Banking Litigation Notes

High Court rules that Ombudsman awards may be "topped up" through court action

The High Court has decided that a party who accepts a FOS determination awarding them the statutory maximum award (now £150,000) can subsequently claim …

High Court Ruling in Pension Funds' Action Against Fund Manager

The High Court has ruled largely against a group of institutional investors on preliminary issues in proceedings brought against the manager and general …

Reforms to Brussels Regulation now finalised

On 6 December the Council of EU Justice Ministers adopted proposed reforms to Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 on jurisdiction and the recognition and …

Unilateral jurisdiction clauses may not always be effective

It is not uncommon, particularly in a finance context, for an agreement to give a wider choice to some parties than others to decide where disputes will …

High Court declines to impose costs sanctions for refusal to mediate

UK Supreme Court refuses to enforce US judgment made in insolvency proceedings against English resident defendants

In Rubin v Eurofinance SA [2012] UKSC 46, the Supreme Court (by a majority of 4 to 1) reversed the Court of Appeal’s unanimous decision and …

Part 36 offers in context of counterclaims and negative declarations

A recent High Court judgment highlights the scope for confusion in applying Part 36 in a case where the formal roles of claimant and defendant do …

50% cap on contingency fees for commercial cases

The government has given further details of its plans to introduce contingency fees, or “damages based agreements” (DBAs), for civil litigation. It has …

Costs awarded against claimant who failed to beat non-Part 36 offer

A recent High Court decision illustrates that a defendant’s offer to settle made outside the Part 36 regime may lead to a similar result as a Part 36 …

Indemnity costs against defendant who failed to accept Part 36 offer that was withdrawn before trial

A recent decision illustrates that the court may award indemnity costs to penalise unreasonable behaviour, including an unreasonable failure to accept a …

Part 36: difficulties in split trials

A recent High Court decision has highlighted difficulties arising from the application of Part 36 in the context of split trials, or trials of …

Costs consequences of settlement orders made outside Part 36

The Court of Appeal has held that the court was not entitled to apply the Part 36 costs consequences “by analogy” to award indemnity costs and enhanced …