Latest Cases

Licensing – Premises. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, set aside the district judge's decision that he had had no jurisdiction to hear an appeal against the revocation of the appellant's premises licence because no person entitled to appeal had done so within the statutory time limit. His conclusion that the mere fact that there had been two corporate entities involved had meant that there had been a mistake of identity which could not be corrected pursuant to the powers in s 123 of the Magistrates' Court Act 1980 had been an error. 

Family proceedings – Orders in family proceedings. The Family Division refused an application made by the paternal uncle of two young children for leave to revoke placement orders. The court held that there probably had been a change of circumstances, but, in considering the second stage, namely, whether the discretion to grant leave should be exercised, in all the circumstances, the application would be refused. 

Negligence – Duty to take care. The Queen's Bench Division held that the claimants claim in negligence in respect of the deceased police officer shot in the course of duty by an armed assailant dangerous assassin had to fail as the decision of the superintendent in charge of the manhunt operation not to issue a warning was a decision which fell within the scope of the rule of public policy that the police did not owe a private law duty of care. 

Personal Injury: Quantum Case. Road traffic accident. PSLA of £1,100 awarded. 

Personal Injury: o Personal Injury: Quantum Case. Road traffic accident. PSLA of £11,000 with total damages of £12,500 awarded. 

Landlord and tenant – Opposition to grant of new tenancy of business premises. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed a landlord's appeal in respect of a declaration that he had not established his entitlement to rely on s 30(1)(g) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and an order that a new tenancy of business premises should be granted by the landlord to the tenant. The case was remitted for a re-trial before a different judge. 

European Union – Trade marks. The General Court of the European Union allowed the action brought by Kicktipp GmbH (Kicktipp) against the decision of the Second Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs), relating to opposition proceedings between Società Italiana Calzature Srl and Kicktipp, regarding the application by the latter for registration of a word sign 'kicktipp' as a Community trade mark. 

Creation of trust – Declaration of trust. The Chancery Division allowed the claimants' application to make final an interim charging order over property owned by the first defendant, whose election as the mayor of Tower Hamlets had been declared void. The court held that the Stack approach to the purchase of a domestic property would not apply when property had been brought for letting. Among other things, the proper approach when considering the property was to follow the classic resulting trust doctrine by looking at the actual contributions to the purchase price. On the evidence, the second defendant, who was R's wife, had not made out her case that she had made substantial contributions to the purchase price, and it followed that she could not establish a resulting trust. 

Patent – Infringement. The Patents Court made rulings in a claim concerning transgenic mice that could be used as platforms for therapeutic antibody discovery. In dismissing the claim of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, the court held that the defendants' counterclaim for insufficiency in the patent succeeded, and hence all the patents in issue were invalid. 

Negligence – Professional person. The Queen's Bench Division held in a case of professional negligence brought by the claimant against her counsel and solicitor following a settlement in a personal injury case that the defendants had not been negligent in advising her to take the settlement.