Latest Cases

Damages – Personal injury. The claimant's wife had become seriously ill following a hysterectomy, in consequence of the admitted negligence of the defendant NHS Trust. In the county court, it was found that it had been the sight of the sudden shocking state and condition of his wife which had triggered the claimant's mental illness, and he was awarded damages as a secondary victim of the trust's admitted negligence. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, in allowing an appeal by the trust, held that the circumstances with which the claimant had been confronted fell far short of those which had been recognised by the law as founding secondary victim liability. 

Practice – Pre-trial or post-judgment relief. A trustee in bankruptcy sought directions from the court in regard to when an action in progress at the time of the trustee's appointment was adopted by the trustee, whether there was any reason in principle why the trustee should necessarily be required, simply by his adoption of the action, to pay the other side's costs of legal proceedings including those incurred at the time when he was not a party and the action was being concluded by the bankrupt for his own account. The Supreme Court held that he would not be held personally liable for any costs in relation to the action up to an including the order of the Court of Appeal by virtue of the fact of his office as trustee in bankruptcy or of his adoption of the appeal. 

Practice – Summary judgment. The claimant, as purchaser, sought summary judgment on its claim for specific performance of a contract for the purchase and sale of a leasehold interest in property owned by the defendant. 

Judicial review – Application for judicial review. The appellant bookmaker had been licensed by the Mauritian Gambling Regulatory Authority to take bets on football matches being played overseas. Its licence was suspended and then revoked. No reasons were given for the revocation. The appellant applied for leave to bring judicial review proceedings, but its application was dismissed by reason of its failure to make full and frank disclosure of facts by reason of misleading statements. The Privy Council allowed the appellant's appeal as the Supreme Court of Mauritius had failed to consider the merits of the application before dismissing it, and where there were sufficiently strong grounds that justified a grant of permission in respect of two of the appellant's assertions. 

European Union – Freedom of establishment. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling deciding, among other things, that the first paragraph of art 51 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be interpreted as meaning that the derogation from the right of establishment contained in that provision did not apply to certification activities carried out by companies classified as certification bodies. 

Child – Care. A baby, M, died whilst in the care of his mother and her partner, A. After his death, M was found to have sustained bruises and a fractured right tibia. The mother subsequently gave birth to another child and, in view of the circumstances of M's death, the local authority began care proceedings. In the present fact-finding proceedings, the authority did not seek to argue that either the mother or A were responsible for M's death. Rather, the focus was on the causes of the fracture and bruises, and whether M was neglected by his mother and A. The Family Division, on the evidence, made some, but not all, of the findings sought by the authority. 

Will – Validity – Holograph will or writing– Testamentary effect. Sheriff Court: Allowing an appeal by a petitioner who sought special warrant to issue confirmation as executor nominate of her deceased sister qua her residuary legatee, the court held that the sheriff had erred in refusing the application and finding that the holograph will or writing at deceased's hand which the petitioner relied upon lacked the necessary testamentary intention; the meaning of the document in the sense of it being a will was obvious and unequivocally set out the deceased's wishes and testamentary intentions. 

Town and country planning – Permission for development. The present case concerned the boundaries to ministers being lobbied by a Member of Parliament (MP) about a matter affecting her constituency if their decision was not to be tainted by unlawfulness. The Planning Court held that there was nothing unlawful in ministers being lobbied by an MP on a constituency planning matter so long as ministers acted fairly and consistently with the standards of propriety set by the Town and Country Planning (Inquiries Procedure) (England) Rules 2000, SI 2000/1624, the Ministerial Code and planning propriety guidance. Accordingly, it dismissed the claimant's challenge to the refusal of planning permission for a wind farm. 

Immigration – Asylum – Judicial review. Court of Session: Refusing a judicial review petition brought by an asylum seeker after the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) allowed his asylum claim on appeal and the Upper Tribunal (UT) subsequently set aside the FTT decision and directed that there be a re-determination, the court held that the UT decision was competently amenable to judicial review, the petition raised 'a point of principle or practice' and the judicial review application was not barred by delay by the petitioner, however the UT determination would and should have been no different if it had been made after the Supreme Court's decision in another case concerning the treatment and evidential value of language analysis for the determination of origin. 

Family proceedings – Jurisdiction. The mother of a child applied to the court for permission to remove R from the UK to Angola to live there permanently. The father opposed that application, and applied for a child arrangements order to define the time R spent with him in England. The Family Division allowed the mother's application as it was in R's best interests to do so.