Latest Cases

Town and country planning – Permission for development. The Queen's Bench Division dismissed the claimant's applications for judicial review of the defendant local planning authority's grant of planning permission for the construction of 12 dwellings and its approval of the discharge of five conditions of that planning permission. There had been no misinterpretation of the relevant policies of the National Planning Policy Framework, members of the defendant's committee had not been misled and there had not been any misdirection or error in the approval of the details under three conditions. 

Income tax – Loss relief. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed the claimant taxpayers' appeal against the dismissal of their claim for judicial review of the defendant Revenue and Customs Commissioners' (the Revenue) amendments to their tax returns, by which the Revenue declined to accept their claims for loss relief in relation to their investments in certain film partnerships. Among other things, the court rejected the taxpayers' procedural arguments to the effect that the Revenue had not been entitled to enquire into the individual taxpayers' tax returns for the years 02, pursuant to the combined effect of ss 9A and 12AC(3) of the Taxes Management Act 1970, or, as a result of such enquiries, and a subsequent partnership settlement agreement, to amend such returns pursuant to ss 50(9) and 54 of the Act. 

Pension – Pension scheme. The Chancery Division allowed the claimant company's application for rectification of its pension scheme where, as the result of a mistake, a rule setting out the company's contribution rate in the part of the pension that was attributable to pensionable service had not been properly implemented. The court made a declaration so that what the relevant deed of amendment said was brought into line with what, in law, it could achieve. 

Immigration – Detention. The Administrative Court declared that the claimant Sudanese national's immigration detention for the period between 19 September and 29 September 2014 had been unlawful. In circumstances where the claimant's detention had been approved on the basis that his judicial review proceedings would be expedited, he should have been released the day after the decision not to seek expedition. 

Criminal law – Sexual offences. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division held that a total sentence of two years' imprisonment, suspended for two years, for the offences of sexual assault on a person under 13, two counts of making indecent photographs of a child and two counts of possessing indecent photographs of a child, had been unduly lenient. Instead, a total sentence of 36 months of immediate imprisonment would be imposed. 

Family proceedings – Orders in family proceedings. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed an appeal against a care order made in respect of an adopted boy. The judge had failed adequately to analyse the evidence or explain his reasons for reaching the conclusion that he had. There had been a number of issues that could have resulted in findings of fact which, had the judge made them, could have been considered in determining whether the boy could have returned to live with his parents. 

Land charge – General equitable charge. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, in dismissing the appellant's appeal, held that the present was not a case in which 'tacking' arose, and the second respondent retained its priority as first chargee in respect of an advance made by it in October 2006. There had been no new or further advance in or following March 2009, nor anything which the law would deem to have been a new or further advance, nor any agreement that the second respondent should be treated as having made a new advance. 

Patent – Infringement. The Patents Court dismissed the claim of a telecommunications company, Unwired Planet, with regard to alleged infringement by the defendant company of two patents involving self configuring and optimisation of cell neighbours in wireless telecommunications networks. The court held that, among other things, the patents were invalid for obviousness over a related document and would be revoked. 

Family proceedings – Orders in family proceedings. The Family Court declined to make an interim care order in respect of a child C who had been living with the maternal grandmother and in contact with her mother despite the fact that the mother had serious drug addiction issues. Although the criteria for making an interim care order under the s 38 of the Children Act 1989 was satisfied however in the exercise of the court's discretion C's welfare demanded that C nevertheless be left in the care of the maternal grandmother. 

Commercial contract – Construction. The Commercial Court ruled on the second case on the Financial List and held that, for a trade on the 2012 Loan Market Association terms in respect of a surety bonds facility: (i) the trade would, generally speaking, include the economic burden of the seller's obligations under issued surety bonds; (ii) the 'Purchased Assets' were, generally speaking, 'funded' to the extent that money had been paid by the seller under issued surety bonds, rather than to the extent by which the facility had been drawn by the mere issue of the surety bonds.