Civil litigation
Kennedy v National Trust for Scotland — [2020] QB 663
CONFLICT OF LAWS — Jurisdiction — Forum non conveniens — Claimant issuing proceedings in High Court against defendant domiciled in Scotland — Defendant seeking stay of proceedings on grounds Scotland more appropriate forum — Whether grant of stay on forum non conveniens grounds inconsistent with mandatory rule of jurisdiction under European Union law — Whether European Union law precluding grant of stay — Parliament and Council Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012, art 4(1)
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Civil litigation
Dring (on behalf of the Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK) v Cape Intermediate Holdings Ltd — [2020] AC 629
PRACTICE — Documents — Inspection and copying — Extent of court’s jurisdiction under Civil Procedure Rules to permit non-party to obtain copies of documents contained in “records of the court” — Extent of court’s inherent jurisdiction in respect of documents not forming part of records of the court — Principles upon which jurisdiction to be exercised — CPR r 5.4C(2)
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Easygroup Ltd v Easy Rent a Car Ltd — [2020] 1 WLR 2380
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Sartipy v Tigris Industries Inc — [2020] 1 WLR 2354
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Yukos International UK BV v Merinson — [2020] 1 WLR 2454
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Civil litigation
GDE llc v Anglia Autoflow Ltd — [2020] 1 WLR 2381
CONFLICT OF LAWS — Contract — Choice of law — Agency agreement providing for company to be incorporated to act as commercial agent in various territories with focus on Canada — Agreement providing for jurisdiction of English courts but silent as to governing law — Whether choice of English law to be implied — Whether governing law in absence of choice presumed to be country where agent having central administration or principal place of business if agent not existing at time of agreement — Contracts (Applicable Law) Act 1990 (c 36), Sch 1, arts 3, 4
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Commercial
MUR Shipping BV v Louis Dreyfus Co Suisse SA (The Tiger Shanghai) — [2020] Bus LR 1013
SHIPPING — Charterparty — Construction — Owners refusing to permit charterers to cut additional holes in hatch covers — Charterers terminating charter on ground that refusal unreasonable and bringing claim for refund of advanced hire — Clause in charter providing that claims against owners extinguished unless “all available supporting documents” provided within specified period — Whether survey report commissioned by charterers into feasibility of additional holes in hatch covers “supporting document” — New York Produce Exchange (1993), cl 119
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Commercial
FSHC Group Holdings Ltd v GLAS Trust Corpn Ltd — [2020] Ch 365
CONTRACT — Mistake — Common mistake — Rectification — Claimant and defendant executing deeds for purpose of providing previously agreed security — Deeds also obliging claimant to undertake additional onerous obligations — Claimant seeking rectification of deeds on ground of common mistake — Whether intention of parties to be determined applying subjective or objective test
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Commercial
KH v Sparkasse Südholstein — [2020] WLR(D) 354
FINANCIAL SERVICES — Distance marketing — Consumer protection — Loan contract consisting of initial agreement followed by successive amendments merely altering interest rate initially set — Amendments made using exclusively distance communication — Whether amendment agreement constituting “contract concerning financial services” — Parliament and Council Directive 2002/65/EC, art 2(a)
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Commercial
Bridgehouse (Bradford No 2) Ltd v BAE Systems plc — [2020] WLR(D) 350
ARBITRATION — Stay of judicial proceedings — Arbitration agreement — Agreement containing arbitration clause — Registrar restoring company to register — Court having discretion to make orders to put company and all other parties in same position as if company’s name had not been struck off — Company bringing claim for orders in relation to agreement between it and defendant — Defendant seeking stay on ground claim had to be referred to arbitration — Whether arbitration agreement inoperative because tribunal lacking jurisdiction to grant relief sought — Whether claim to be stayed — Arbitration Act 1996 (c 23), s 9(1)(4) — Companies Act 2006 (c 46), s 1028(3)
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General Dynamics United Kingdom Ltd v State of Libya — [2020] 1 WLR 2369
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Costs
West v Stockport NHS Foundation Trust — [2019] 1 WLR 6157
COSTS — Assessment — After the event insurance premiums — Guidance on correct approach to costs assessments — CPR rr 44.3, 44.4
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Campaign to Protect Rural England (Kent Branch) v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government — [2020] 1 WLR 2484
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Crime
Archer v Comr of Police of the Metropolis — [2020] WLR(D) 348
POLICE — Powers — Persons in custody — Police bail — Claimant minor arrested and charged with offences of violent disorder and possession of offensive weapon in connection with gang fight — Custody officer refusing bail on ground that necessary for claimant’s own protection — Claimant kept in police custody until following morning when taken to court — Whether relevant statutory power unlawful in so far as purporting to authorise detention of minors in their own interest — Whether breach of Convention rights — Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (c 60) (as amended by Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c 33), Sch 10, para 54), s 38(1)(b)(ii) — Human Rights Act 1998 (c 42), ss 4(2), 6(1), 8, Sch 1, Pt I, art 5
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European Union
Ryanair Designated Activity Co v Országos Rendőr-főkapitányság — [2020] WLR(D) 355
EUROPEAN UNION — Freedom of movement — Right to reside — Third-country national family member of Union citizen arriving in Hungary without entry visa — Third-country national possessing permanent residence card issued by United Kingdom — Hungarian authorities ordering return of third-country national — Whether possession of permanent residence card exempting third-country national from visa requirement — Whether such exemption applying where card issued by member state not part of Schengen area — Whether possession of permanent residence card sufficient proof that holder family member of a Union citizen — Parliament and Council Directive 2004/38/EC, arts 5(2), 10 ,20
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European Union
JI v Prokuratura Rejonowa w Słupsku — [2020] WLR(D) 344
EUROPEAN UNION — Judicial co-operation in criminal matters — Minimum provisions on constituent elements of criminal acts and penalties involving illicit drug trafficking — European Union law leaving definition of “large quantities of drugs” to discretion of national courts — National law classifying as criminal offence possession of “significant quantity of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances” both for personal consumption and for drug trafficking — Whether European Union law precluding national legislation — Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, arts 20, 21, 49 — Council Framework Decision 2004/757/JHA, arts 4(2)(a), 2(1)(c)
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European Union
Bajratari v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Aire Centre intervening) — [2020] 1 WLR 2327
EUROPEAN UNION — Freedom of movement — Right to reside — Right of residence of third-country national mother of Union citizen minors — Resources formed by father’s income from unlawful employment without residence card and work permit — Whether minor having sufficient resources not to become unreasonable burden on social assistance system of host member state — Parliament and Council Directive 2004/38/EC, art 7(1)(b)
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European Union
AT v Pensionsversicherungsanstalt — [2020] 1 WLR 2370
EUROPEAN UNION — Freedom of movement — Right to reside — Romanian national residing continuously in Austria when reaching statutory retirement age — Right of permanent residence acquired before completion of continuous period of five years’ residence — Whether entitled to Austrian supplementary old age pension — Parliament and Council Directive 2004/38/EC, art 17(1)(a)
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Family
In re Y (A Child) — [2020] PTSR 959
CHILDREN — Care proceedings — Designated local authority — Mother of young child moving from place to place thereby having no ordinary residence — Care proceedings in respect of child issued by one local authority which sought designation of another local authority to fund care — Proper determination of local authority “within whose area any circumstances arose in consequence of which the [care] order is being made” — Children Act 1989 (c 41), s 31(8)(b)
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Family
In re B (A Child) (Association of Lawyers for Children intervening) — [2020] Fam 221
CHILDREN — Child in care — Secure accommodation — Local authority wishing to move child from unapproved property to property approved for use as secure accommodation — Authority applying for order authorising child to be kept in secure accommodation — Whether unapproved property itself “secure accommodation” — Whether child’s welfare and proportionality “relevant criteria” for making secure accommodation order — Children Act 1989 (c 41), s 25 (as amended by Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2016 (SI 2016/413), reg 86 and Children and Social Work Act 2017 (c 16), s 10, Sch 1, para 2) — Human Rights Act 1998 (c 42), Sch 1, Pt I, arts 5, 8
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Family
In re S — [2020] WLR(D) 351
CHILDREN — Care proceedings — Practice — Judge refusing application by vulnerable parent with learning disability for intermediary assessment and appointment — Proposed hybrid final hearing — Whether adequate consideration of factors specific to hybrid hearing
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Family
In re A (A Child) (Female Genital Mutilation: Asylum) — [2020] WLR(D) 345
CHILDREN — Orders relating to children — Female genital mutilation protection order — Mother seeking asylum based on risk to daughter of genital mutilation — Secretary of State refusing asylum — First-tier Tribunal finding no risk to daughter of genital mutilation and dismissing appeal — Asylum appeal rights exhausted — Local authority applying to family court for female genital mutilation protection order — Whether tribunal’s prior assessment of risk starting point for family court’s subsequent determination in exercise of its jurisdiction to make protection order — Proper approach to exercising power to make protection order — Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 (c 31), Sch 2, para 1
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Family
In re K (Secretary of State for Justice intervening) — [2020] 2 WLR 1279
MARRIAGE — Forced marriage — Protection order — Whether jurisdiction to make forced marriage protection order for protection of capacitous person opposed to order — Whether jurisdiction to make order including power to confiscate passport — Approach to be taken in assessing protected person’s competing Convention rights — Guidance on staged approach to be followed when court considering whether to make order — Family Law Act 1996 (c 27), ss 63A, 63B (as inserted by Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007 (c 20), s 1) — Human Rights Act 1998 (c 42), Sch 1, Pt I, arts 3, 8
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IP and Media
Lachaux v Independent Print Ltd (Media Lawyers Association intervening) — [2020] AC 612
DEFAMATION — Libel — Serious harm — Claimant bringing libel proceedings in respect of news articles — Statutory requirement that statement complained of “has caused or is likely to cause serious harm” to claimant’s reputation — Whether tendency to cause serious harm sufficient — Defamation Act 2013 (c 26), s 1(1)
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IP and Media
Stocker v Stocker — [2020] AC 593
DEFAMATION — Libel — Meaning of words — Defendant posting on Facebook that claimant “tried to strangle” her — Claimant bringing action for defamation alleging that “tried to strangle” meant tried to kill — Judge using dictionary definition of “strangle” and finding defendant’s words defamatory — Proper approach to determining meaning of words used in social media postings
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IP and Media
Simon v Lyder — [2020] AC 650
DEFAMATION — Libel — Cause of action — Articles published by defendants containing defamatory statements about claimants without naming them — Claimants subsequently named in further articles also published by defendants — Whether permissible to aggregate articles together for purpose of giving rise to completed cause of action in defamation
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IP and Media
Warnes v Forge — [2020] WLR(D) 347
DEFAMATION — Libel — Meaning of words — Defendant complaining about the claimants to professional regulatory body — E-mail communications from defendant copied to third parties including colleagues of claimants and regulatory body — Whether imputation of mentally illness capable of being defamatory — Whether text of communications defamatory
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IP and Media
Serafin v Malkiewicz — [2020] 1 WLR 2455
JUDGE — Conduct of — Fair trial — Judge intervening during giving of oral evidence and using ill-tempered and immoderate language towards litigant in person — Whether judge’s conduct rendering trial unfair
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Land law
Hicks v 89 Holland Park (Management) Ltd — [2020] WLR(D) 353
RESTRICTIVE COVENANT — Enforceability — Vendor’s covenant — Covenant prohibiting application for planning permission for plans, drawings or specifications without freeholder approval — Previous litigation deciding approval not to be unreasonably withheld — Whether freeholder entitled to consider leaseholder interests — Whether permissible to withhold consent on aesthetic grounds
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Public law
R (Finnegan) v Southampton City Council — [2020] PTSR 974
PLANNING — Planning permission — Application for retrospective permission — Local planning authority issuing enforcement notice in respect of development on claimant’s land — Claimant making retrospective application for planning permission for development — Local authority exercising statutory power to decline to determine application — Whether power lawfully invoked — Whether development readily capable of being made acceptable by planning conditions — Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (c 8), s 70C (as inserted by Localism Act 2011 (c 20), s 123(2) and amended by Housing and Planning Act 2016 (c 22), s 150, Sch 12, para 14)
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Public law
Trecarrell House Ltd v Rouncefield — [2020] WLR(D) 357
LANDLORD AND TENANT — Assured shorthold tenancy — Notice of proceedings for possession — Prescribed requirement for landlord to provide current gas safety record — Landlord serving notice of possession before having provided tenant with current record — Landlord later providing valid record — Whether late compliance with prescribed requirement having effect of validating notice of possession — Housing Act 1988 (c 50), s 21A (inserted by Deregulation Act 2015 (c 20), ss 38, 115(7)) — Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/2451), reg 36(6)(7) — Assured Shorthold Tenancy Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/1646), reg 2(1)(b)(2)
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Public law
R (Adiatu) v HM Treasury — [2020] WLR(D) 352
SOCIAL SECURITY — Welfare benefits — Coronavirus — Government introducing coronavirus job retention scheme and making changes to statutory sick pay in relation to “limb b” workers — Whether decisions unlawful — Human Rights Act 1998 (c 42), Sch 1, Pt I, art 14; Pt II, art 1 — Employment Rights Act 1996 (c 18), s 230(3)(b) — Equality Act 2010 (c 15), s 149(1)
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Public law
R (Prichard) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions — [2020] WLR(D) 349
DISCRIMINATION — Disability — Less favourable treatment — Minister making statutory instrument bringing into force statutory amendments to receipt of welfare support — Whether public sector equality duty applying to decision of minister to commence primary legislation — Whether unlawful discriminatory effect on disabled claimant reaching state retirement age with younger disabled partner — Whether breach of public sector equality duty — Whether unjustified discrimination contrary to Convention rights — Human Rights Act 1998 (c 42), Sch 1, Pt I, art 14, Pt II, art 1 — Equality Act 2010 (c 15), s 149 — Welfare Reform Act (Commencement No 31 and Savings and Transitional Provisions and Commencement No 21 and 23 and Transitional and Transitory Provisions (Amendment)) Order 2019 (SI 2019/37), art 3
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Public law
Aireborough Neighbourhood Development Forum v Leeds City Council — [2020] 1 WLR 2355
PLANNING — Development plan document — Capacity to challenge — Unincorporated neighbourhood forum bringing statutory challenge to local authority’s decision to adopt development plan — Whether unincorporated association capable of bringing claim as “person aggrieved” — Whether standing under statutory challenge different from that under judicial review — Whether expiration of formal designation as neighbourhood forum determinative — Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (c 5), s 113(3)
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Public law
R (Alliance of Turkish Businesspeople Ltd) v Secretary of State for the Home Department — [2020] 1 WLR 2436
IMMIGRATION — Leave to remain — Legitimate expectation — Home Office’s policy on leave to remain for Turkish business people and their dependants — Policy based on Home Office understanding of European Economic Community agreement with Turkey — Secretary of State changing policy to reflect different judicial interpretation of agreement — Whether legitimate expectation that policy would not change — Whether frustration of such expectation justified in public interest — EEC-Turkey Association Agreement (1963), Additional Protocol (1970), art 41(1)
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R (Omar) v Secretary of State for the Home Department — [2020] 1 WLR 2435
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Tort
Racing Partnership Ltd v Done Bros (Cash Betting) Ltd — [2020] Ch 289
TORT — Cause of action — Conspiracy to injure by unlawful means — Alleged unlawful means conspiracy consisting of breach by defendant of third party’s terms and conditions — Whether breach of third party contract capable of constituting unlawful means — Alleged unlawful means conspiracy consisting of breach of confidence — Whether necessary to show defendant having knowledge of unlawfulness of conduct — Whether burden of proof of knowledge on claimant
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Trusts and Chancery
In re Challen, decd — [2020] WLR(D) 356
PUBLIC POLICY — Administration of estates — Manslaughter of testator — Court of Appeal quashing claimant’s conviction for murdering her husband and ordering retrial — Crown Court accepting claimant’s guilty plea to manslaughter on ground of diminished responsibility — Claimant seeking modification of forfeiture rule to enable her to take gift under husband’s will — Modification precluded unless proceedings brought within three months of “conviction” — Whether time running from original conviction for murder — Whether claimant convicted of manslaughter when pleading guilty or when court accepting plea and imposing sentence — Whether modification proceedings brought within time limit — Forfeiture Act 1982 (c 34), s 2(3)
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Trusts and Chancery
In re Amos, decd — [2020] WLR(D) 346
PUBLIC POLICY — Administration of estates — Unlawful killing of testator — Wife convicted of causing husband’s death by careless driving — Whether wife’s interests under husband’s will and in joint property forfeit — Whether statutory modification of forfeiture rule applicable — Forfeiture Act 1982 (c 34), ss 1, 2
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