Latest Cases

Compensation – Criminal injuries. The Court of Protection had previously held, in what was agreed to be a matter of general importance, that a deputy or an attorney acting on behalf of an applicant in regard to an award under the Criminal Injury Compensation Authority could accept and finalise such an award on behalf of a patient. The matter returned to court to address certain matters regarding wording of the appointment of a deputy and the terms of the trust. 

Criminal law – Sexual activity. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, held that a total sentence of 8 months' detention in a young offender institution, suspended for 18 months, for three counts of sexual activity with a child, contrary to s 9(1) of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, had not been unduly lenient. The judge had not erred in his finding that 'grooming' had not occurred. 

Value added tax – Recovery of tax. The Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) (the tribunal) allowed the appeal by the Revenue and Customs Commissioners against a decision of the First-Tier tribunal (Tax Chamber) to the effect that the taxpayer was entitled to a refund of VAT claimed under s 35(4) of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 incurred in connection with the construction of a building for use as a dwelling. The tribunal decided that condition 4 of the planning consent had prohibited the separate use of the building with the result that the building was not 'designed as a dwelling' for the purposes of s 35(1A) of the Act and Note 2(c) of Group 5 of Sch 8 to the Act. Consequently, its construction did not attract a refund of VAT pursuant to s 35(1) of the Act. 

Contract – Sale of goods. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed the claimant's appeal in respect of his claim brought against the defendant Porsche dealer for damages for breach of an agreement to sell a limited edition vehicle, subject only to a condition that a vehicle be allocated to the defendant, and awarded him damages of £35,000. If there was an agreement for the sale of a vehicle to the claimant, and if there had been a collateral contract that the claimant would be first in the queue if Porsche supplied one to the defendant, the defendant had been in breach of contract when it had sold the one vehicle it had been allocated to someone else. 

Medical practitioner – Professional conduct committee. The Administrative Court dismissed the appellant consultant physician's appeal against the decision of the Fitness to Practise Panel (the panel) of the respondent General Medical Council, finding contravention of his employment contract by absence on 91 days and imposing the sanction of erasure. The panel had not erred in its factual findings and the sanction of erasure had been inevitable. 

Town and country planning – Permission for development. The Planning Court dismissed the claimant's application for judicial review of the defendant local planning authority's decision, under s 70C of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, declining to determine his application for planning permission of a change of use of a site for a single Gypsy and Traveller residential pitch and associated development until May 2018. On its proper interpretation, The power conferred by s 70C of the Act applied to the application for planning permission. 

European Union – Social security. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling deciding that art 5(a) of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 should be interpreted as meaning that, in circumstances such as those at issue in the main proceedings, old-age benefits provided under an occupational pension scheme of one member state and those provided under a statutory pension scheme of another member state - both schemes being within the scope of that regulation - were equivalent benefits within the meaning of that provision, where both categories of benefits had the same aim of ensuring that their recipients maintained a standard of living commensurate with that which they had enjoyed prior to retirement. 

Customs and Excise – Excise duty. The Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) allowed the appeal by the Revenue and Customs Commissioners against a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber)(the FTT) upholding the taxpayer's appeal against an assessment to duty raised by the Revenue on the basis that, in contravention of various provisions of the Hydrocarbon Oils Duties Act 1979, he had wrongfully used rebated fuel in a tractor. The tribunal decided that by failing to take steps to initiate condemnation proceedings, the taxpayer had caused the tractor to be 'duly condemned' with the effect that the deeming provision in para 5 of Sch 3 to the Customs & Excise Management Act 1970 did apply. 

Income tax – Tax advantage. The Administrative Court dismissed the claimants' application for judicial review of the defendant Revenue and Customs Commissioner's decisions to limit the benefits available to them under the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility in relation to their employee benefit trust schemes. The decisions were not conspicuously unfair and the Revenue had taken account of all relevant considerations. There had been no abuse of power or error of law. 

European Union – Employment. The European Court of Justice Union made a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of Directive (EC) 2008/94 (on the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer) and art 20 of the Charter on the Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The request had been made in proceedings between Mr Julian Hernandez and other employees concerning the payment of an amount corresponding to that of the outstanding remuneration owed to those employees during proceedings challenging their dismissals after the 60th working day following the date on which their actions challenging their dismissals had been brought and until the date of service of the judgment declaring those dismissals to be invalid.