Commercial Litigation UK

  • July 21, 2025

    Wimbledon Served Court Win Over £200M Expansion Plan

    Campaigners have lost their bid to stop a £200 million ($270 million) expansion of Wimbledon tennis ground, with the High Court ruling Monday that the local authority had properly considered all aspects of the proposal and was entitled to approve the expansion plan.

  • July 21, 2025

    Ex-Execs Sue Telecom Biz Over Alleged £8M Share Sale Loss

    Two former directors of a telecom technology company are suing their successors for over £8 million ($10.7 million), alleging they were tricked into selling their shares at a fraction of their true value.

  • July 21, 2025

    Trader Blames Deutsche Bank For Spoofing Conviction

    A former Deutsche Bank trader convicted of tricking market competitors through a "spoofing" scheme has sued the bank in a London court, alleging it trained him to use an illegal trading strategy and then "scapegoated" him when he faced prosecution.

  • July 21, 2025

    Kession Fights Liability In £1.7M Collective Investment Case

    A finance company urged the U.K.'s top court Monday to partly override a judgment that found it liable for botched property investments worth approximately £1.7 million ($2.3 million), arguing that its liability to investors should have been limited. 

  • July 21, 2025

    Oracle Sues Data Center Firm For Infringing 'Sun' Trademark

    Oracle International Corporation and the U.S. arm of the software business have sued a hardware maintenance company, accusing it of selling products bearing its trademarks in the U.K. without authorization.

  • July 21, 2025

    Police Officer Launches Legal Challenge Against Union Ban

    A police officer is taking the home secretary to court over a century-old law that bans officers from unionizing, arguing the restriction violates human rights and leaves officers with no credible form of independent representation, lawyers at Leigh Day confirmed Monday.

  • July 21, 2025

    MPs Call For Review To Fix 'Dysfunctional' County Courts

    U.K. parliamentarians called on Monday for an "urgent and comprehensive, root-and-branch" review of the County Court system after a scathing report warned of unacceptable levels of delays, rat infestations in buildings and outdated operations.  

  • July 21, 2025

    Oil Biz Must Face Dishonesty Claims Over $335M Fraud Case

    Arcadia Group has failed to strike out claims by the former chief executive and the finance boss at the oil trader who alleged that the company had dishonestly accused them of funneling $335 million profits in their own pockets.

  • July 21, 2025

    Barrister Loses Appeal Over Disbarment For Dishonesty

    A barrister who supervised an unregistered immigration advice firm and lied to his regulator about it failed to overturn his disbarment, as a judge held Monday that the sanction was "clearly appropriate."

  • July 18, 2025

    Off The Bench: Latest NASCAR Win, Trans Athlete Fights Ban

    In this week's Off The Bench, Michael Jordan's racing team fails to bounce back right away from a tough defeat in its battle with NASCAR, a transgender woman fights a last-minute expulsion from a college women's track and field event, and a football player sees his window to playing an extra college season slammed shut by the NCAA and the Seventh Circuit.

  • July 18, 2025

    Lords Swap Day-1 Unfair Dismissal For 6-Month Threshold

    The House of Lords has approved an amendment that would block the government's signature policy proposal to give employees protection against unfair dismissal from their first day on the job, requiring them to put in six months first.

  • July 18, 2025

    IT Engineer Sues School Over 'Defamatory' Job Reference

    An IT technician has sued a London school and its parent company, alleging that a reference it provided falsely accused him of misconduct involving safeguarding concerns which destroyed his chance at a new job.

  • July 18, 2025

    Female Staffer Wins Sexual Harassment Case Against Boss

    A female staffer at a business advisory firm was awarded £20,000 (£27,000) by a tribunal that concluded on Friday that its boss sexually harassed her by making unwanted sexual advances in his hotel room on a business trip to France.

  • July 18, 2025

    Notting Hill Shopping Tote Designer Loses TM Dispute

    A London judge ruled Friday that the designer of the "Notting Hill Shopping Bag" tote couldn't claim infringement against a rival in the famous London neighborhood because the trademark had expired.

  • July 18, 2025

    Fintech Blocks JPMorgan's €917M Greek Case In JV Dispute

    A London judge granted a fintech company an injunction on Friday that prevents J.P. Morgan from pursuing its directors in Greece, finding that the litigation in Athens breached a shareholder agreement.

  • July 18, 2025

    Irwin Mitchell Can't Escape Costs In Pension Fraud Claim

    Irwin Mitchell LLP failed on Friday to recover costs after it persuaded a London court that it had been wrongly named in a retired naval officer's negligence claim because its broader effort to throw out the case fell short.

  • July 18, 2025

    Paralegal's Bias Claims Tossed Over 'Unreasonable' Conduct

    A paralegal's employment claims against a law firm and legal recruiter have been thrown out, after a judge concluded Friday that her conduct in the proceedings is so unreasonable it's impossible to have a fair hearing.

  • July 18, 2025

    Odey Fights To Delay Libel Trial Amid Sex Assault Claims

    U.K. hedge fund manager Crispin Odey argued in a London court on Friday that his £79 million ($106.3 million) libel claim against the Financial Times should be put on hold while he defends against claims by five women accusing him of sexual abuse.

  • July 18, 2025

    Engineer Sues Broker For Negligence Over PI Policy Notice

    A building services engineer has accused its broker of negligence for allegedly failing to notify one of its insurers about a row in which it was involved over a generator system that it said could leave it "liable for substantial sums."

  • July 18, 2025

    Mastercard, Visa Face New Swipe Fees Claim By UK Retailers

    Harcus Parker is preparing a new class action on behalf of retailers allegedly overcharged by Visa and Mastercard for accepting debit and credit card payments after a tribunal ruled that the transactions fees breach U.K. competition law. 

  • July 18, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen the former owner of British oil refinery Prax Group sued following the collapse of his business empire, a unit of Shard Credit Partners target a married couple believed to have inflated the value of their companies before selling them, and Aerofoil Energy reignite patent action against AFE Group over the design of its F1-inspired cooling units.

  • July 18, 2025

    Insurer Denies Changing Life Policy To Cut Illness Cover

    Countrywide Assured has said two of its clients chose a policy without advice that did not provide cover for critical illness, arguing that it doesn't owe one of them £250,000 ($336,000) over claims that he was left short after a serious heart attack.

  • July 17, 2025

    EU Sends Hungary To Court Of Justice Over ECT Stance

    The European Commission said it will refer Hungary to the European Union's Court of Justice to address a potential violation of EU law, claiming it has contradicted the union's position on intra-EU arbitrations under the Energy Charter Treaty and refused to abide by the court's case law.

  • July 17, 2025

    US Challenge To Belgian Minimum Tax Rules Heads To ECJ

    A Belgian court said Thursday it has asked the European Union's highest court to weigh in on a U.S. industry group's challenge to the country's global minimum tax rules.

  • July 17, 2025

    Dechert Settles Jordanian Lawyers' UAE Torture Claims

    Dechert and Neil Gerrard, its former head of white collar crime, have settled claims of torture and hacking in a web of litigation spawned from the firm's work for a UAE sovereign wealth fund, a spokesperson for the outfit confirmed Thursday.

Expert Analysis

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: UK Injunctions Across Borders

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    A recent High Court of Justice decision allowing JPMorgan Chase Bank to block VTB Bank from bringing suit in a Russian court provides a seminal reflection on the power of English courts to issue antisuit injunctions when global banking disputes increasingly straddle multiple jurisdictions, says Josep Galvez of 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • Saxon Woods Ruling Tightens Rules On Director Good Faith

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    The recent Court of Appeal judgment in Saxon Woods v. Costa departs from the High Court's ruling, clarifying that a director's sincere belief they have acted in the company’s best interests is not sufficient to satisfy the statutory requirement to act in good faith, say lawyers at Covington.

  • ICSID Annulment Proceedings Carry High Stakes For System

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    The annulment proceedings brought by Freeport-McMoRan before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, seeking to redress a glaring and prejudicial oversight in its arbitral award against Peru, are significant for delimiting the boundaries of procedural fairness within the ICSID's annulment framework, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • Key Takeaways As EU And UK Impose New Russia Sanctions

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    The European Union and U.K.’s new sanctions on Russia, designating increasing numbers of non-Russian companies in the defense and shipping sectors, mean that organizations must examine from the outset whether a transaction has any nexus with the EU or the U.K., say lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Prestige's Jurisprudential Legacy

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    The U.K. Supreme Court's recent denial of appeal ended Spain's decades-long quest to enforce an €855 million arbitral judgment against a London insurer, throwing into stark relief the increasingly complex relationship between arbitral sovereignty, foreign state immunity and the shifting terrain of post-Brexit private international law, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • German Ruling Further Restrains Intra-EU Bilateral Arbitration

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    The German Federal Court of Justice recently issued a notable ruling that pushes the invalidation of intra-European Union bilateral investment treaty arbitration into the realm of stand-alone cost decisions, strengthening the EU's legal framework while increasing uncertainty for investors in the region, say attorneys at Linklaters.

  • High Court Ruling Shows Firm Stance On Procedural Integrity

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    The recent High Court decision in Qatar Investment v. Phoenix Ancient Art demonstrates its zero tolerance of procedural failure, serving as a reminder that the financial burden associated with document disclosure will not excuse a party’s failure to comply with court orders, say lawyers at Quillon Law.

  • A Shifting Landscape Of Greater Scrutiny After Data Breaches

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    Recent Information Commissioner's Office fines for personal data breaches and a Home Office consultation signal a shift in the U.K. regulatory landscape, and with an increase in mass actions and resulting exposure, organizations should prepare for potential third-party claims from those incurring consequential losses, say lawyers at Atheria.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: An Update On ICSID Annulment

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    The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes' recent decision in Peteris Pildegovics and SIA North Star v. Kingdom of Norway offers a reasoned and principled contribution to annulment jurisprudence, effectively balancing the competing imperatives of fairness, finality and institutional coherence, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • UK Data Disputes Could Become Competition Class Actions

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    While mass data protection claims have chafed against the procedural restrictions that apply to class actions under U.K. law, it is possible these claims will be brought into the fold of the rapidly growing Competition Appeal Tribunal scene, says Aislinn Kelly-Lyth at Blackstone Chambers.

  • Opinion

    UK Court Of Appeal's FRAND Ruling Is Troubling

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    The U.K. Court of Appeal's recent decision in Optis v. Apple disregards a lower court's extensive factual findings and contradicts its own precedent regarding fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms for cellular patents, says Enrico Bonadio at the University of London.

  • What Santander Fraud Ruling Means For UK Banking Sector

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    A London court's recent judgment in Santander v. CCP Graduate School held that a bank does not owe any duty to third-party victims of authorized push payment fraud, reaffirming the steps banks are already taking to protect their own customers from sophisticated fraud mechanisms, say lawyers at Charles Russell.

  • Arbitral Ruling In EU Fisheries Clash Clarifies Post-Brexit Pact

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    The Permanent Court of Arbitration's recent ruling marks a pivotal moment in the evolving jurisprudence surrounding the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, concluded between the U.K. and the EU after Brexit, and sets an important precedent for interpretation and enforcement of trade and environment clauses in cross-border disputes, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • Apple Ruling Provides Clarity For UK Litigation Funders

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    The Court of Appeal's recent Gutmann v. Apple decision that litigation funders can take a fee before class action members are paid helps relieve the concerns of insufficient funding returns that followed news of a broad sector review and a key high court ruling, says Matthew Lo at Exton Advisors.

  • Expect Complex Ruling From UK Justices In Car Dealer Case

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    While recent arguments before the U.K. Supreme Court in a consumer test case on motor finance commissions reveal the court’s take on several points argued, application of the upcoming decision will be both nuanced and fact-sensitive, so market participants wishing to prepare do not have a simple task, says Tom Grodecki at Cadwalader.

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