Latest Cases

Contract – Breach of contract. The Commercial Court made findings, overall in the claimant Portuguese bank's favour, in its claim for declarations that the defendant Portuguese transport companies' obligations under long-term interest rate swaps constituted legal, valid and binding obligations, enforceable in accordance with their respective terms. It rejected the defendants' defences that they lacked capacity to enter into the swaps, that art 3(3) of the Convention on the Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations 1980 applied and that the bank had acted in breach of its duties under the Portuguese Securities Code. 

Immigration – Removal. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed the appellants' appeals against the decision of the Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber), dismissing their claims for judicial review of the respondent Secretary of State's refusal to admit their representations as fresh claims for asylum. It was not possible to say that those decisions had been irrational in the light of the applicable test and the Secretary of State had not failed to have proper regard to any true vulnerability of the appellants. 

Landlord and tenant – Repair. The Queen's Bench Division, in dismissing the claimant's appeal against the dismissal of her claim against the defendant for damages under s 4 of the Defective Premises Act 1972, held that the purpose of s 4(4) of the Act was not to create a strict liability, but to extend the application of s 4(1) of the Act to relevant defects which were outwith its scope and, therefore, to bring them within the scope of the section as a whole. Its purpose was not to confer an additional or alternative route to recovery where the claim under s 4(1) failed on its facts because s 4(2) was unsatisfied. 

Family proceedings – Orders in family proceedings. The Family Division considered the applicant local authority's application for an interim care order regarding LW, who had been born on 16 January 2016. The court criticised delays arising from the local authority's conduct and stressed the importance of making applications for public law proceedings in respect of new born babies timeously and especially, where the circumstances arguably required the removal of the child from its parent(s), within at most five days of the child's birth. 

Criminal law – Sentence. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, held that a total sentence of six years' imprisonment, for cruelty to a person under 16 years, servitude and assisting unlawful immigration to a member state, had not been unduly lenient. In the circumstances, the term imposed had been a well-judged sentence. Accordingly, the application for leave to refer the sentences to the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, pursuant to s 36 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, as unduly lenient, would be refused. 

Town and country planning – Permission for development. The Planning Court allowed the claimant local planning authority's challenge to the decision of the inspector appointed by the first defendant Secretary of State, granting outline planning permission to the second defendant developer to build up to 85 dwellings and associated works. Because of the harm to designated heritage assets, limb 2 of para 14 of the National Planning Policy Framework fell to be considered first and the inspector had only undertaken the weighted exercise in limb 1. 

Value added tax – Exemptions. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed an appeal by the Revenue and Customs Commissioners, holding that the BBC, as provider of services to The Open University (OU), was entitled to reclaim VAT on the production and broadcasting of services relating to the OU's courses. While the BBC was not a body governed by public law within the meaning of art 13A(1)(i) of Council Directive (EEC) 77/388, it did have the requisite educational aim to bring it within the education exemption in art 13A(1)(i) and was entitled to rely on the direct effect of that article because of the UK's failure to implement the Directive. 

Pleading – Amendment. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed the Unitech parties' appeal against the refusal to allow amendments to their pleadings in relation to five intended defences and allowed the lenders' cross-appeal against the refusal to order a payment into court or an interim payment. In respect of the latter, it was appropriate in the circumstances to make an order in line with the lenders' preference for a requirement for a payment into court. 

Practice – Parties. The Chancery Division allowed the claiming defendants' application for permission to join CL as a defendant to the counterclaim in a case concerning the alleged infringement of the claimants' copyright in the first defendant company's conduct of its therapy business. The counterclaim alleged that the claimants and CL had been negligent, both in their selection of a particular machine as a mandatory device for the administration of the therapy, and in their insistence on the continued use of the machine after problems allegedly became evident with it. The court held that CL had given direct advice to a number of the defendants, and that it could not be said that the claiming defendants had no real prospect of establishing their allegations against her. 

Contempt of court – Committal. The Queen's Bench Division held that the defendant had breached disclosure requirements in relation to the terms of a proprietary and freezing injunction relating to properties which the court had found he had had a beneficial interest in. He fell to be sentenced at a further hearing.