Litigation Notes

Court of Appeal clarifies when a party in breach of a court rule or order must apply for relief from sanctions

Court of Appeal refuses extension of time to plead dates of damage in claims arising out of oil spill, meaning some 28,000 claims cannot proceed

Split trials, supplemental statements and the need for relief from sanctions

The judgment from the pre-trial review in the long-running Tesco Litigation (a securities class action) has illustrated the need for clarity as to the …

Courts relax rules on agreeing extensions to procedural deadlines in light of COVID-19 disruption

A new Practice Direction (PD 51ZA) took effect yesterday. It is designed to introduce additional flexibility for parties to agree extensions of time …

COVID-19: The evolving picture for remote hearings in the English courts

In our post last Friday, we outlined how the courts were adapting to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 crisis, and in particular the announcement from …

COVID-19: Impact on civil litigation in England and Wales

With the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak continuing to take hold on nearly all aspects of day-to-day life, what does this mean for the continued …

Court of Appeal confirms “warehousing” a claim will not necessarily constitute an abuse of process

The Court of Appeal has upheld a High Court decision that a claimant’s unilateral decision not to pursue a claim it had commenced for a substantial …

Second action allowed to proceed where earlier action struck out for breach of unless order

In a recent decision, the High Court has considered the proper approach to be taken in a second action where a previous action bringing the same claim …

Parties should not "abuse" the court's tougher approach to relief from sanctions

The High Court has penalised a claimant in costs for requiring the defendant to apply for relief from sanctions, where the defendant had relied on a …

Recent decisions show continuing trend for tough approach to rule breaches

Recent months have seen a number of decisions in which the English courts, both at first instance and on appeal, have re-emphasised the message that …

Court of Appeal upholds order limiting recoverable costs to court fees where party failed to file costs budget

Lord Justice Jackson has delivered the leading judgment dismissing an appeal against imposition of the so-called "Mitchell" sanction where a party …

Two Court of Appeal decisions show continuing tough approach to procedural failings

In case we were all in danger of thinking the courts' approach to breaches of rules and court orders had relaxed nearly to pre-Jackson levels of …