Latest Cases

Trust – Administration of trust. In the course of proceedings, the claimant companies sought two declarations. The first, which related to the status of trust monies, would be granted. The second, which concerned the status of an injunction granted by the New York courts, would not be allowed since, in the circumstances, it would be qualified to the point where it would serve no useful purpose. 

Education – Higher education. The claimant sought judicial review of the defendant Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education's decision, affirming the termination of her medical studies. The Administrative Court, in allowing the application, held that it had been open to the defendant to look critically at the assertion that the decision had been immune from review as an academic judgment and to consider the university's failure to take relevant matters into account. 

Immigration – Human rights – Leave to appeal – Judicial review. Court of Session: Dismissing a judicial review petition by a 69-year-old citizen of India, whose application for variation of her leave to remain in the UK was refused, and who challenged a decision of the Upper Tribunal refusing her permission to appeal against the First Tier Tribunal's refusal of her appeal, the court held that the petitioner did not present an arguable case for meeting the 'second appeals' test. 

European Union – Trade marks. The Chancery Division considered a dispute relating to trade marks used in respect of pet food. The claimant company alleged that the defendant company had, among other things, infringed its trade marks. The court held that, on the evidence, a number of the marks had been invalidly registered. However, the defendant had not infringed the marks, and no passing off had occurred. 

Bankruptcy – Annulment. The appellant debtor appealed against an order of a deputy district judge dismissing her application for the annulment of a bankruptcy order. In her grounds of appeal, the appellant had raised a limitation defence. The Chancery Division, in allowing the appeal, held that the belated revelation of the second respondent's only real answer to the appellant's limitation defence after the bankruptcy order had been made, without any explanation why it had not previously been put forward, materially altered the legal landscape and was an exceptional circumstance justifying review of the validity and enforceability of the petition debt. 

Town and country planning – Permission for development. The claimant sought judicial review of the defendant local planning authority's decision to decline to determine her retrospective planning application, in the exercise of its discretion under s 70C of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The Planning Court, considering the ambit of s 70C of the Act for the first time, held that the authority had been entitled to infer that the claimant's motive in seeking retrospective planning permission had been to delay enforcement action and had not exercised its discretion in a manner challengeable on public law grounds. 

European Union – Patents. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling concerning the conditions of accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and the Slovak Republic and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the European Union was founded. The request had been made in proceedings between Merck Canada Inc. and Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd and Sigma Pharmaceuticals plc, concerning the importation into the United Kingdom of a pharmaceutical product called 'Singulair' from Poland. 

Practice – Personal injuries action. The widow of the deceased D, brought an action against the defendant on behalf of his estate and dependants for damages arising out of a fatal road traffic accident. The accident occurred in December 2011 on one of the north bound carriageways in London. As the deceased was crossing the road from west to east, an LGV, being driven by PL in the course of his employment with the defendant, collided with him The matter had to be resolved by expert evidence. The Queen's Bench Division held that given the circumstances which pertained that evening, the failure of D to take any precautions for his own safety had resulted in him being the author of the tragic incident. 

European Union – Trade marks. The General Court of the European Union granted the application by Red Bull GmbH (Red Bull), established in Austria, for annulment of a decision of the Second Board Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) relating to opposition proceedings between Red Bull and Sun Mark Ltd concerning the application by Sun Mark for registration of the word sign 'BULLDOG' as a Community trade mark. 

Action – Dismissal. The claimant had brought a claim against the defendants, which had been dismissed. He brought another claim, essentially based on similar allegations. The defendants applied to strike out the new claim and for a civil restraint order. The Chancery Division, in allowing the defendants' application, held that the claim would be struck out as an abuse of process. Further, it was appropriate for an extended civil restraint order to be made.