Latest Cases

Company – Restoration to register – Effect. Sheriff Court: Allowing an appeal in a case in which the Crown had disclaimed the title to a lease following the tenant company's dissolution, thereby terminating it, the landlords had commenced proceedings to repossess the premises, and a director of the tenant company had then had it restored to the register, the court concluded that the sheriff was wrong to agree with the defenders' contention that, in terms of s 1032(1) of the Companies Act 2006, all things had reverted to the status quo as it prevailed pre-dissolution and that landlords' action was irrelevant. 

Statement of claim – Amdement. In the course of a patent dispute, the issue arose of how long the claimant company should be given to provide full particulars of claim. The Patents Court held that, on the evidence, a fair period for doing so would be up to the 15 September 2014. 

Patent – Infringement. The Chancery Division, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, determined an account of profits following a judgment in which it was found that the claimants' patent was valid and had been infringed by the defendants. 

Employment tribunal – Procedure. In considering the employee's claim for unlawful deduction from wages, the employment tribunal had taken it upon itself to find that the employer had breached his obligation to provide the employee with a statement of the principal terms and conditions of her employment, a claim which was not made in the employee's ET1. The Employment Appeal Tribunal, in allowing the employer's appeal, held, inter alia, that the tribunal had erred in raising and adjudicating upon that claim when the employer had neither notice of it nor an opportunity to respond. Further, the tribunal had failed to identify any statutory defences that there might have been. 

Solemn procedure – Time bar – Twelve-month rule. High Court of Justiciary: Refusing appeals by five appellants against the sheriff at Paisley's decision, at end of the April 2014 sitting, to grant a motion to adjourn their trial on charges of serious assault and to extend the 12-month time bar, the court held that the developing issues surrounding the fitness of one of the appellants to stand trial constituted sufficient cause to satisfy the first stage test in HM Advocate v Swift, and that the sheriff did not err in exercising his discretion by granting the motion. 

Value added tax – Supply of goods or services. The Court of Justice of the European Union made a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of the first sub-paragraph of art 11C(1) of Sixth Council Directive (EEC) 77/388 (on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes — Common system of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment). The request had been made in proceedings between the United Kingdom Revenue and Customs Commissioners and GMAC UK plc (GMAC) concerning the amount chargeable to VAT in respect of supplies which GMAC had made pursuant to hire purchase contracts relating to motor cars. 

Town and country planning – Planning permission – Waste to energy plant. Court of Session: In appeals by a planning authority and an objector against a reporter's decision to grant planning permission, subject to conditions, for a waste to energy plant, the court held that a condition concerning waste imported from outwith Highland area was invalid because it enlarged the permission beyond that which was applied for and was considered at the inquiry, that because the condition was not capable of being severed from the rest of the decision the inquiry would have to be reopened, but it need deal only with that condition. 

Employment – Equal pay. The employment tribunal had found that the differences in pay between a female employee professor and male employee professors had been for a sound business reason which was unrelated to sex. The Employment Appeal Tribunal, in dismissing the employee's appeal, held, inter alia, that the tribunal had sufficiently reasoned why it had thought that the evidence did not establish any 'taint' of sex and, therefore, no issue of justification had arisen. 

Bank – Bank loan. The appellants were found liable for two loans, which had been secured against property. The Privy Council, in dismissing their appeal, held that there was no basis for criticising the judgment of the relevant Court of Appeal. 

Employment – Discrimination. The employee, in her claim for disability discrimination, had put forward to the employment tribunal a number of conditions which she claimed had caused her to be disabled, some of which went beyond her pleaded case. The tribunal found that she was disabled. The Employment Appeal Tribunal, in allowing the employer's appeal, held that the tribunal's reasons had: (i) not adequately identified what conditions she had which had caused her to be disabled and whether they were the pleaded or some other conditions; and (ii) not made clear which symptoms or conditions had supported its conclusion as to long-term effect. Accordingly, the matter would be remitted to a fresh tribunal.