In UniCredit Bank GmbH v. RusChemAlliance LLC,[1] the UK Supreme Court confirmed the general common law rule that a choice of governing law for a contract as a whole will apply to an arbitration agreement within the contract, even when a different country has been chosen for the seat of the arbitration. This was important in the circumstances of the case because it meant that English – as opposed to French – law applied, which in turn gave the English courts jurisdiction to grant an injunction to restrain RusChemAlliance from litigating the dispute in Russian courts in breach of the parties’ agreement to arbitrate.
Sanctions Imposed on Non-Compliant Trial Witness Statements
Fulstow & Another v. Francis[1] should serve as a reminder of the court’s willingness to sanction parties severely for failing to comply with the procedural rules relating to trial witness statements.
Hammon v. UCL: Group Litigation Order Denied in Favour of English Court’s Case Management Powers
In David Hammon and Others v. University College London[1], the High Court of Justice found that the threshold requirements for making a group litigation order (GLO) had been met but decided that the court’s general case management powers would be more appropriate to manage the claims, rather than a GLO.
The case emphasises important questions about the future of GLOs as a mechanism for group litigation in a landscape where class actions are on the rise.
High Court Takes Practical Approach to Procedure in Enforcement of New York Court Judgment on Crypto Fraud
Tai Mo Shan Ltd v. Persons Unknown[1] is the latest in a series of cases in which the English courts have demonstrated their willingness to make practical procedural decisions to assist the victims of crypto fraud. In this case, the High Court of England and Wales granted the claimant permission to serve out of the jurisdiction in order to enforce a judgment of a New …
Cross-Border Considerations for Protecting Privileged Evidence
On 6 June 2024, Sascha Grimm from our London office, Teresa Michaud from our Los Angeles office and Jonas Koponen from our Brussels office hosted a webinar on Cross-Border Considerations for Protecting Privileged Evidence. The session explores how to deal with cross-jurisdictional privilege issues that arise, in particular, for organisations with multiple group companies around the world. Sascha, Teresa and Jonas walk through a hypothetical …
Cross-Border Considerations for Protecting Privileged Evidence
On 6 June 2024, Sascha Grimm from our London office, Teresa Michaud from our Los Angeles office and Jonas Koponen from our Brussels office hosted a webinar on Cross-Border Considerations for Protecting Privileged Evidence.
The Dangers of Interfering with Expert Evidence
The recent decision in Glover and Another v. Fluid Structural Engineers & Technical Designers Ltd and Others[1] should serve as a warning to practitioners to pay heed to the strict rules regarding expert evidence and, in particular, not to interfere at all with the production of the joint expert report
Court of Appeal Decides Principles Permitting Group Litigation by Allowing Multiple Claimants to Make Individual Claims on Single Claim Form
England has no direct equivalent to US class actions. However, there are various claim models under English procedural rules (CPR) that have similarities. They are summarised in our October 2022 blog post – Data Disputes: How the English Class Action Landscape is Shaping Up.
Law Commission Consultation “Digital Assets and Electronic Trade Documents in Private International Law: Which Court, Which Law?
The Law Commission of England and Wales has, for the last four years, been heavily focussed on addressing the legal issues that arise in the context of emerging technologies.[1] It has now started work on a new project to examine and clarify how existing private international law does and should apply to emerging technologies – specifically, digital assets and electronic trade documents. It has issued a call for evidence from stakeholders, with responses to be submitted by 16 May 2024.
Consultation on Increased Public Access to Documents in Civil Proceedings
The Civil Procedure Rules Committee is consulting on a proposed draft amendment to Civil Procedure Rule (CPR) 5.4, which would allow significantly increased public access to documents with potentially far-reaching impacts.