Latest Cases

Medical practitioner – Appeal against determination of disciplinary committee. The Administrative Court dismissed the appellant registered nurse's appeal against the decision of the respondent Conduct and Competence Committee (the CCC) of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, finding her fitness to practise impaired and striking her name off the register. Having reached the findings it had, the CCC's conclusions as to impairment and sanction had been fully and carefully considered, and it had been entitled to reach the conclusion it had. 

Road Traffic – Disqualification from driving. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, provided guidance as to the effect of the introduction into the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 of sections 35A and 35B, provisions relating to disqualification of driving. In particular, it set out a checklist indicating an appropriate way of working to formal sentencing decisions in respect of disqualification. 

Contract – Breach. The Privy Council dismissed the appellant's appeal against, among other things, a decision that a clause in a lease of part of a resort, granted by the appellant to the respondent, did not restrict the respondent's right to claim damages for breach of contract. It held that, absent any indication in the wording of the clause in the context of the lease as a whole that the 'penalty fee' was to be in substitution for common law damages for breach of contract, the fee would be construed as an additional charge on the occurrence of an interruption caused by a breach of contract. 

Animal – Protection. The Divisional Court, in dismissing the RSPCA's appeal, held that, in order for an offence of animal fighting to be committed, contrary to s 8 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, as defined by s 8(7) of that Act, the other animal, with which a protected animal was placed, had to be the subject of some control or restraint by some person or persons connected with that activity or some other artificial constraint so that its ability to escape was prevented. 

Contract – Construction. The Technology and Construction Court determined two preliminary issues in the course of proceedings concerning a claim for damages for delay in sub-contract works on the Rolls Building. It ruled that: (i) on the assumption that EMCOR was entitled to an extension of time, pursuant to the sub-contract, as amended, the sub-contract required that such revised or further revised period or periods were added contiguously to the end of the current period within which the sub-contract works should be completed; and (ii) the claimant's liability to the Rolls for liquidated and ascertained damages for the relevant period had not been not extinguished by a further supplemental agreement. 

Negligence – Duty to take care. The county court dismissed the claimant's claim for damages for physical and emotional abuse caused by a licensee on parole after a murder conviction. The Secretary of State had not owed the claimant a duty of care to investigate the initial allegations that she had been in a relationship with the licensee in a different, more thorough, manner, nor had he owed a duty to warn the claimant of the licensee's background. 

European Union – Companies. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling, deciding that European Union law should be interpreted as meaning that: – the law applicable following a cross-border merger by acquisition to the interpretation of a loan contract taken out by the acquired company, such as the contracts at issue in the main proceedings, to the performance of the obligations under the contract and to how those obligations were extinguished was the law which was applicable to the contract before the merger; – the provisions governing the protection of the creditors of the acquired company, in a case such as that at issue in the main proceedings, were those of national law which were applicable to that company. 

Sentence – Extended term of imprisonment. On a reference by the Attorney General, the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, held that an extended sentence of 140 months, comprising a custodial element of 92 months and an extended licence period of 48 months, for causing grievous bodily harm with intent, had been unduly lenient. In all the circumstances, the custodial element of that sentence would be quashed and in its place, a term of 11 years' imprisonment would be imposed. The extended licence period of 48 months would remain the same. 

Negligence – Causation. The Queen's Bench Division held, in dismissing the claimant's case in negligence against the Secretary of State for Health, that there had been no breach of duty in respect of the delivery of a twin in circumstances where she was deprived of oxygen and suffered serious brain injury. 

European Union – Residence. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling, deciding that art 7(1)(c) of Council Directive (EC) 2003/86 should be interpreted as allowing the competent authorities of a member state to refuse an application for family reunification on the basis of a prospective assessment of the likelihood of the sponsor retaining, or failing to retain, the necessary stable and regular resources which were sufficient to maintain himself and the members of his family, without recourse to the social assistance system of that member state, in the year following the date of submission of that application, that assessment being based on the pattern of the sponsor's income in the six months preceding that date.