(Canada) the Board was asked whether a corporation was the occupant of an armaments factory so as to be liable to pay an occupation tax, and whether it was carrying on a business in the factory so as to be liable to pay a business tax. The answer to both questions depended on whether the … Continue reading City of Montreal v Montreal Locomotive Works Limited and Another: PC 24 Oct 1946
The claimant appealed after her claim for sex discrimination had failed. She had been dismissed from her position an associate minister of the church. The court had found that it had no jurisdiction, saying that her appointment was not an employment. However the jurisdiction in sex discrimination cases was wider, extending to those who ‘contract … Continue reading Percy v Church of Scotland Board of National Mission: HL 15 Dec 2005
Contracts of service or for services In three cases appeals were heard against a finding as to whether a worker was entitled to have his employer pay National Insurance contributions on his behalf which would apply if he were an employee. He worked as an ‘owner-driver’ Held: The court asked what was the test of … Continue reading Ready Mixed Concrete Southeast Ltd v Minister of Pensions and National Insurance: QBD 8 Dec 1967
EAT The EAT considered the employer’s duties to consult on making redundancies. The ET had found that company had satisfied the requirements. The Union argued that the duty to consult arose as soon as redundancies were contemplated. Held: The Union’s appeal failed. There was no error of law. What counted as ‘good time’: ‘is not … Continue reading MSF v Refuge Assurance Plc, United Friendly Insurance: EAT 15 Feb 2002
The House considered whether it would have power to make a ruling with prospective effect only. Lord Diplock said the matter deserved further consideration; Lord Simon said that the possibility of prospective overruling should be seriously . .
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The court was asked whether or not the prosecution had proved that the relevant proceedings had been ‘instituted’ by or with the consent of the minister or other authorised agent as required by section 53(1) of the National Insurance Act 1946. Held: Devlin J said: ‘Proceedings in summary jurisdiction of this sort are instituted by … Continue reading Price v Humphries: 1958
The defendant appealed against his conviction under the Act, saying that the proceedings had been issued late. The issue was the calculation of the date when proceedings were begun. Held: There was no justification for reading the wording of the two Acts differently despite the extended time limit allowed by the 1967 Act. The time … Continue reading Rockall v Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Admn 22 Mar 2007
FTTTx National Insurance Act 1946 and National Insurance and Industrial Injuries (Collection of Contributions) Regulations 1948 – Appellant disputed NI record – Appellant maintained she was employed throughout a nil contribution period by her family’s firm and paid full Class 1 contributions – evidence indicated that she had been self-employed in the firm and a … Continue reading Moss v Revenue and Customs: FTTTx 5 Jul 2011
The defendant was convicted of murder. Evidence during the trial suggested a possibility of manslaughter, but neither the defence nor prosecution proposed the alternate verdict. The defendant now appealed saying that the judge had an independent duty to leave that option to the jury. Held: The appeal succeeded. The judge should have left a manslaughter … Continue reading Regina v Coutts: HL 19 Jul 2006
EAT The company decided to close two branches and make redundancies. They presented the closure itself as a fait accompli to the union representatives. The Tribunal found that this involved a failure to consult about ways of avoiding redundancies because the decision to close had been determined prior to any meeting with the union. Held: … Continue reading Securicor Omega Express Ltd v GMB (A Trade Union): EAT 7 Apr 2003
The claimant government sought the return to it of historical artefacts in the possession of the defendants. The defendant said the claimant could not establish title and that if it could the title under which the claim was made was punitive and not to be applied by English law. Held: It is necessary for a … Continue reading Iran v The Barakat Galleries Ltd: QBD 29 Mar 2007
The claimant ship owner and its mortgagee sued the defendant insurer after the loss of the insured vessel, through fire. The insurers replied that the damage by fire was so extensive that the vessel was beyond repair when she sank, and was therefore a constructive total loss (‘CTL’). They said the cause of the loss … Continue reading Kastor Navigation Co Ltd and Another v AGF M A T and others (“Kastor Too”): ComC 4 Dec 2002
The ‘DC MERWESTONE’ suffered a water ingress of water flooding the engine room. This resulted from (i) the negligence of the crew in failing to close the sea inlet valve of the emergency fire pump and drain down the system, after they had used the hoses to clear ice chips from the hatch covers; (ii) … Continue reading Versloot Dredging Bv and Another v Hdi Gerling Industrie Versicherung Ag and Others: SC 20 Jul 2016
British Coal Corporation had decided to close 31 deep mine collieries. The court was asked as to just what consultation obligations fell on the employer under the 1946 Act. Held: The section did create an obligation to consult. Glidewell LJ, made obiter comments on the similar consultation duties under section 188 of the 1992 Act: … Continue reading Regina v British Coal Corporation and Secretary of State for Trade and Industry ex parte Vardy and Others: QBD 1993
A contract of insurance and a facultative reinsurance, under which part of the original risk was reinsured, contained warranties in identical terms. Held: The warranty in the reinsurance policy, which was governed by English law, should be construed so that it had the same effect as the warranty in the insurance which was governed by … Continue reading Forsikringsaktieselskapt Vesta v Butcher: HL 1988
Banker’s Liability for Negligent Reference The appellants were advertising agents. They were liable themselves for advertising space taken for a client, and had sought a financial reference from the defendant bankers to the client. The reference was negligent, but the bankers denied any assumption of a duty of care to a third party when purely … Continue reading Hedley Byrne and Co Ltd v Heller and Partners Ltd: HL 28 May 1963
Application was made for consent to assign a lease. The court was asked whether or not the purchaser of a leasehold interest in a property, who had elected to affirm the contract despite a repudiatory breach by the vendor, could be held to his election if, when he made it, he was aware of facts … Continue reading Peyman v Lanjani: CA 1985
The defendant had constructed a reservoir to supply water to his mill. Water escaped into nearby disused mineshafts, and in turn flooded the plaintiff’s mine. The defendant appealed a finding that he was liable in damages. Held: The defendant was bound ‘sic uit suo ut non laedat alienum’. ‘The defendants, treating them as the owners … Continue reading Rylands v Fletcher: HL 1868
A clause provided that an insurance policy should be governed by Belgian law and that ‘any disputes arising thereunder shall be exclusively subject to Belgian jurisdiction.’ The underwriters avoided the contract for non-disclosure of material facts and submitted that the jurisdiction clause could no longer apply because there ‘is no contract and there was no … Continue reading Mackender v Feldia AG: CA 1966
The injury of which the employee complained came from two sources, a pneumatic hammer, in respect of which the employers were not in breach of the relevant Regulations; and swing grinders, in respect of which they were in breach. Held: It had been wrong to formulate the question in terms of which was the most … Continue reading Bonnington Castings Ltd v Wardlaw: HL 1 Mar 1956
In Douglas, the claimants said that the defendants had interfered with their contract to provide exclusive photographs of their wedding to a competing magazine, by arranging for a third party to infiltrate and take and sell unauthorised photographs. In OBG, the defendants acted as receivers under an invalid charge, and were accused of unlawful interference … Continue reading Douglas and others v Hello! Ltd and others; similar: HL 2 May 2007
The appellant, former chair of a road activist group, challenged certain roads orders saying that the respondent had not carried out the required environmental assessment. His claim was that the road had been adopted without the consultation required by the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive (‘the SEA Directive’), and that that the scope of the public … Continue reading Walton v The Scottish Ministers: SC 17 Oct 2012
The claimant had received two injuries resulting in his total blindness. He sought an order of certiorari against the respondent who had found only a 20% disability. The tribunal responded that its decision, under the Act was final. Held: In its decision the tribunal had made reference to the expert medical report and thereby had … Continue reading Regina v Medical Appeal Tribunal ex parte Gilmore; Re Gilmore’s Application: CA 25 Feb 1957
Interpretation of Double Taxation Agreements This appeal is concerned with the interpretation and application of a double taxation agreement between the United Kingdom and the United States of America. A had been a member of an LLP in Delaware, and he was resident within the UK, but not domiciled here. He was liable to UK … Continue reading Anson v Revenue and Customs: SC 1 Jul 2015
The appellant challenged a sale and rent back transaction. He said that the proposed purchaser had misrepresented the transaction to them. The Court was asked s whether the home owners had interests whose priority was protected by virtue of section 29(2)(a)(ii) of, and Schedule 3, paragraph 2, to the Land Registration Act 2002. Held: The … Continue reading Scott v Southern Pacific Mortgages Ltd and Others: SC 22 Oct 2014
Certain investment trust companies (ITCs) sought refunds of VAT paid on the supply of investment management services. EU law however clarified that they were not due. Refunds were restricted by the Commissioners both as to the amounts and limitation . .
References: [2002] EWHC 2601 (Comm), [2003] 1 All ER (Comm) 277, [2003] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 296 Links: Bailii Coram: Tomlinson J Ratio: The claimant ship owner and its mortgagee sued the defendant insurer after the loss of the insured vessel, through fire. The insurers replied that the damage by fire was so extensive that the … Continue reading Kastor Navigation Co Ltd and Another v AGF M A T and others (Kastor Too”): ComC 4 Dec 2002″
