ADR: Taking the high road

Stuart Dutson reports on a recent study on the continued popularity of judicial resolution ‘With general counsel working hard to stay out of court it is perhaps surprising that over one third of all large cases are still being resolved through litigation and 18% through arbitration. What is more, in the majority of cases businesses …
This post is only available to members.

Jurisdiction: Games without frontiers

Carlo Piatti and Julian Berger examine a landmark ruling by the Italian Supreme Court ‘This case will be of interest to any foreign (non-Italian domiciled) entity that finds itself on the wrong end of an Italian lawsuit, and in circumstances where it is not clear whether Italian jurisdiction applies.’ The Italian Supreme Court (Court of …
This post is only available to members.

Contract: Caught in the net

Mark Lewis assesses a decision addressing net contribution clauses and limitation of liability ‘The facts that the NCC was openly and fairly shown to the Wests and that the parties were of broadly equal bargaining power were factors in favour of a finding that the inclusion of the NCC satisfied the requirement of good faith.’ …
This post is only available to members.

Costs: What a difference a day makes

Jeremy Glover reviews a recent decision of the TCC ‘While the fourth defendant could not put forward any good reason for the breach, it was in the view of the judge a trivial one.’ Wain v Gloucestershire County Council [2014] arose out of the first Case Management Conference (CMC) and costs management hearing. The fourth …
This post is only available to members.

Debt Collection: We don’t need no education

Ron Cheriyan considers a sensitive area of enforcement ‘In the unlikely event that liability is proved, the defendants will need to establish their loss. Defences should outline how the loss is calculated and figures cannot be plucked out of the air.’ Schools within the independent sector have witnessed a surge in the number of claims …
This post is only available to members.

Privilege: Secret fights

In the second of two articles, Davinia Brennan explores a recent decision from the Irish High Court on litigation privilege ‘This is an important decision, which clarifies that the protection afforded to documents by litigation privilege will not extend beyond the particular legal proceedings for which they were prepared, or closely related actions.’ Part 1: …
This post is only available to members.

Confidentiality: Where the bodies are buried

Ian Tucker looks at the conflict between commercially sensitive documents and disclosure ‘The provision of documents in court proceedings can result in loss of confidentiality more generally – including to the entire market in which a business operates and the press where they take an interest.’Confidentiality is always an important matter for any commercial business. …
This post is only available to members.

Sanctions: A stitch in time

Maura McIntosh outlines a recent decision of Lord Justice Jackson on extensions of time ‘Legal representatives are not in breach of any duty to their client when they agree a reasonable extension.’ In a judgment handed down on 20 May 2014, Lord Justice Jackson has taken the opportunity to clarify the effect of his reforms …
This post is only available to members.

Amendment: Pleading awful

Verity Altaras discusses the court’s approach to amending particulars of claim in light of the Jackson reforms ‘The willingness to meet the costs and belief in the indispensability of the amendment is not enough. The success of the application to amend hinges on the unearthing of the “real dispute” between the parties and the strength …
This post is only available to members.