Latest Cases

Practice – Hearing. The Secretary of State applied for a declaration, under s 6 of the Justice and Security Act 2013, to permit her to make a closed material application. The Divisional Court, in exercising the discretion to make the declaration, found the statutory pre-condition and two conditions satisfied. 

Income tax – Assessment. The Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) (the tribunal) dismissed the taxpayer's appeal against a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber)(the FTT) in which the FTT had rejected the taxpayer's challenge to decisions of the Revenue and Customs Commissioners to issue certain notices of determination in respect of contract payments due under the construction industry scheme. The tribunal further decided that, in those circumstances, the FTT had been correct to revoke the taxpayer's gross payment status. 

Health – Health care. The claimant doctors sought judicial review of the defendant Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report. The Administrative Court dismissed the claimants' six grounds of challenge, in particular, those alleging procedural unfairness and failure to apply the correct test. 

European Union – Telecommunications. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling, deciding, among other things that, the concept of 'programme' within the meaning of art 1(1)(b) of Directive 2010/13/EU should be interpreted as including, under the sub-domain of a website of a newspaper, the provision of videos of short duration consisting of local news bulletins, sports and entertainment clips. 

Arbitration – Adjudication. The Technology and Construction Court considered an application by the claimant for summary judgment, seeking to enforce two decisions of an adjudicator concerning delay in a construction contract made on the GC/Works/1 Single Stage Design & Build (1998) with Amendment 1 (2000) standard form. The court held that there was nothing in the points raised by the defendant, and the decisions would be enforced. 

Company – Compulsory winding up. The claimant Secretary of State applied for the appointment of provisional liquidators to the defendant companies. The Chancery Division, in allowing the application, held that jurisdiction existed because a winding-up petition had been presented which was likely to succeed and the appointment of a provisional liquidator was justified. 

Criminal law – Trial. The claimant sought an order quashing her convictions for common assault and harassment of a terrierman at a hunt on the ground that the judge should have recused himself. The Administrative Court, in dismissing the application, held that the judge had had no obligation to disclose the fact that he had previously acted as solicitor for a different terrierman with the hunt. 

European Union – Public procurement. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of European Union public procurement law and, in particular, of art 23(2) of Directive (EC) 2004/18. The request had been made in proceedings between Grupo Hospitalario Quirón and the Department of Health of the Basque government and another, concerning the validity of a condition inserted in two public procurement notices. 

Practice – Service out of the jurisdiction. The Chancery Division had set aside the claimant's permission to serve proceedings out of the jurisdiction on HSBC in Monaco as she had failed to show that the English jurisdiction was clearly the more appropriate forum for the claim. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed her appeal as the judge had taken into account the relevant considerations and had not taken into account irrelevant ones. 

Immigration – Deportation. The Queen's Bench Division found that the claimant an unaccompanied Afghan minor who had arrived in the United Kingdom in 2008, he claimant had never been under any obligation to leave the UK and was not capable of being lawfully removed. He was an important witness in a murder trial as subject to an agreement by the police not to be detained or removed. On that basis the claimant's detention in an Immigration Centre was wrongful and he was entitled to damages in the overall award of £19,250.