High Court: Queen's Bench Division judgments, 2009

A creditor may comply with section 78 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 by supplying an honest and accurate reconstituted copy of the executed agreement, derived…

An unexplained-loss exclusion referring to property missing at “stocktaking” applies to a structured and organised stock inventory undertaken at regular…

An interlocutory anti-suit injunction should generally be granted only where the applicant establishes a high degree of probability that a binding agreement…

Final harassment injunctions must protect claimants while permitting defendants to act lawfully. The court must balance the competing rights under Articles 8…

The court’s discretion under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, rule 36.14(3), must be exercised by considering all the circumstances and the factors in rule…

Harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 requires conduct amounting to a course of conduct and a sufficient basis for apprehending further…

A driver approaching parked vehicles must keep a proper lookout and take reasonable avoiding action where an open car door or person is visible, or should…

A solicitor who relies on expert advice remains responsible for assessing whether the expert has been properly instructed and whether the proposed course is…

Trade union statutory immunity from tort liability depends on compliance with the balloting and industrial-action notification requirements in Part V of the…

In assessing damages for continuing care, the court must distinguish between the claimant’s need for care and the person or body who would have paid for it.…

Witness immunity protects evidence given in court and statements prepared for that purpose, including protection against claims based on giving false evidence.…

The ex turpi causa principle may bar a claim where the claimant’s wrongful conduct is sufficiently closely connected with the loss claimed. An intended…

On an application to amend a statement of case, the claimant must show that the proposed claim has a real prospect of success. The same threshold applies to…

A court may have wide case-management powers and may encourage mediation, but an order requiring parties to take steps towards mediation will not necessarily…

For relief from an unfair credit relationship, the court assesses fairness over the whole relationship and by reference to circumstances existing when the…

At the summary judgment stage, a libel claim should proceed where the pleaded facts could enable a jury rationally to infer that a defamatory allegation was…

An appeal under paragraph 22(5) of the Criminal Defence Service (Funding) Order 2001 is limited by CPR 52 to a review of the lower court’s decision. It may…

An agent who receives ambiguous instructions must consider whether it is reasonable to act on the chosen interpretation. Where the ambiguity is patent and…

A medical negligence assessment must be made by reference to the circumstances of the particular procedure and the defendant practitioner’s skill and…

In assessing damages for mesothelioma, general damages for pain, suffering and loss of amenity should reflect the quality of life during the illness, not…

An overdraft expressly repayable on demand remains repayable on demand unless the facility agreement clearly provides otherwise. A reference to repayment in…

In a libel claim, an allegation that a claimant is a police informer may, in the relevant context, be incapable of bearing a defamatory meaning as a matter of…

A Norwich Pharmacal order may require an innocent intermediary to disclose information capable of identifying an alleged wrongdoer. Orders restricting open…

Under section 57 of the Water Industry Act 1991, a fire hydrant is in “good working order” when it is fit for firefighting, does not present a material…

A contractual variation is sufficiently certain for trial where commercial parties used an objective standard, such as a reasonable price for completed…

An unincorporated charitable trust has no separate legal personality and cannot sue for libel in its own name. Trustees cannot cure that fundamental lack of…

Under the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992, suitability is assessed by reference to the risk foreseeable before the accident, the…

An agency agreement is not assigned, or purportedly assigned, merely because the agent collaborates with another business or proposes a joint venture.…

The court may grant Norwich Pharmacal relief against a foreign-based respondent where the relief is substantive, the respondent is a necessary and proper…

In a mesothelioma show-cause hearing, the claimant retains the legal burden of proving exposure to asbestos and negligent or statutory breach. Once credible…

Under the Criminal Defence Service (Funding) Order 2007, moving DVD, video or audio footage served electronically is outside the definition of prosecution…

A solicitor or barrister advising on settlement owes the client the ordinary professional duty to exercise the skill and care of a reasonably competent…

A building contract is not repudiated merely because work is delayed, incomplete or affected by minor defects. Repudiation requires conduct objectively…

In assessing medical negligence, the court must identify the applicable professional practice and determine whether it has a logical basis. A practice is not…

Permission under section 139(2) of the Mental Health Act 1983 should be granted where the proposed claim is not frivolous, vexatious or an abuse of process and…

A court may lawfully and properly order a closed material procedure in a civil claim for damages. The power derives from the court’s control of its own…

In assessing damages for asbestos-related disease, the court must compensate the claimant for the increased risk of malignancy during working life, not merely…

Pre-existing documents do not become protected by legal professional privilege merely because they are sent to lawyers for advice or litigation. Annotations…

A single joint expert owes an equal duty of openness to both parties and an overriding duty to the court. Private communications with one party about the…

When assessing an application for an interim payment in a substantial personal injury claim, the court must consider whether the trial judge may make a…

An appeal from a costs decision is a review, not a rehearing. Findings which depend on witness credibility will not ordinarily be overturned unless plainly…

The defence of fair comment may apply to a review even where words could be understood as a factual inference, provided the context permits that…

Dishonest assistance ordinarily requires positive assistance in a breach of trust or fiduciary duty. Dishonesty is assessed objectively, but in the light of…

Defamation proceedings may be struck out as an abuse of process where the publication within the jurisdiction is absent or minimal, the likely damages and…

An interim remedy cannot ordinarily be granted before proceedings are issued. Under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, r 25.2(2)(b), the court has jurisdiction to…

On an application to determine whether words are capable of bearing a defamatory meaning, the court must apply a high threshold and avoid usurping the jury’s…

A contractual termination right may differ from the common-law right to accept repudiation. Where a contractual termination clause applies only to an…

Acceptance of an offer of amends under the Defamation Act 1996 does not exclude an application for permission to read a unilateral statement in open court.…

Failure to notify the European Commission of a bilateral service convention does not, without more, terminate or disapply that convention. The court must…

A person may be held in contempt for deliberately doing an act which breaches a court order while knowing the order’s terms. The claimant need not prove an…

A contractual right enabling a bailiff to recover fees through execution of warrants may arise during the contract as an incident of the agency relationship.…

A civil injunction under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 is prospective. It may restrain conduct falling short of the completed criminal offence where…

Mandatory EU rights under the Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations 1993 may prevail over a foreign governing-law clause and an arbitration clause…

Under CPR 39.3(5), a party absent from trial may obtain relief only by showing prompt action, a good reason for non-attendance, and a reasonable prospect of…

Election petition time limits must be interpreted proportionately. A rule preventing extensions of time is incompatible with Convention rights where its…

A report of legal proceedings attracts absolute privilege under Defamation Act 1996, section 14 where it is substantially fair, accurate and contemporaneous.…

When deciding whether to grant, continue, vary or discharge an injunction under Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 187B, the court exercises an…

In assessing personal injury damages, causation may be established where the evidence, considered as a whole, shows on the balance of probabilities that an…

In assessing damages, a claimant is not required to undertake uncertain and potentially expensive litigation against a third party merely to mitigate loss…

In defamation proceedings, the meaning of published words is assessed by the ordinary fair-minded reader. A defendant may nevertheless seek clarification of…

Cross-examination on affidavits required by a freezing order is a considerable imposition and should be ordered only where it is just and convenient after less…

On an inter partes application to continue a freezing injunction, the court should not finally resolve sharply disputed facts or undertake a detailed…

A Reynolds public-interest privilege defence requires a court to balance freedom of expression against the claimant’s right to reputation under Article 8. The…

Where related libel claims concern materially different publications, meanings or defences, the court may order separate trials even though a joint hearing…

In a rent-review clause where time is not expressly or impliedly of the essence, the landlord’s delay does not by itself bar a later review or create a defence…

Summary judgment is appropriate only where the defendant has no realistic prospect of successfully defending the claim and there is no other compelling reason…

Security for costs requires both a qualifying condition under Civil Procedure Rules 1998, rule 25.13 and a discretionary conclusion that security is just in…

An exclusive distributor’s obligation to use all reasonable endeavours requires it to do everything that a reasonably competent and energetic distributor would…

On an application for an injunction under section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, the court must exercise an independent and proportionate…

Pre-action or interlocutory disclosure may be ordered in an appropriate case, but it is an exceptional remedy. The court must exercise its discretion…

A contractual commission scheme is enforceable according to its terms where commission forms part of the employee’s agreed remuneration. A contractual…

Contributory negligence by a child is assessed by the standard reasonably expected of a child of the same age, intelligence and experience, not an adult…

A doctor making an out-of-hours home visit must take all reasonably available steps to obtain the patient’s relevant medical history, including both general…

In an application ancillary to a non-party costs claim under section 51 of the Supreme Court Act 1981 and CPR 48.2, the court may order targeted disclosure…

In civil recovery proceedings, the claimant must prove on the balance of probabilities that particular property was obtained by, or in return for, unlawful…

The police are generally immune from negligence claims where the alleged damage arises from investigating or suppressing crime. That immunity does not extend…

An employer engaged in inherently dangerous work must take reasonable care to provide a reasonably safe system of work and reasonable protection, but is not…

For registration under Council Regulation (EC) 44/2001, an applicant must have the necessary interest in the foreign judgment when the registration order is…

An interim injunction restraining publication may be granted in a privacy or confidentiality claim where the claimant is likely to establish that publication…

Section 348(2) of the Education Act 1996 requires the local education authority to pay the whole of the fees payable for qualifying education. Section 9 does…

Section 32A requires a single assessment: whether, on the balance of probabilities, there is a measurable rather than fanciful chance of serious future…

A contractual term is implied only where necessary to give the contract business efficacy. The court cannot imply a term merely because it would make an…

Interim relief may preserve an employment contract where there is a serious issue that the employer dismissed in breach of an express contractual disciplinary…

Immigration detention pending removal remains lawful only while removal is genuinely intended and there is a reasonable prospect of achieving it within a…

A contractor is not liable merely because asbestos remains after remedial works where the contract contemplated competent encapsulation of residual material…

A solicitor acting within the broad scope of a client’s retainer may benefit from qualified privilege when responding to media criticism of the client, even…

On an application under section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, the court must accept the existing planning position but must independently…

Damages for wrongful dismissal caused by breach of a contractual disciplinary procedure are ordinarily limited to the earnings that would have been received…

On an interim payment application, the court must conservatively assess the likely capital value of the final judgment, excluding future losses which may be…

In assessing negligence for historic asbestos exposure, the foreseeable risk must be a risk of some personal injury, not necessarily mesothelioma. The court…

In malicious falsehood, the claimant need not be identifiable in the minds of those who received the words. The words must, however, contain some direct or…

In a defamation settlement, leaving the wording of an apology open will ordinarily create a serious risk that no binding compromise exists. It is not, however…

In determining costs following a costs hearing, the court may take a broad view of the issues to establish where justice lies. A detailed arithmetical…

An indemnity costs order requires conduct or circumstances taking the case outside the norm. The court must assess the conduct without hindsight. A party does…

Summary judgment may be granted where the claimant establishes the propositions essential to the limited relief sought, even though other pleaded issues…

In a direct claim against a foreign motor insurer, the applicable law depends on the particular issue rather than on characterising the entire claim as…

Interim relief should not ordinarily be used to supervise or manage an ongoing criminal investigation. The court should intervene only where intervention is…

An employer’s duty is to take reasonable care to devise and operate a safe system of work. Reasonableness depends on the circumstances, including the nature…

In an asbestos-related mesothelioma claim, the claimant need not prove that the defendant’s exposure was the sole cause of the disease. It is sufficient to…

A statutory levy provision may define both the persons liable and the goods or transactions in respect of which liability arises. Its meaning must be…

Article 2’s operational obligation to protect life applies to mental patients who are compulsorily detained and subject to coercive state control. It does not…

Under the confiscation provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, property may be treated as realisable property where it is held through a company or trust…

Where an action for negligence, nuisance or breach of duty includes damages for personal injury, Limitation Act 1980 s 11 applies to the action, including…

In a fatal-accident dependency claim, the proper measure for lost domestic care and services is the reasonable cost of replacing the services the deceased…

Detention pending deportation must be authorised, justified and kept under regular review. Officials must investigate identity and nationality where relevant…

A professional retainer may arise from instructions accepted by conduct, even where no fee has been expressly agreed. The law may imply an obligation to pay a…

A local authority investigating suspected child abuse must take reasonable steps to protect a child from personal injury, applying the professional standard…

An automatically generated search-engine snippet does not ordinarily make the search-engine operator a publisher of defamatory material. Common-law publication…

Publication may constitute contempt under Contempt of Court Act 1981 s.2(2) where it creates a substantial risk that the course of justice will be seriously…

In a malicious-falsehood claim, the single meaning rule applies as it does in defamation. The court must determine the one natural and ordinary meaning…

In deciding whether to set aside a default judgment, the court must consider whether the defendant has a real prospect of successfully defending the claim or…

A defendant may owe a duty to take reasonable care when placing equipment near a motor-racing circuit, particularly where vehicles may foreseeably overrun the…

A person who receives money into an account under his or her control, knowing that there is no entitlement to it, or deliberately shutting his or her eyes to…

In a clinical negligence claim concerning a testicular lump, the critical distinction was whether the abnormality was intra-testicular or extra-testicular. An…

A county court may entertain a public-law defence to possession proceedings where a seriously arguable case is raised that a public authority improperly…

Where a claimant settles for no more than a defendant’s Part 36 offer, the court should ordinarily give the offer its prescribed costs consequences. A…

Where a public authority relies on common-law qualified privilege to disseminate personal information, the court must consider its duties under the Human…

A specialist solicitor advising on commercial-agent termination must identify and explain material statutory rights with reasonable skill, care and clarity.…

In a libel action, the meaning of words is determined by the hypothetical reasonable reader, applying reasonableness and reading the publication as a whole.…

Damages for pecuniary loss must meet the claimant’s reasonable needs. Where professional advisers propose a reasonable care or treatment package, the defendant…

A witness summons issued in aid of arbitration may be set aside where it seeks irrelevant, speculative or unnecessary material, or where its operation would be…

A representative injunction may be granted against unidentified persons sharing a sufficient common interest in resisting the injunction, whether or not they…

In assessing future care damages, the court must determine what care is reasonably necessary to meet the claimant’s likely needs. The existing care regime is…

A contractual tax-loss indemnity must be construed according to the accounting assumptions and mechanism expressed in the agreement. Where the agreement was…

A court should not revisit an interlocutory decision of a court of equal jurisdiction unless there has been a material change of circumstances or the earlier…

On an application to determine whether words are capable of bearing a defamatory meaning, the court should reject a pleaded meaning only where a jury would be…

A breach of an undertaking to the court constitutes contempt where the breach is proved to the criminal standard, the conduct was intentional or deliberate…

Under section 10(7) of the Access to Justice Act 1999, the statutory charge extends to property recovered or preserved in proceedings, or in a compromise or…

In group litigation, costs of a successfully determined preliminary issue should ordinarily follow the event. The court should not allocate common costs…

On a renewed summary judgment application, the court must consider whether the new material makes the claim unanswerable, while also having regard to the…

An individual who communicates publicly through an anonymous blog does not thereby acquire a reasonable expectation that his identity will remain anonymous.…

Foreseeability of injury caused by pupils’ misconduct does not, by itself, establish a duty of care. An education authority owes teachers the duty of a…

An employment contract may be conditional upon satisfactory medical clearance where the contractual documents objectively impose that condition. A medical…

On an application under CPR Parts 3 and 24, a claim may be disposed of summarily where the limitation defence shows that the claimant has no real prospect of…

An insurer’s statutory obligation to satisfy a judgment for personal injury cannot be rendered ineffective by immediate recovery proceedings against the…

An implied warranty of authority ordinarily warrants that an agent has authority to act for the person represented as principal. It does not ordinarily warrant…

Damages for personal injury must provide full compensation for reasonable needs, while avoiding overlap between heads of loss. Where reasonable options exist…

Substitution after expiry of limitation under CPR 19.5 requires a genuine mistake as to the name of the intended party, rather than the party’s identity. The…

Restrictive covenants must be construed in their contractual and factual context. Covenants directed to executive managers will not ordinarily be extended to a…

In a group personal-injury action arising from historic nuclear tests, limitation issues had to be determined individually. The court held that the relevant…

An agreement referring disputes to expert determination should generally be upheld. A limitation agreement extending time for court proceedings does not…

In a defamation claim, a contractual term incorporated into an agreement may nevertheless be unenforceable where statutory requirements governing employment…

A claimant seeking contribution under the Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978 must prove that the proposed contributor was liable for the same damage. In a…

In an application for specific disclosure, the court must assess the relevance of the redacted material itself. Disclosure of a document in redacted form does…

When assessing a success fee under a conditional fee agreement, the relevant prospects of success are those reasonably apparent to the solicitor when the…

For without prejudice privilege to apply, there must be a real dispute capable of compromise. Communications addressing only payment of an admitted liability…

In a judge-alone trial, non-expert witness statements may contain factual observations, but inadmissible opinion evidence must be removed. The court must also…

A commercial distributorship agreement may arise without a signed formal contract. Its terms are determined from the parties’ agreement and conduct, but a…

In civil recovery proceedings under Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the claimant must prove on the balance of probabilities that property was…

A defendant’s costs order may, in principle, compensate a successful defendant for substantial expenses incurred on professional services, including legal…

The High Court’s inherent jurisdiction may exceptionally be used to quash a costs determination where an administrative error has caused a breach of natural…

In a libel claim concerning an email and its republication in a newspaper article, defamatory words must be read in their full context. A claimant cannot…

Police powers under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 to seize, use and retain property are confined to statutory law-enforcement purposes. Property…

For limitation purposes, knowledge that an injury followed hypoxia or a forceps delivery does not necessarily establish knowledge that it was attributable to…

In determining meaning, the court must consider what was actually published and the natural meaning conveyed to the ordinary reasonable reader. Express…

For limitation purposes, knowledge under section 14 of the Limitation Act 1980 is assessed objectively. The court asks what facts the claimant knew, or must be…

Contempt of court requires proof to the criminal standard that the order was properly served and deliberately breached. A party cannot choose which information…

When possession is sought under ground 14 of Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988 following serious criminal conduct, the conduct need not have occurred inside…

Election campaign material is not immune from liability for injurious falsehood or data-protection breaches merely because it is political or partisan. The…

Amendments to pleadings should generally be permitted where they clarify the real dispute, subject to costs and any limitation issue. After expiry of…

An application for an order requiring the Legal Services Commission to meet a shortfall in costs protected under Access to Justice Act 1999, section 11, must…

The implied undertaking governing documents and information disclosed in civil proceedings may be relaxed only where there are special circumstances and…

A public body may agree compensation for loss of office only within its statutory powers and subject to Wednesbury reasonableness. A payment becomes ultra…

For limitation purposes, mental capacity is issue-specific. The relevant question is whether the claimant could understand and deal with the matters arising in…

In a malicious falsehood action, the court may direct the separate trial of meaning as a preliminary issue under CPR Part 3. The approach need not materially…

A costs capping order in defamation proceedings is an exceptional case-management remedy. The court must be satisfied that such an order is in the interests of…

A statutory challenge to a planning decision will be struck out where the proposed ground has no realistic prospect of success. An inspector’s reasons need be…

A driver is judged by the standard of the reasonable driver, viewed in the practical circumstances confronting the driver. The court must avoid hindsight…

Detention pursuant to an unimpeachable order of a superior court may be lawful under article 5(1)(b), even where the order is later overtaken by an appellate…

A stay of proceedings pending a test case may remain appropriate where the claimant’s claim depends on issues that the test case will determine. General…

Where a periodical payment order is silent about the cost of complying with an administrative obligation, the cost is not recoverable from the paying party…

In contempt proceedings arising from verified statements in personal injury litigation, the applicant must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the statement was…

At summary judgment, pleaded primary facts are assumed true unless fanciful, but the claimant must show a real prospect of establishing each essential element.…

In a personal injury claim, causation is determined on the balance of probabilities by evaluating the whole evidential picture, including expert evidence and…

Where solicitors’ negligence causes a claimant to lose the opportunity to pursue a claim, damages are assessed by valuing the lost chance, not by treating the…

Relevant evidence is generally admissible in civil proceedings, even if obtained unlawfully. The court retains a discretionary power to exclude it where…

An indemnity costs order is justified where conduct is unreasonable to a high degree and takes the case out of the norm. The court considers all the…

A seizure of material protected by legal professional privilege does not automatically make the whole search unlawful or justify an injunction restraining…

A negative declaration in a personal injury dispute is an unusual discretionary remedy, but it is not inherently inappropriate merely because the potential…

Under sections 82 and 91 of the Extradition Act 2003, injustice and oppression are distinct but overlapping questions. Passage of time is assessed by its…

Under Article 4(3) of Council Regulation 2988/95, an advantage may be withdrawn where formal compliance with Community legislation is achieved by artificially…

The usual rule in clinical-negligence litigation is that each party should call no more than one expert in a particular discipline. A second expert may be…

Confidentiality may survive limited or partial dissemination, particularly where material remains difficult for the general public to access. General internet…

In a libel claim, natural and ordinary meaning is determined objectively by asking how reasonable viewers or readers would understand the publication as a…

In determining whether words are capable of bearing a defamatory meaning, the court must assess their natural and ordinary meaning in context, from the…

An alleged oral agreement to promote future sporting events must be proved on the evidence, viewed in its commercial and documentary context. A party sharing…

Whether a term should be implied into a commission agreement depends on the express language, read against the relevant factual background. An implied…

A fresh action is an abuse of process where it seeks to relitigate issues already raised, or capable of being pursued, in existing proceedings. The court must…

The fraudulent-claims rule forfeits an insurance claim where dishonesty is used to advance a claim under the policy. It does not apply where the dishonest…

Third-party disclosure is an exceptional jurisdiction and should not be ordered routinely. Under the Civil Procedure Rules 1998, the applicant must show that…

A non-compliant Part 36 offer may nevertheless receive the intended costs consequences where its defects are purely technical, caused no real uncertainty or…

Existing laws promulgated by the Coalition Provisional Authority remained in force after the Iraqi Constitution came into effect unless annulled or amended…

An insured cannot recover for fire damage intentionally caused by his own criminal act unless, on the balance of probabilities, he proves insanity under the…

A justification defence in defamation proceedings must identify the facts relied upon clearly and succinctly, without pleading the evidence. Serious…

Under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945, a claimant’s failure to wear a seat belt reduces damages only where the defendant proves that the…

Commercial contracts are construed against their factual background and in accordance with business commonsense, but the court must not rewrite an agreement to…

An employee’s share option is not lost merely because the employer alleges breaches of the employment contract. The employer must establish a contractual or…

Costs incurred in attending and participating in an inquest may be recoverable as costs incidental to subsequent civil proceedings. There is no absolute rule…

An employer has no general common-law duty to provide a reference. Such a duty may arise from a regulatory scheme or an implied custom in a particular trade.…

A contractual right to enter premises to make “surveys or drawings” must be construed objectively, in its immediate and wider commercial context. Dictionary…

Damages for deceit are assessed to place the claimant in the position that would have applied had the representation not been made. Recoverable consequential…

Medical negligence is assessed by asking whether the conduct fell outside the range of practice accepted as proper by a responsible body of reasonably…

Damages for prolonged trafficking, false imprisonment and coerced sexual exploitation may be assessed globally where the injuries are closely connected.…

An exclusive jurisdiction clause covering proceedings relating to a contract does not extend to proceedings seeking to enforce a judgment debt against a…

An occupier may owe a measured duty of care to abate a naturally occurring nuisance where it knows, or ought to know, that a hazard on its land is causing…

In assessing damages for serious brain injury, future care must reflect both rehabilitation and the claimant’s actual safety needs. Intensive support may be…

A contractual description such as a success-fee basis does not override clear written terms providing for a minimum fee. A party who signs contractual…

On a statutory appeal under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the public interest test remains the governing test for qualified exemptions. Legal…

A wasted costs order is compensatory, not punitive or regulatory. The applicant must prove that improper, unreasonable or negligent conduct caused recoverable…

An action for defamation should be struck out as an abuse only in an exceptional case. The court must consider, in the round, whether there is a real and…

Permission to amend pleadings should be refused where the proposed case is speculative, insufficiently particularised and dependent on disclosure to identify…

An auditor’s negligent accounts do not create a personal duty of care to a company director and shareholder in respect of liability under a personal guarantee…

For historic abuse claims framed in negligence or breach of duty and involving personal injury, the primary limitation period is three years from accrual or…

Summary judgment may be inappropriate where a defendant has produced evidence and legal arguments giving the defence a real prospect of success, even though…

An agent claiming commission for a completed property purchase must establish a concluded contract on the terms alleged. An unaccepted proposal, rejected fee…

Following discontinuance, costs ordinarily fall on the standard basis. Indemnity costs are justified where conduct of the litigation or the circumstances take…

Service of a claim form by fax is ineffective where the recipient has not previously given the express written indication required by the relevant practice…

On an application to amend, the pleaded case must be properly arguable, assessed separately for each head of claim. A claim that journalistic-source redactions…

A bank which genuinely suspects that a customer’s funds are criminal property must make an authorised disclosure and seek appropriate consent under Part 7 of…

On an application for an interim privacy injunction, the court may require sufficient candour to assess whether the information has entered the public domain…

A general practitioner must take a sufficiently careful history before diagnosing a viral or post-viral illness. Where a child has been unwell for an unusually…

A vehicle is used for ambulance purposes if it is used, or primarily used, for conveying sick, injured or disabled persons. The vehicle need not itself satisfy…

In a direct claim by an injured road-accident victim against the tortfeasor’s insurer, characterisation depends on the particular issue, not on whether the…

For limitation purposes, constructive knowledge is fact-sensitive. It cannot be inferred merely because a patient knew that treatment had failed or did not…

A party may plead an alternative factual case based on material advanced by the opponent where there is an evidential basis and no unfair prejudice. The court…

For a foreign limitation period to govern a claim, the English court must identify the true issue and apply the appropriate foreign law, avoiding an unduly…

Interim relief for breach of confidence requires a realistically enforceable duty of confidence owed by the relevant person. Confidentiality does not arise…

A civil restraint order may be made where a party has made at least two applications which were totally without merit. Permission is required before applying…

A claimant who controls a website and knowingly leaves defamatory material available after discovering it may be taken to have consented to, or acquiesced in…

A conditional fee agreement may validly be retrospective, including as to a success fee, unless statute or public policy prevents it. Its reasonableness…