requires a good arguable point with a reasonable prospect of success, but factual challenges face particular difficulty. A…

Permission to appeal may be granted where an appeal has a real prospect of success or there is another compelling reason for it to be heard. The High Court…

A worldwide freezing order may be continued after non-disclosure where the interests of justice require it. The usual starting point is discharge, but an…

Reliance on legal professional privilege does not ordinarily make litigation abusively unfair, even where relevant and highly probative documents are withheld.…

Under Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the court may sanction an insurance business transfer scheme where the statutory certificates…

A party cannot add a penal notice to a court order without the court’s authority. Under the current Civil Procedure Rules 1998, a contempt application must…

A fiduciary who has clear notice that trust property, or a fund in his possession, is claimed by another must not deal with it in disregard of that claim.…

A share transfer is effective where the transferor executed the share transfer form, even if the surrounding agreement is disputed. A person seeking…

A final charging order should not be made over property unless the judgment debtor’s beneficial interest has been determined where that issue has been raised.…

On an application under paragraph 79 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, the court may terminate an administration and make a compulsory winding-up…

The general rule that the unsuccessful party pays the successful party’s costs concerns success in the litigation or application viewed overall, rather than…

A dispute concerning a statutory demand must satisfy the summary judgment test. It must have a real prospect of success and be more than merely arguable. The…

A second set of proceedings covering the same subject matter as an earlier claim may amount to an abuse of process where the earlier claim was struck out…

For the purposes of Insolvency Act 1986, a preference may arise where a company repays an existing creditor using new secured borrowing, even though the wider…

For an administration order, the company must be unable, or likely to become unable, to pay its debts, and the court must consider it reasonably likely that…

A claim in unjust enrichment requires enrichment, enrichment at the claimant’s expense, and an unjust factor recognised by established categories or…

For a short application dealt with on paper, the court may treat the written process as a hearing for the purpose of assessing costs, although rules referring…

In a specific disclosure regime, the identification of custodians must proceed on a deliberately low, over-inclusive threshold. The producing party must…

An extended civil restraint order may be extended where the court considers that appropriate, but the court must not simply repeat the test for imposing the…

Documents obtained under a freezing order may be used for the purposes permitted by the order without further permission. For use in other proceedings, the…

An express trust of shares may be created without particular formalities if the words and conduct, viewed in context, show a clear intention to dispose of the…

A lease must be construed according to its natural meaning and the agreement read as a whole. A description such as “first floor maisonette” may identify the…

Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 does not ordinarily make a claimant a victim merely because secondary legislation may reduce the prospects of success in separate…

The general prohibition in Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 applies to activities concerning regulated mortgage contracts and sale and rent back…

A supplier’s renewables obligation comprises a primary obligation to provide renewable obligation certificates and a secondary obligation to make a buyout…

A later claim is barred where it relies on substantially the same factual situation as an earlier failed claim, even if it is given a different legal label or…

Permission to appeal, granted because an earlier decision has a real prospect of being wrong, does not itself establish a serious issue to be tried on the…

A voluntary disposition may be rescinded for mistake where the trustees held a distinct, causative mistake as to the transaction’s substance or effect, and the…

An equitable breach of confidence may be established where a defendant deliberately obtains, copies, retains or stores information which is, or ought to be…

A contractual power to terminate on specified conditions is not ordinarily subject to an implied requirement that it be exercised rationally or consistently…

Permission to enforce a moratorium debt under regulation 7(2)(b) of the Debt Respite Scheme (Breathing Space Moratorium and Mental Health Crisis Moratorium)…

Section 9(2) of the Crime (International Co-Operation) Act 2003 prohibits any use of evidence obtained through mutual legal assistance for a purpose other than…

Under Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, an insurance business transfer scheme should be sanctioned where the statutory requirements are…

To set aside a statutory demand under rule 10.5(b) of the Insolvency Rules 2016, the debtor must show a genuine and substantial dispute with a real prospect of…

A registered shareholder, including a trustee or nominee shareholder, may present a petition under Companies Act 2006, s.994, even where another person holds…

Permission to bring an additional counterclaim to set aside a judgment for fraud depends on a real prospect of proving both conscious and deliberate dishonesty…

For service out of the jurisdiction, the claimant must show a good arguable case on the gateway, a serious issue to be tried and that England and Wales is…

On a public-interest winding-up petition, the court retains a discretion even where the Secretary of State considers winding up expedient. The court must…

An estoppel arising from a shared assumption that a receiver’s management responsibilities have ended does not, without sufficient detrimental reliance…

Under CPR rule 18.1, the court may order clarification of an unclear case or additional information about a disputed matter. A request must be reasonably…

A foreign bankruptcy judgment may be denied recognition for fraud only where the fraud was operative in obtaining that judgment. The relevant question is…

On an objection to a registered company name under Companies Act 2006, the applicant’s goodwill or reputation under section 69(1) should ordinarily be assessed…

The court’s powers under Insolvency Act 1986 sections 423–425 are broad and flexible. Relief must restore the position, so far as practicable, and protect the…

For the purposes of the consumer jurisdiction provisions, a person concludes a contract as a consumer where its purpose can objectively be regarded as outside…

Copyright protects original expression, including the original selection, arrangement and compilation of research material, but it does not protect historical…

A local planning authority does not ordinarily owe an applicant, its developer, lender or landowner a private-law duty of care merely because it processes and…

Under section 282(1)(a) of the Insolvency Act 1986, a bankruptcy order may be annulled where, on grounds existing when it was made, it ought not to have been…

A statutory demand may be set aside where the alleged debt is substantially disputed, including where the creditor has failed to prove an alleged assignment. A…

On an application to sanction an insurance business transfer scheme, the court must determine whether sanction is appropriate in all the circumstances. It must…

A claimant cannot use a differently presented cause of action to re-litigate losses or counterfactual issues sufficiently encompassed by earlier proceedings.…

The discretion to stay or adjourn proceedings under CPR 3.1(2)(b) and (f) is open-ended and must be exercised in accordance with the overriding objective. The…

Under rule 22 of the Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, a surviving spouse has priority for a grant of letters of administration. The High Court nevertheless…

There is no automatic entitlement to an interpreter in English civil proceedings. Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights does not itself require…

For a preference under Insolvency Act 1986, it is insufficient to show that a transaction conferred a benefit on a creditor, surety or guarantor. The company…

A solicitor may be restrained from using a former client’s confidential information only where the information is confidential, relevant to the matter, and…

Summary judgment may be granted where the defence is arguable but has no real or realistic prospect of success. The court assesses the evidence available on…

When settling a final order, a general costs-in-the-case order does not necessarily displace earlier indications concerning particular applications, especially…

An Arrow declaration is discretionary and should be granted only where it serves a useful purpose, assessed in the context of the dispute and having regard to…

Where electronic filtering creates a real risk that relevant documents will be excluded without human review, the court may order a bespoke disclosure regime…

When exercising a general case-management power to stay proceedings, the court should not apply the American Cyanamid test. Once a proper basis for a stay is…

Costs budgets must be assessed phase by phase. The court asks whether the total budget for each phase falls within a reasonable and proportionate range. It…

For the purposes of director disqualification, a director may have caused a company’s misconduct either by positively bringing it about or by knowingly failing…

A liability arising after a bankruptcy order remains a bankruptcy debt where it arises from an obligation incurred before that order. This applies even where…

Similar fact evidence is admissible in civil proceedings only where it is potentially probative of an issue requiring proof and its admission is proportionate…

A floating charge granted to a connected person during the relevant period is prima facie invalid under Insolvency Act 1986, but remains valid to the extent of…

Privilege is waived only where a party refers to privileged material and relies on it to support or advance its case on an issue for decision. A narrative…

On a first hearing of a Part 8 claim, the court may dispose of the claim summarily where the supporting evidence appears sufficient and the defendant raises no…

Under the ISDA Master Agreement, whether an Event of Default is continuing depends on whether the event or state of affairs constituting it continues, not…

In disputes over beneficial ownership of land, legal title is the starting point, but a party asserting different beneficial ownership bears the evidential…

Liability under article 1064 of the Russian Civil Code requires proof of harm, causation, fault and unlawfulness. Dishonest enforcement of contractual security…

A director who receives a challenged payment must explain and justify it as a proper payment. The company determines whether remuneration should be awarded and…

A settled practice of residents in a block of flats parking their cars in a defined area may establish a communal right to park appurtenant to the block. It is…

A winding-up petition should not be used to determine a debt subject to a substantial dispute raised in good faith. A dispute is substantial if it has a…

A person subject to a committal order who wishes to rely on privilege against self-incrimination must raise the privilege within the time allowed for…

A distribution under Part 23 of the Companies Act 2006 may occur through a genuine accounting transaction which allocates a dividend to reduce…

In trust and estate litigation, the court must distinguish between the inter partes costs order and any trustee’s or personal representative’s indemnity from…

In a director-disqualification claim under section 6 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, the court must decide whether the individual…

A mortgage adviser’s duty, informed by the Mortgage Conduct of Business rules, concerns whether the recommended mortgage is affordable and appropriate to the…

Warehousing is an abuse of process where proceedings are issued but, without good reason, are not pursued in accordance with the rules and are instead…

Hearsay evidence should ordinarily be admitted where it is relevant, with the court assessing its weight. Exclusion for a witness’s non-attendance at…

In sentencing for criminal contempt, the court should assess seriousness by reference to the offender’s culpability and the harm caused, while recognising that…

A trust instrument is not a sham merely because the parties intend to rely on it selectively or keep a beneficial interest off the registered title. The…

Fraudulent calumny requires proof that a false representation about a beneficiary was made to the testator to induce a testamentary change, knowing it to be…

A settlement release covering claims arising out of or connected with prior proceedings must be construed by identifying the particular cause of action relied…

In trust and estate litigation, a trustee’s statutory and procedural entitlement to reimbursement depends on whether the expenses were properly incurred when…

A will must be construed as a whole, by identifying the testator’s objective intention from the words used in their documentary and factual context. A…

A non-party costs order is exceptional, but the court has a wide, fact-specific discretion under Senior Courts Act 1981, section 51 and CPR rule 46.2. The…

A first-instance judge has no jurisdiction, after an order has been made and perfected, to determine a new point which was not argued or decided before…

Under section 42 of the Partnership Act 1890, an outgoing partner may elect between a share of profits attributable to the use of partnership assets and…

The court may pass over or remove a personal representative where the statutory criteria are met and the welfare of the beneficiaries as a whole requires it.…

On an application for strike out and summary judgment in a professional-negligence claim concerning lost litigation opportunities, the court may decide short…

Permission to appeal a costs cap is unlikely to be granted where the challenge concerns the level of a case-management cap and the judge properly considered…

Recognition under the Cross-Border Insolvency Regulations 2006 is mandatory where the statutory requirements are established, subject to public policy and…

Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, maintenance means provision for the everyday expenses of living. It is not confined to…

Permission to rely on a witness statement served after the court’s deadline is not governed by a free-standing discretion under CPR 32.10. The court must give…

In an application for an interim injunction in a passing-off claim, the court must assess the risk of injustice at the date when the injunction would actually…

Rectification of a pension deed requires convincing proof that the document fails to record the parties’ true agreement. In assessing that question, the court…

A trial witness statement must comply with PD 57AC. It should contain factual evidence within the witness’s personal knowledge, identify documents…

In construing a carefully negotiated commercial agreement, the court must give effect to the natural and ordinary meaning of the words used in their…

On an application to annul a bankruptcy order, a genuine triable issue as to the existence of the petition debt is assessed by the same threshold applicable…

Sentencing for contempt requires assessment of the prejudice or harm caused, pressure, the nature and seriousness of the breaches, culpability, the involvement…

Under a specifically enforceable contract for the sale of land, the vendor’s trust is limited to securing the purchaser’s right to conveyance. It does not give…

A double derivative claim is governed by common-law principles, applied by analogy with Companies Act 2006 and CPR Part 19.9A. Permission requires a prima…

Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, a surviving spouse’s interest under a discretionary or terminable trust may constitute…

A contract is not void for common mistake where its terms expressly or impliedly allocate to one party the risk that the shared assumption may be wrong. An…

An informal application may be dismissed for failure to comply with an extended civil restraint order and ordinary procedural requirements. Even where those…

Permission to amend a statement of case during trial may be granted where the amendment better reflects the real dispute and can be accommodated without…

A committal application may proceed in the defendant’s absence where the defendant had notice of the application and hearing, sufficient time to prepare, no…

At the sanction stage of a scheme under Companies Act 2006 Part 26, the court must be satisfied that the statutory requirements have been met, the class was…

Section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 requires proof of a transaction, an undervalue, and the statutory purpose. A transaction may be unilateral and need not…

A contemplated joint venture does not necessarily create a partnership or binding agreement. Where parties agree to use a company as the vehicle for their…

An interim proprietary injunction must protect the particular property said to be subject to the claimant’s proprietary or specific-performance claim. It…

Allegations of fraud remain subject to the civil standard of proof. The court must assess the evidence against the overall probabilities and the full factual…

In substantial and complex proceedings, a claim under section 214 of the Insolvency Act 1986 should not leave the knowledge date at large across an extended…

Summary judgment may determine an issue where the opposing party has no real, rather than fanciful, prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason…

On an appeal from a trade mark registrar, the High Court reviews the decision and interferes only where it was wrong. Particular restraint is appropriate for…

A director must apply company assets for proper purposes and in the company’s interests. Personal expenditure cannot be justified by an intention to reconcile…

An oral agreement concerning land may be governed by the law of the country with which it is most closely connected, subject to the applicable-law rules for…

A transaction may fall within section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 even where the debtor has several purposes, provided that one purpose is to put assets…

An anti-suit injunction may be granted in personam under section 37 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 where foreign proceedings are oppressive, unconscionable or…

A restructuring plan under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006 takes effect by operation of law, in the same way as a scheme under Part 26. Where it releases a…

In a boundary dispute, conveyancing plans are important evidence but do not automatically determine the precise boundary. Their weight depends on their quality…

Guideline hourly rates are not an absolute ceiling. A specialist solicitor may recover an uplift where the case requires specialist knowledge and the…

A will confined by its terms to identified property in a particular jurisdiction will ordinarily be construed as applying only to that property, including…

For an opposition under Trade Marks Act 1994, s.5(3), unfair advantage does not require proof that the later-mark proprietor subjectively intended to exploit…

English law governs the devolution of freehold land in England held on trust by a foreign company. On dissolution, the legal estate does not determine by…

Permission to amend a statement of case should be determined by applying the overriding objective and the court’s broad discretion under the Civil Procedure…

A contemnor may be discharged where there is a legally recognised reason for discharge, but the power is not an unfettered discretion. On an application…

A worldwide freezing order requires a good arguable case, a real risk that a judgment will go unsatisfied because of unjustified disposal or concealment of…

A pension-scheme rule providing that an unclaimed benefit is retained for the purposes of the scheme may operate as a forfeiture clause, even without using the…

The apparent-bias test is objective. The court must ascertain all relevant circumstances and ask whether a fair-minded and informed observer would conclude…

Disclosure is not automatic in an insolvency application. Under Insolvency Act 1986 section 366, the court must positively order disclosure and assess all…

On an application under paragraph 63 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, the court may bless an administrator’s momentous decision where the proposed…

In bankruptcy proceedings involving a disabled debtor, the public sector equality duty and the duty to make reasonable adjustments are distinct. A breach of…

Criminal contempt requires proof beyond reasonable doubt of an act which interferes with the due administration of justice and a specific intention to cause…

Strict rules govern service of a claim form because service fixes important procedural and limitation consequences. A claimant who elects to serve must serve…

On an urgent application under paragraph 63 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986, the court may give administrators liberty to proceed with a proposed…

An adjournment application is determined by asking whether proceeding with the trial would be fair in all the circumstances. The enquiry is fact-sensitive and…

An interim injunction should identify the specific acts prohibited. The court should not ordinarily enjoin a defendant merely from acting unlawfully or from…

Permission to amend a statement of case introducing a new claim is governed by the law as it stands. The court applies the first limb of Rule 24.2: the…

For limitation under section 14A of the Limitation Act 1980, constructive knowledge is assessed objectively by reference to a person with the general…

Where an application succeeds, the usual rule is that costs follow the event. An applicant remains successful even if the opposing party receives an…

On an application to purge contempt, the alleged continuing breach must be proved by the party asserting it to the criminal standard. The court may assess…

A joint tenant of a periodic tenancy may serve a notice to quit without breaching trust where the only trust is the bare trust for sale or trust of land…

Interests arising under the statutory trusts on intestacy do not constitute beneficial interests in particular estate assets while administration remains…

Under Companies Act 2006, s.994, unfair prejudice must concern the conduct of the company’s affairs. A shareholder’s private exercise of rights or commercial…

For testamentary incapacity under Banks v Goodfellow, an insane delusion requires an irrational and fixed false belief. It is unnecessary to prove that the…

A Bankruptcy Restrictions Order is assessed by reference to the bankrupt’s misconduct, viewed broadly and with regard to aggravating and mitigating factors.…

Statutory accounts and partners’ accounts serve different purposes. Statutory accounts record the LLP’s factual financial position at the reporting date…

A document is a sham only where all parties subjectively intend it to create different legal rights and obligations from those it appears to create. An…

At a convening hearing under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006, the court considers jurisdiction, notice and class composition, rather than the merits or…

Representative parties joined to a claim are bound by findings arising from the pleaded defence. They need not also be joined to a counterclaim where the…

A legal helpline advertisement is ordinarily an invitation to seek assistance, not an offer creating an immediate retainer. A retainer is implied only where…

In complex group litigation, sampling may be used as a proportionate means of managing individual issues where structured particulars allow the defendant to…

An order for security for costs requires satisfaction of a threshold condition and a separate assessment of whether the order is just in all the circumstances.…

Under unamended Model Articles, a private company with only one director may make decisions without regard to the articles governing directors’…

In interpreting an oral contract, the parties’ contemporary subjective understanding is admissible, but later conduct is a less reliable guide to the terms…

A petition under Companies Act 2006, section 994, requires conduct of the company's affairs that is both unfair and prejudicial to the petitioner's interests…

An asset transfer by a company to a company under common control is not an unlawful return of capital merely because the consideration is retrospectively shown…

Remedies for breach of directors’ fiduciary duties are not codified and may include restoration of company property, equitable compensation, damages and an…

A costs order may be made against a co-defendant by analogy with the principles governing non-party costs orders. The fact that a person was joined as a…

Rectification of a deed requires convincing evidence of the maker’s specific subjective intention, a flaw in the document rather than a mistake about its…

Under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, r 71.8(2), the court may make a suspended committal order where a judgment debtor has deliberately failed to attend an…

A winding-up petition should be dismissed where the petition debt is disputed on grounds having a real prospect of success. The test is the same as for summary…

A framework agreement for the provision of finance does not, without more, impose any commitment on the finance provider to advance or maintain finance. Such a…

Under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006, cross-class cram-down requires satisfaction of the no-worse-off condition, approval by the requisite in-the-money…

A winding-up petition should not proceed where the alleged debt is genuinely disputed on substantial grounds. The Companies Court is not the appropriate forum…

For adverse possession under the former regime, the claimant must prove factual possession and an intention to possess for the whole limitation period. Where a…

When deciding whether to adjourn enforcement of an arbitration award under section 103(5) of the Arbitration Act 1996, the court has a broad discretion. It…

A majority shareholder may bring a common-law derivative claim despite holding more than 50 per cent of the shares where a legal or practical bar outside the…

An annulment application under section 282(1)(a) of the Insolvency Act 1986 remains discretionary even where the bankruptcy order ought not to have been made.…

A stay pending an appeal in a similar case is discretionary. The court must apply the power consistently with the overriding objective and weigh all the…

In costs proceedings arising from enforcement applications, the court should identify the successful party overall rather than determine success issue by…

In an unfair prejudice petition, fairness is assessed judicially and in context. A member may rely on equitable constraints arising from the parties’…

A winding-up petition should be restrained where the alleged debt is disputed on genuine and substantial grounds, or where a genuine and substantial…

Where a court has ordered model D disclosure, a party cannot reopen the underlying decision merely by arguing that its role makes disclosure inappropriate.…

A party which has provisionally agreed search terms should not unilaterally limit the agreed searches because its initial results are extensive. It should seek…

For a petition under section 994 of the Companies Act 2006, the petitioner must prove both prejudice to his interests as a member and unfairness. Unfairness is…

Where safeguarding regulations create a priority asset pool, the pool bears only costs associated with identifying, reconstituting and distributing it. It does…

Confidentiality restrictions in patent litigation must be justified by balancing the receiving party’s need for access against the interests of the disclosing…

An injunction blocking identified websites used overwhelmingly for copyright infringement may be extended to websites with colourably similar names where the…

The court may authorise the destruction of non-original documents held following intervention in a solicitors’ practice where the proposed retention policy is…

An injunction should ordinarily be granted for trade mark infringement unless the defendant establishes special reasons, including disproportionality or an…

In determining whether an amendment introduces a new cause of action, the court must compare the bare minimum of essential factual allegations in the existing…

Capacity to conduct proceedings is both time-specific and issue-specific. The court must apply the two-stage test in the Mental Capacity Act 2005: first…

A person cannot become a company director, or acquire authority to act for the company, merely by declaring a willingness to assume that office. Whether…

A court may limit recoveries in misfeasance proceedings where the governing statutory discretion permits it, particularly to prevent persons tainted by the…

In a contempt application based on breach of an injunction, the court must determine the alleged breaches afresh and prove them to the criminal standard. An…

A fiduciary’s duty to account requires a narrative account of dealings with assets, enabling beneficiaries to understand their rights, liabilities and…

Permission to appeal should be refused where the proposed grounds have no real prospect of success and no other compelling reason supports an appeal. Finality…

Further disclosure in support of a freezing injunction may be ordered where there is credible evidence of an obvious discrepancy between assets previously held…

In an unfair-prejudice petition, contractual compliance does not by itself prevent equitable constraints arising in a quasi-partnership company. The court must…

A third-party debt order attaches only to a debt which the judgment debtor could immediately and effectually recover. An accessible pension fund held as…

An action by a beneficiary for limitation purposes must be brought in respect of the relevant breach of trust. A claim seeking directions, an account brought…

A passport order is an intrusive interim measure. It should be granted only for a limited period and normally as an aid to enforcing another court order. The…

An oral agreement to acquire land may create a common intention constructive trust even where the parties later arrange for a company to be registered as…

For limitation purposes, a claimant may rely on Limitation Act 1980 section 14A where it has a realistic case that the relevant knowledge was acquired only…

Under section 103(5) of the Arbitration Act 1996, the enforcing court has a wide and unfettered discretion to adjourn enforcement of a New York Convention…

A company is not bound by a transaction entered into by a director without actual authority where the transaction breaches the director’s duties and the…

In construing a detailed commercial agreement, the court identifies the objective meaning of the language in its documentary, factual and commercial context.…

A restrictive covenant annexed to retained estate land remains enforceable unless the conveyance clearly reserves a power to release or modify the burden after…

Successive applications for the same interlocutory relief are generally impermissible unless there has been a material change of circumstances or the applicant…

On an application to adjourn a return hearing for interim freezing relief, the guiding question is whether the hearing would be unfair if it proceeded. The…

On applications for freezing relief, the normal costs rule differs from that governing ordinary interim injunctions. Costs should ordinarily follow the event…

Costs are discretionary under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, r 44.2. Although costs generally follow the successful party, the court may make a different order…

A colour mark must identify a single sign and be represented with sufficient clarity, precision, accessibility, intelligibility, durability and objectivity. A…

Whether land is partnership property depends on the partners’ intention, assessed as a question of fact. Relevant indications include the circumstances and…

A wasted costs order may be made where a legal representative acts improperly, unreasonably or negligently, causes unnecessary or wasted costs, and it is just…

In complex commercial litigation, a successful party will ordinarily recover its costs even if it fails on some issues. The court may make a proportionate…

In complex group litigation under section 90A of FSMA 2000 and Schedule 10A, a split trial may be ordered as a pragmatic case-management measure where common…

At a scheme convening hearing, the court does not decide the merits or fairness of the proposed scheme. It considers whether the statutory and procedural…

Where requests to open insolvency proceedings are made in different Member States, the court first seised retains exclusive jurisdiction to open main…

Derogations from open justice in committal proceedings require exceptional circumstances and must be strictly necessary to secure the proper administration of…

At the convening stage of a scheme of arrangement, the court considers jurisdiction, class composition, procedural fairness and any issue that might prevent…

A claimant relying on an assignment must prove its authenticity before relying on rights transferred by it. Where a transaction is made within a relationship…

A will is invalid for want of testamentary capacity where the testator could not understand the nature and effect of the act, the extent of the property, or…

An estoppel by convention requires a shared assumption, an expression of that assumption sufficient to establish responsibility for it, reliance, subsequent…

A claim must disclose a legally recognisable cause of action and, where Part 8 is used, the claim form must identify the question or remedy sought and the…

For interim relief concerning misappropriated cryptocurrency, the court may treat the situs of the asset as the place where its owner is domiciled, at least…

An appellate court should rarely interfere with findings of fact made after a trial involving oral evidence. Intervention requires no evidence, a conclusion…

A person is a de facto director only if they occupy part of the company’s corporate governing structure and perform functions properly dischargeable only by a…

A failure to give reasons in a notice seeking creditors’ consent to extend an administration is a procedural irregularity, rather than a defect affecting the…

An unstamped instrument is generally inadmissible, but it is not thereby void or invalid. The underlying transaction may be proved by admissible evidence that…

On an inter partes challenge to permission to serve proceedings out of the jurisdiction, the court must decide afresh whether service out was justified. The…

Where a claimant’s successful mitigation forms part of a continuous transaction caused by the defendant’s breach, a resulting profit is generally brought into…

The court has discretion over the costs of proceedings. The usual rule is that the unsuccessful party pays the successful party’s costs, but the court must…

The unsuccessful party will ordinarily pay the successful party’s costs. The court may take conduct into account, but a departure from that rule requires…

A final judgment will ordinarily be reopened only in exceptional circumstances. The availability of better evidence after judgment is insufficient where the…

Where parties make an informal, quasi-contractual arrangement concerning land, proprietary estoppel may arise from a sufficiently clear assurance, reasonable…

In construing a commercial retainer, conditional wording must be read in its contractual and factual context. Where the wording is ambiguous, the court may…

An administrator must take reasonable care to obtain the best price reasonably achievable in the circumstances as reasonably perceived. The court will not…

Permission to amend a statement of case should be refused where the proposed case has no real prospect of success. The court applies a merits test requiring…

Under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, r 52.18, non-payment of a judgment or costs order does not, by itself, provide a compelling reason to make payment a…

The review jurisdiction cannot be used to give a party a further opportunity to re-run arguments already determined. A change of circumstances is required, and…

The court may give prospective guidance on a pure jurisdictional point at an early stage of an insurance business transfer scheme, particularly where timing…

In granting an interim mandatory injunction, the court must select the course likely to cause the least irremediable prejudice or injustice. A high degree of…

A director who unauthorisedly causes company proceedings to be brought must indemnify the company for its resulting costs, but that does not ordinarily make…

In valuing shares under a shareholders’ agreement, the court must construe the agreement as a whole. Where it expressly requires the valuer to consider the…

When deciding whether to transfer proceedings from the High Court to the county court, the court must consider the factors in CPR r.30.3 and PD57AA. The…

For a restructuring plan convening application, the company must establish the jurisdictional requirements in Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006, including…

In a probate challenge, the propounder must prove that the testator knew and approved the will. The court should assess all the evidence holistically. Proper…

A document described as heads of terms may create a binding contract in whole or in part, but its label is not decisive. The question is whether the parties…

The court may grant mandatory ancillary relief to preserve assets subject to a freezing order where further steps are just and convenient. The question is the…

Under section 6 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, the statutory question is whether the director’s proven conduct makes him unfit to be…

Sentencing for contempt requires an assessment of seriousness by reference to culpability and harm. The court must then consider whether a fine is sufficient.…

For civil contempt, the applicant must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the respondent knew of the order, breached it, and knew the facts constituting the…

A bad-faith invalidity allegation must be distinctly and fully pleaded and supported by objective, relevant and consistent circumstances capable of rebutting…

In a trade mark infringement claim seeking injunctive relief and, alternatively, an inquiry as to damages or an account of profits, the claim was not a claim…

Under paragraph 5(3) of Schedule 10 to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020, the counterfactual question is whether the statutory ground for…

Contractual interpretation requires the court to identify what a reasonable person, with the parties’ relevant background knowledge, would understand the…

An employee’s implied duty of fidelity depends on the nature of the employment and the employee’s activities. Seniority increases the expected degree of…

On an application to sanction a creditors’ scheme, the court should consider statutory compliance, fair representation and bona fide voting, whether an…

Where a claimant company satisfies a gateway under Civil Procedure Rules 1998 Part 25.13(2), the court must decide whether security for costs is just in all…

The court’s costs discretion is wide, but it must first identify the successful party by considering the litigation as a whole. The general rule is that costs…

A court may address an alleged breach of its order within the existing proceedings where the order remains enforceable and the court can fashion effective…

A claim form does not preserve proceedings where particulars of claim are served outside the period of validity of the claim form. Retrospective relief is…

Under Law of Property Act 1925, section 181, a vesting order may be made where dissolution has determined the legal estate and the claimant proves entitlement…

Indemnity costs require conduct outside the norm. Although the same procedural rules apply to litigants in person, their status may be relevant when assessing…

Where a settlement leaves substantial issues unresolved and provides no reliable indication of the likely result, the court should not treat the settlement…

When a publication claim is struck out as statute-barred, the publication may still remain relevant to an underlying unlawful information-gathering claim. It…

In undocumented or informal commercial occupation, the nature and terms of the tenancy are inferred from what was agreed and all the surrounding circumstances.…

Summary judgment is inappropriate where the construction of a remediability clause depends on disputed facts and the contractual context. “Capable of remedy”…

A director has no entitlement to remuneration unless authorised by the company’s constitution or approved by its members. Informal unanimous shareholder…

A claimant seeking permission to amend must plead an intelligible and apparently credible claim. The pleading must identify the alleged works, confidential…

A judgment obtained by fraud may be set aside only where there is conscious and deliberate dishonesty, materiality, and new evidence not deployed in the…

In an interim freezing-injunction application, the court may decide the costs of the injunction at once where the merits threshold and the strength of the…

Under Schedule 10 to the Corporate Governance and Insolvency Act 2020, a creditor must reasonably believe that coronavirus had no financial effect on the…

A claim may be struck out under Civil Procedure Rules 1998 rule 3.4 where it discloses no reasonable grounds, is incoherent, vexatious or abusive, or fails to…

Sentencing for contempt of court should follow an approach analogous to criminal sentencing. The court must assess seriousness by reference to culpability and…

Pleadings define the case that parties must meet, the evidence and argument required, and the issues for determination. A party cannot use a rejoinder to…

A liquidator’s claim against directors for breach of duty arising from a company’s regulatory fine is not necessarily an abuse of process or an attempt to…

Testamentary capacity is determined on the balance of probabilities by evaluating the evidence as a whole in relation to the particular will and its…

For the statutory gateway allowing extrinsic evidence in will construction, ambiguity requires the words used to be capable of bearing two or more meanings. A…

When sanctioning a scheme of arrangement, the court must be satisfied that the statutory requirements have been met, that the voting class was fairly…

Once the jurisdictional gateway for security for costs is satisfied, the court must consider whether an order is just in all the circumstances, consistently…

Under the Limitation Act 1980, time is postponed for deliberate concealment only where the concealed facts are essential to plead the causes of action actually…

On an application to sanction a scheme of arrangement under Companies Act 2006, the court must consider four principal matters: statutory compliance; fair…

The court applied the structured forum analysis required for service out and forum non conveniens applications. The relevant question is the forum in which the…

A notice to quit agricultural premises is effective only if it conveys to the tenant an instruction to quit the premises. The Mannai approach applies to…

An appellate court should not interfere with a trial judge’s findings of fact unless a recognised error of law or plainly unsustainable conclusion is shown.…

A signed hire contract is not unenforceable merely because the hirer did not read or understand its terms or implications. A mistaken belief about entitlement…

A solicitor’s duty is determined by the retainer and, where relevant, by risks which a reasonably competent solicitor should have identified from the…

Practice Direction 57AC does not alter the law governing the admissibility of evidence. Experienced witnesses of fact may give admissible trade evidence about…

Practice Direction 57AC regulates the proper use of trial witness statements but does not alter the law of admissibility. A witness may give first-hand…

A periodic agricultural tenancy may be terminated by notice to quit given by one of several joint tenants at law. That does not prevent the notice being a…

An interim injunction may be granted against persons unknown where there is an arguable case of unlawful activity, damages would not provide an adequate…

Permission to appeal requires a real prospect of success. An appellate court will not interfere with a case-management or discretionary decision unless the…

Permission to continue a common-law multiple derivative claim requires the claimant to show standing, a prima facie case within the fraud-on-the-minority…

In complex, continuing proceedings concerning the scope of an earlier court order, the court may require evidence to be served within a reasonable timetable…

A court may review, rescind or vary an insolvency order only cautiously. The applicant must show exceptional circumstances involving a material difference from…

Where a freezing order affects assets arguably subject to a proprietary claim, the defendant has no automatic entitlement to use them for legal or living…

An online platform may itself use trade marks where its overall conduct goes beyond providing a neutral technical facility. Relevant factors include control…

At a sanction hearing, the court must be satisfied that the statutory requirements have been met, the relevant class was fairly represented and acted bona…

Where a claim is found to be a clear abuse of process, the costs attributable to it may properly be ordered on the indemnity basis. The same approach may apply…

Where a party succeeds on all issues in insolvency proceedings, the court may award its costs without reducing them because later events might have changed the…

An applicant for annulment of a bankruptcy must have a legitimate interest in the application. A person cannot seek annulment merely because a bankrupt shares…

Repeated and deliberate breaches of a clear injunction may justify an immediate custodial sentence. In fixing sentence, the court may treat an early admission…

On an appeal from the Registrar of Trade Marks, the court reviews the decision rather than conducting the evaluative exercise afresh. It should intervene only…

A physical address for service is required under CPR r 6.23 where a litigant in person resides or carries on business in the United Kingdom. An email address…

Under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, costs remain in the court’s discretion, with costs usually following the successful party in the litigation as a whole.…

On an appeal against rejection of a proof of debt, the court determines on the evidence before it whether the claimant has proved the debt on the balance of…

An alleged oral agreement to build and manage an investment fund will be enforceable only if the parties objectively agreed sufficiently certain and complete…

A person commits contempt by breaching an order only where the order was known, the required act was omitted deliberately, the relevant facts were known, and…

An application by bankruptcy trustees for a declaration of beneficial ownership, possession and sale of a family home, or alternatively repayment of money…

A company with two directors cannot ordinarily commence proceedings on the authority of one director alone where there is no board resolution, delegation or…

Public interest winding-up orders may be made where a company’s business model lacks commercial probity and transparency, particularly where monies held for…

Where an expert determination is contractually final and binding subject to manifest error, the court does not conduct a review or appeal of the expert’s…

Issue estoppel and abuse of process are distinct doctrines. Issue estoppel is a substantive rule of law, while abuse of process is a procedural control…

For civil liability under section 90A of Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, where an issuer has directors, the persons discharging managerial…

At a scheme convening hearing, the court considers class composition and whether any obvious jurisdictional obstacle or unquestionable discretionary bar…

An estoppel by convention may, in an appropriate case, enlarge the effect of an existing contract by binding parties to a shared interpretation of it. It may…

Where a party succeeds on the single overall question whether permission should be granted to serve out of the jurisdiction, an issues-based costs order is…

A warrant under Insolvency Act 1986, s 365 is draconian, but its purpose is to enforce duties which a bankrupt should ordinarily perform voluntarily. Relief…

Money introduced into a company may be characterised as a loan despite being described informally as an investment. The court determines the parties’ objective…

Where a party amends a pleading, the general rule is that it pays the costs of and occasioned by the amendments. Accretions commonly require a consequential…

An application to suspend discharge from bankruptcy involves two stages under Insolvency Act 1986, section 279. The court must first find that the bankrupt has…

At an IVA creditors’ decision procedure, the creditor must put forward and substantiate the debt relied on for voting purposes. The chair must consider the…

A contractual termination clause permitting immediate termination for a material breach requires a breach that is substantial and serious, though not…

For the purposes of an unfair-prejudice petition, equitable considerations may constrain a majority shareholder’s exercise of strict legal rights where the…

A partnership may arise from an express or implied agreement, including one evidenced by conduct, where the parties carry on a business in common with a view…

For a will to satisfy the acknowledgment requirement, the testator need not use particular words or expressly identify the signature. An acknowledgment may…

When substantive issues are compromised but costs remain disputed, the court may determine costs without a trial if it has sufficient agreed or reliable…

Relief from sanctions is governed by the three-stage test in Denton. The court must address the reason for the breach before treating the absence of prejudice…

A freezing injunction may be continued after judgment where the applicant shows a good arguable case, assets within or outside the jurisdiction, a real risk of…

An application to set aside a regular default judgment under CPR 13.3 is an application for relief from a sanction. Once a jurisdictional gateway is…

Permission to appeal a discretionary costs decision should be refused where none of the proposed grounds has a realistic prospect of success. An appellate…

A statutory demand may be set aside where the debt is disputed on grounds that appear substantial. An argument must be sustainable; mere arguability is…

An application under a consent order permitting applications to enforce a settlement cannot generally be used to determine separate disputes about the…

Charity trustees have a primary duty to further the charity’s purposes. Financial return is normally the starting point for investment decisions, but trustees…

A sole director may be found unfit where, through knowledge, positive instructions or inaction in the face of duty, he causes or allows a company to commit…

A freezing order requires a good arguable case, a real risk of unjustified dissipation which is established by solid evidence, and it must be just and…

Where a restrictive covenant provides that consent must not be unreasonably withheld, the covenantee must identify the reasons that actually influenced the…

An order finally disposing of a claim by strike-out or summary judgment may be varied or revoked only in exceptional or very rare circumstances. Although CPR…

Where the jurisdictional conditions for security for costs are met, the court may order security against a foreign trustee in bankruptcy if, having regard to…

Where a party has been committed for contempt after failing to comply with an order requiring an act by a specified date, the court may make a fresh order…

The High Court has jurisdiction to grant interim injunctive relief before a patent is formally granted. The statutory scheme governing damages for acts…

Where legal title to property is acquired in one person’s sole name, sole beneficial ownership is the starting point. That position may be displaced by proof…

An administrator cannot be appointed under paragraph 14 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986 while the floating charge relied upon is unenforceable. A…

The court’s power to interfere with members’ voting rights in a members’ voluntary liquidation is limited and must be exercised cautiously. The relevant…

For the coronavirus restrictions on winding-up petitions to apply, a company must provide evidence capable of showing that its financial position worsened…

For the purposes of Art 30 of Brussels Recast, related proceedings are assessed broadly and practically. The court may consider a defence which has not been…

A statutory demand may be set aside where the debtor shows a genuine triable issue concerning a counterclaim, set-off or cross-demand which exceeds the debt. A…

In partnership dissolution proceedings, proprietary estoppel requires a sufficiently clear assurance, reasonable reliance and consequential detriment, assessed…

A clear order debarring a defendant from defending a claim must generally be enforced according to its terms. It normally prevents adducing evidence…

Redactions in documents already identified for disclosure must be assessed against any issue in the proceedings, not merely the narrower Issues for Disclosure…

A company director may delegate particular functions where the delegation is reasonable, but remains responsible for supervising the delegate. A liquidator who…

A loan contract may be made with a borrower through an authorised agent. The identity of the person receiving the money, the commercial purpose of the…

A settlement agreement containing a full and final release and covenant not to sue may justify striking out claims within its scope as an abuse of process. A…

When a trustee or office-holder obtains court approval for a specific transaction, the approval may confer immunity from later claims alleging that the…

For the purposes of administration, a company may be unable to pay its debts as they fall due despite having substantial net assets where banking facilities…

Expedition should be ordered where the applicant demonstrates a good reason for an expedited hearing, the respondent suffers no material prejudice, and the…

A party is entitled to present its pleaded case in the manner it chooses, provided the issues are articulated clearly enough for determination. The court…

A civil claim may be an abuse of process where it seeks to relitigate an issue decided in earlier criminal proceedings, even though the parties and causes of…

Permission to reopen a judgment debt or seek annulment of bankruptcy requires more than a new factual variation on allegations previously rejected. The…

At the convening stage of a scheme of arrangement, the court must identify whether creditors’ rights are so dissimilar that they cannot consult together in…

At a scheme convening hearing, the court must be satisfied that it has jurisdiction, including that the company falls within Companies Act 2006 Part 26 and…

An adjournment should be granted where proceeding on the listed date would make the trial unfair, unless the resulting injustice to the other party cannot be…

For permission to serve a bankruptcy petition out of the jurisdiction, the jurisdictional gateway is established on the basis of a good arguable case, not on…

Whether parties have made a binding contract depends objectively on their words and conduct, viewed in context. A subject to contract label is important but…

Section 32 of the Limitation Act 1980 postpones limitation in fraud cases until actual discovery or until the fraud could have been discovered with reasonable…

A restructuring plan must involve some element of give and take. It cannot merely expropriate creditors’ or members’ rights without compensating advantage. A…

An interim mandatory injunction removing a registered charge should be approached by applying the stringent test for mandatory injunctions, rather than the…

Damages for patent infringement are not limited, as a matter of principle, to losses arising from sales within the territory of the patent. Losses from…

Delay inherent in service through the Hague Service Convention does not, by itself, establish special or exceptional circumstances justifying alternative…

A company may be treated as a quasi-partnership where the circumstances make it inequitable for members to rely on their strict legal rights. The relevant…

The EU VAT exemption for postal services turns on whether the supplier acts as the public postal services, rather than on whether each service is confined to a…

A final cut-off date for joining managed multiple-claim litigation should not be imposed where substantial numbers of potential claimants may not yet know that…

Permission to serve proceedings out of the jurisdiction requires a serious issue to be tried on the merits, a good arguable case within a jurisdictional…

Personal service of contempt proceedings is effective where the document is brought to the respondent’s attention as a legal document and is left with or near…

In costs disputes concerning executors or personal representatives, the general rule remains that the successful party receives its costs, but the court may…

Under Companies Act 2006 Part 26A, the court may sanction a restructuring plan notwithstanding the dissent of a class only if the statutory cross-class…

Personal service may be effected where the recipient refuses to accept documents but has been told their nature and the documents are left with or as near to…

A solicitor instructed by one party to a conveyancing transaction will not ordinarily owe a negligence duty to the opposing party or another third party. A…

An appeal from a trade mark opposition decision is a review, not a rehearing. The appellate court should interfere with a hearing officer’s evaluation only for…

A Part 8 claim may be struck out under CPR 3.4(2) where its essential legal foundations are incoherent or hopeless. In a securitisation structure, beneficial…

At the convening stage of a scheme, the court determines class composition, checks that the explanatory statement is satisfactory in broad terms, and…

On an application to set aside summary judgment made in the respondent’s absence, the court has a wide discretion under Practice Direction 24. That discretion…

Relief from an automatic strike-out for non-payment of a trial fee requires the court to apply the three-stage approach in Denton v White. The court must…

For repeated and deliberate contempts of court, imprisonment is imposed only as a last resort and must be the shortest term properly required. The court…

Whether a professional adviser assumed responsibility to non-clients for negligent advice depends objectively on all the circumstances, including the nature of…

A contractual notice triggering substantial infrastructure works is not effective merely because it uses the words required by the contract. Where the notice…

Permission to amend a defence requires a proposed defence to have a real, rather than fanciful, prospect of success. The court must not conduct a mini-trial…

Defects in notices seeking creditors’ consent to extend an administration do not necessarily invalidate the extension. The court must distinguish fundamental…

Where parties agree a bifurcated trial, disclosure issues should be aligned with the issues for determination at each stage. Issues bearing on liability should…

Although the court’s detailed analysis supported the conclusion that the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 and Payment Services Regulations 2017 created…

A deliberate or reckless false statement under oath, or deliberate concealment of material information from the court, may constitute serious contempt where it…

A person is not a de facto director merely because the formally appointed director consults them, seeks their approval, or works cooperatively with them. The…

A disposition of company property made after presentation of a winding-up petition is void under Insolvency Act 1986, section 127, unless validated by the…

The court’s jurisdiction to remove a personal representative is directed to the proper and timely administration of the estate and the interests of the…

The court may order possession and sale under Civil Procedure Rules 1998 Part 73 where a valid charging order exists and the procedural requirements are met.…

The court has jurisdiction under Schedule 4 to the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 to entertain a late application for a cancellation order.…

Confidential information may be misused indirectly where it is incorporated into a system and that system is operated for an unauthorised purpose. The output…

Where a serious issue arises as to a party’s capacity to participate in proceedings, the court should manage closely related proceedings consistently while…

An order requiring claimants to plead by reference to generic particulars of common facts and issues does not prevent a claimant from pleading different…

An appeal is not a rehearing of the trial. Permission should not be granted merely to revisit factual findings or the trial judge’s evaluation of complex…

Permission to adduce further evidence may be construed broadly where the court reserved consequential issues after a late amendment by the opposing party. The…

A director may be liable for fraudulent trading where he knowingly causes a company to participate in a missing trader intra-community VAT fraud. Knowledge of…

Procedural timetables should secure the orderly and proportionate preparation of litigation while allowing reasonable opportunities for settlement. Case…

A claim against a company must identify the acts or omissions said to make that company liable. Undifferentiated allegations against several defendants…

In probate proceedings, testamentary freedom does not remove the requirement to prove that the testator knew and approved the will’s contents. Due execution…

Company proceedings commenced without the authority of the companies concerned may be removed from the proceedings. Claims by outsiders to have become…

An appellate court should interfere with a first-instance costs discretion only where the judge erred in principle, omitted or considered an irrelevant matter…

A judge may refuse to admit documents first produced during closing submissions where they should have been raised earlier with a single joint expert and the…

An injunction following a finding of trade mark infringement should ordinarily take effect immediately. Commercial inconvenience, stock losses, loss of…

In disqualification proceedings, unfitness is a value judgment based on the director’s personal conduct, assessed against the standards of probity and…

In sanctioning a scheme of arrangement under Companies Act 2006, the court must exercise an independent discretion. It should sanction the scheme where the…

When a party seeks to substitute a bank guarantee for security paid into court, the court must distinguish the legal effect of the guarantee from surrounding…

On an appeal against refusal of relief from sanctions, the appellate court must respect the first-instance judge’s evaluative discretion. A different…

In construing pension scheme rules, significant weight is given to the language chosen by the drafter. The court should avoid a strained meaning, while…

On a rehearing of a challenge to the admission of another creditor’s proof in a company voluntary arrangement, the creditor asserting the claim bears both the…

A person commits contempt by breaching a court order where, beyond reasonable doubt, the person had notice of the order, deliberately performed or omitted the…

Where an appeal changes the result on which a lower court made its costs order, the appellate court may reconsider and replace that order, even where…

Payment of a company’s petition debt by a third party can discharge the debt where the payment is authorised by the company and made on its behalf. The payment…