News & Events
News & Events
Ian Denham recently acted for the successful respondent in an appeal concerning the scope of article 4(3) of the Rome II Regulation. The Claimant had been on holiday in France when she was involved in a road traffic accident with an uninsured vehicle. An issue arose as to whether the claim against the motor insurer of the vehicle in which she was travelling was governed by English or French law. In this article, Ian reviews the judgment of HHJ Platts in Scott v AIG which provides a helpful summary of the existing case law on article 4 of Rome II and considers what is meant by the term ‘the tort/delict’ when weighing whether article 4(3) should displace the presumptive applicable…
Insights 10 Nov, 2021
Olinga Tahzib considers the recent decision of the Supreme Court in Brownlie (No 2) and asks what next in jurisdiction for tort claims in a post-Brexit England and Wales? In January 2010, Lady Brownlie was on holiday in Egypt staying at the Four Seasons hotel. She booked through the concierge a jeep tour which went tragically wrong when the vehicle in which she, her husband Sir Ian Brownlie, Ian’s daughter Rebecca and her two sons were travelling crashed in the desert. Sir Ian and his daughter were both killed and Lady Brownlie suffered significant injuries. She pursued claims for damages under Egyptian law, in contract and in tort, for personal injuries and also dependency for wrongful death. She started her…
Insights 26 Oct, 2021
On 11 June 2021, HHJ Jarman QC sitting at the High Court handed down judgment in Hughes v Pritchard[2021] EWHC 1580 (Ch). The Court notably found the testator to lack capacity and his last will to be invalid despite a contemporaneous medical capacity assessment finding the testator to have capacity. Jennifer Seaman and Bianca Venkata provide a brief overview of the case and suggests what lessons can be learned to ensure the validity of wills going forward. The facts Mr Hughes owned considerable farmland in Wales. Mr Hughes had three children: an eldest son Elfed, a second son Gareth and a daughter Carys. Elfed worked long hours on his father’s farm for no remuneration. Mr Hughes promised Elfed, his wife Gwen and their three…
Insights 3 Aug, 2021
On 30 July 2021, the Supreme Court unanimously allowed X’s appeal in the long-running case of X v Kuoni. This is a key decision in respect of the scope of the liability of package tour operators. Carin Hunt provides a casenote on the judgment. The facts The facts giving rise to this case occurred over a decade ago now, when Mrs X and her husband were on a package holiday in Sri Lanka. Early on the morning of 17 July 2010, a hotel maintenance employee on night duty offered to show Mrs X a shortcut to reception. The employee then took Mrs X to an engineering room where he assaulted and raped her. The issues Having been dismissed both at first instance and by…
Insights 3 Aug, 2021
Ian Denham looks back on the High Court decision of Griffiths v TUI UK Limited and considers the impact it has had on cross-border personal injury claims. Since the judgment in August 2020, defendants have sought to find new ways to challenge expert evidence. This has included seeking permission for their own expert evidence or calling the claimant’s expert to be cross-examined at trial. The results of these applications have varied from court to court. Ian looks at the recent judgment of HHJ Freedman, sitting at the County Court in Newcastle, where he heard an appeal in the matter of Taylor v TUI arising from a Deputy District Judge’s decision to order that an expert in a holiday illness case should attend trial to be…
Insights 5 Jul, 2021
Imogen Egan looks back at the recent Court of Appeal decision in Lipton & Anor v BA City Flyer Ltd, considering the interrelation of “extraordinary circumstances” and Regulation (EC) 261/2004. She also considers the approach to be adopted following Brexit. In this case, the Claimants were booked on a flight, operated by the Defendant airline, due to depart Milan to London City Airport at 17:05 (local time). However, the captain reported feeling unwell at 16:05 (local time), when he was off duty and not at his place of work. He was determined unfit to fly. Under Regulation (EC) 261/2004 (“the Regulation”), the Claimants sought compensation for a flight which was cancelled because the captain became ill, whilst off duty. The Defendants…
Insights 2 Jul, 2021
Joshua Cainer compares Manchester Building Society v Grant Thornton UK LLP and Hughes-Holland v BPE Solicitors and considers the state of the law in this area going forward, as well as the key conceptual and practical differences that are likely to generate debate in future cases. The concept of ‘scope of duty’ in the tort of negligence, especially its application following Lord Hoffmann’s judgment in SAAMCO, has generated both controversy and confusion over recent years. Many had thought that Lord Sumption’s judgment in Hughes-Holland v BPE Solicitors was to be the definitive statement on the topic. However, the starting point in this area now lies in two very recent Supreme Court decisions in two different factual contexts: Manchester Building Society v Grant Thornton UK LLP [2021] UKSC 20 in the…
Insights 24 Jun, 2021
Helen Pugh examines the Stanford International Bank Ltd Ponzi scheme as one of the latest examples of multi-jurisdictional fraud and the judgment for the claims brought by the liquidators of the Bank in an attempt to increase recoveries on behalf of the creditors. Massive multi-jurisdictional fraud and the almost inevitable colossal insolvencies which follow have provided fertile ground for testing the scope of banker’s duties and liabilities in recent decades. Robert Allen Stanford’s eye-watering Ponzi scheme has been part of this trend. On 15 April 2009 the Antiguan-incorporated Stanford International Bank Limited (“the Bank”) collapsed into insolvent liquidation bringing to an end one of the largest and most prolonged Ponzi schemes in history. For the depositors who lost their retirement income…
Insights 24 Jun, 2021
Inspired by the ever-evolving story of fintech, Chloë Bell showcases her poetic talents to pen a very different kind of advice note looking at injunctions in cryptoasset cases. In this acrostic poem, Chloë reflects on the requirements when making an application for a freezing injunction and the logical conundrum in the ‘Persons Unknown’ case. Norwich Pharmacal relief – Chloë analyses the pragmatic approach taken by the court in the case as well as the conflicting case-law resulting from it. She also considers the questions which require further appellate consideration. The article comments on Jurisdiction and the CPR PD 6B gateways and the Use of expert reports in digital asset injunction applications, as well as asset preservation orders existing as an alternative to…
Insights 23 Jun, 2021
Bianca Venkata examines the Financial Conduct Authority perimeter and cryptoassets in the context of the FCA Handbook and The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (“MLRs”). In her article, Bianca also considers the Financial Conduct Authority’s approach to territoriality, the application of the FSMA Financial Promotions Order (SI 2005/1529) and the regulatory approach taken by the United States. There have been calls for there to be more regulation of cryptoassets due to their price volatility and soaring popularity. For instance, Bitcoin in April 2011 was valued at £0.71 (USD$ 1) but on 26 May 2021 at £27,352 (USD$ 38,694.14). There is also a risk that criminals and terrorists may exploit cryptoassets. However, it…
Insights 22 Jun, 2021
Read Helen Pugh’s article on knowing receipt and a recent related High Court decision in Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law. Helen Pugh was recently published in the May edition of Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law where she analysed a recent High Court decision in a knowing receipt claim against a Saudi Arabian bank; Byers and Ors v Samba Financial Group [2021] EWHC 230 (Ch). It considered the vexed issue of whether a beneficiary must have a continuing equitable interest enduring upon receipt of the property by the recipient to establish a knowing receipt claim. In a detailed and well-reasoned judgment Mr Justice Fancourt answered that question in the affirmative. Knowing receipt Knowing receipt is…
Insights 24 May, 2021
Louis Weston authored LawInSport’s ‘Sports Integrity (Betting & Financial Corruption) – The Year In Review 2020/21’. Louis’s review identifies and reviews some of the notable cases and events in 2020/21 and discusses what trends might be drawn from them. Louis reviews key events, disciplinary decisions and the impact of coronavirus on betting and financial corruption. This year, Louis considers the effect that the worldwide Covid crisis has had on the world of sport. In the chapter, Louis covers: Two Key Themes Corruption cases and fights against it: Disciplinary and state police activity in tennis, Esports and around the world; Cases without criminal element; Organised crime in sports during a pandemic – ghost events; Match fixing and football betting cases; Governance…
Insights 5 May, 2021
