Earles v Barclays Bank plc: Merc 8 Oct 2009

The claimant had lost his claim against the bank, but resisted the amount of costs claimed.
Held: The trial had been of a simple factual dispute, and the bank had failed adequately to disclose electronically held material in its possession. The bank had also, and despite having inhouse counsel, employed disproportionately expensive lawyers. The bank should receive only 25 per cent of its costs claim. The court suggested that the bank’s difficulty might have been avoided by active costs management.
As to documents held electronically, while there was no general obligation to retain such material, such an obligation did arise once proceedings were commenced.

Judges:

Judge Simon Brown, QC

Citations:

Times 20-Oct-2009, [2009] EWHC 2500 (Mercantile), [2009] WLR (D) 309

Links:

Bailii, WLRD

Statutes:

Civil Procedure Rules 31.4

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedOnassis and Calogeropoulos v Vergottis HL 1968
Lord Pearce (dissenting) discussed the assessment of a witness’ oral evidence: ‘Credibility involves wider problems than mere demeanour which is mostly concerned with whether the witness appears to be telling the truth as he now believes it to be. . .
CitedGrace Shipping v CF Sharp and Co (Malaya) Pte Ltd PC 10-Dec-1986
(Singapore) When a court has to weigh the various and varying recollections of witnesses about what was said at meetings which occurred in the distant past, the surest guides are the contemporaneous documents and the overall probabilities.
Lord . .
CitedWoods v Martins Bank Ltd 1958
If a bank chooses to give advice to a customer, then the Bank’s obligation is to advise with ordinary skill and care. The liability is primarily on contract: ‘In my judgment, the limits of a banker’s business cannot be laid down as a matter of law. . .
CitedBritish Railways Board v Herrington HL 16-Feb-1972
Land-owner’s Possible Duty to Trespassers
The plaintiff, a child had gone through a fence onto the railway line, and been badly injured. The Board knew of the broken fence, but argued that they owed no duty to a trespasser.
Held: Whilst a land-owner owes no general duty of care to a . .
CitedIndian Oil Corporation v Greenstone Shipping SA QBD 23-Apr-1987
Staughton J discussed the modern meaning of the rule of evidence known in Latin as ‘omnia praesumuntur contra spoliatorem’ (everything is presumed against a destroyer (of evidence) – ‘spoliation’ as it is termed in US and which the rule of . .
CitedInfabrics Ltd v Jaytex Ltd 1985
Where a party fails to preserve documents after the commencement of proceedings, the defaulting party risks ‘adverse inferences’ being drawn for such ‘spoliation’. Because the defendant had not preserved documents affecting the quantum of damage, . .
CitedCrantrave Ltd (In Liquidation) v Lloyd’s Bank Plc CA 18-May-2000
The bank received a garnishee order nisi, but acted before it was made absolute to pay the judgment creditor.
Held: The bank had no defence against the customer claiming restitution relying on the equitable doctrine that one person paying the . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Costs, Litigation Practice

Updated: 11 November 2022; Ref: scu.376200