Latest Cases

Personal Injury: Quantum Case. Public liability. PSLA of £8,250 awarded. 

Bankruptcy – Appeal. The Chancery Division dismissed the applicant's appeal against a bankruptcy order. It held that, among other things, in making the order the deputy district judge had been right in finding that the respondent company had acted reasonably in rejecting the applicant's offer to secure the debt. 

Practice – Striking out. The Technology and Construction Court granted a local authority's application to strike out a claim brought by an unsuccessful tenderer, under the Public Contract Regulations 2015, SI 2015/102 (the Regulations), where a contract for council tax and similar debt collection and enforcement services by bailiffs and enforcement agencies amounted to a 'services concession contract' and therefore fell outside the Regulations. The claim was unarguable in law and fact and there were procedural and substantive authorities which made it plain that a CPR Pt 7 claim should not be amended so as to turn it into a claim for judicial review, as requested by the claimant. 

Trade mark – Licence. The Chancery Division granted an order for an expedited trial of a dispute concerning intellectual property rights in industrial machines and parts and an exclusive licence in respect of the assembly and sale of whole machines. However, it held that it was not appropriate to grant the defendant company, which claimed to have the exclusive licence, interim injunctive relief against the claimant where the damage to the claimant if an injunction was granted was far more credible and far more likely to be uncompensatable in money terms than any possible damage to the defendant if an injunction was not granted. 

Competition – Competition Appeal Tribunal. The Competition Appeal Tribunal dismissed the appeal by British Telecommunications plc against a decision of the Office of Communications (Ofcom) contained in a statement in which Ofcom had expressed its concern that BT could distort the development of competition in superfast broadband services (SFBB) to customers by setting an insufficient margin between the price of virtual unbundled local access (VULA) and the price of its retail packages which used VULA as an input. The tribunal rejected BT's range of arguments that Ofcom's market analysis was deficient and could not withstand profound and rigorous scrutiny. 

Mental health – Court of Protection. The Court of Protection, on the Public Guardian's application to revoke a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) for property and financial affairs, held that, in circumstances where the only evidence of the donor's capacity was in the Court of Protection General Visitor's report, which was ambivalent on the question of her capacity to revoke the LPA, an assessment by a Court of Protection Special Visitor was required prior to considering revoking the LPA and making a substantive deputyship appointment. Pending receipt of that report, the attorneys' authority to act under the LPA would be suspended and the donor's daughter would be appointed as an interim deputy. 

Water and watercourses – Flow of water. The Technology and Construction Court dismissed the claimants' claim regarding the collapse of a slope on their property. The court held that the defendant water authority's expert evidence was to be preferred over the claimants'. Further, applying the appropriate test, there had been no material contribution to the presence of fluid. The claimants had failed to establish causation. 

Human rights – Right to a fair hearing. The European Court of Human Rights dismissed the applicant's contention that his right to a fair trial had been violated by the admission of hearsay evidence at his murder trial. Having regard to the existence of other incriminating evidence and of procedural safeguards, it could not be said that the criminal proceedings had been rendered unfair. 

Elections – Parliamentary. The Queen's Bench Division held that due to an admitted breach by the thee elected candidates of r 6 of the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) England and Wales Rules 2006, SI 3305/06 the election was void and it would be necessary to rerun it. 

European Union – Immigration. The Administrative Court awarded the claimant Brazilian national damages of £136,048 for false imprisonment and breach of European Union law. The defendant Secretary of State had acted unlawfully in failing to issue him with a European Economic Area residence card on the basis of his marriage to a European Union citizen.