March 19, 2026
Mr Grant applied for shares in an insurance company. The company posted a letter of allotment which was lost in the post and never received. The Court of Appeal held that a valid contract existed because acceptance is effective upon posting, even if the letter never arrives. This case affirmed...
March 19, 2026
A dispute arose over a rare Ferrari 250 GTO gearbox separated from the car sold for $44 million. The buyer sought specific performance to obtain the gearbox. The Court of Appeal held that the buyer was entitled to the gearbox but must pay the seller $500,000 plus shipping costs, affirming...
March 19, 2026
Brinkibon, a London company, sent acceptance of a contract by telex to Stahag in Vienna. The House of Lords held that for instantaneous communications like telex, a contract is formed where acceptance is received, thus the contract was formed in Austria, not England. Facts Brinkibon Ltd, a company based in...
March 18, 2026
The Supreme Court’s decision in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals is one of the most important recent judgments on quantum, not only in clinical negligence, but across serious injury litigation more generally.
March 18, 2026
The formation of a contract in English law depends on the proper communication of acceptance. Courts have long grappled with a deceptively simple question: at what moment does an acceptance become effective? The answer matters enormously, because it determines when a binding contract comes into existence and, consequently, when the...
March 18, 2026
A counter offer sits at the heart of contract formation in English law. It arises when one party responds to an offer not with acceptance, but with a modified proposal of their own. Although the concept appears straightforward, its application has generated significant litigation over nearly two centuries. This guide...
March 18, 2026
The law of contract rests upon agreement. Before any binding contract can arise, one party must make an offer and the other must accept it. However, between the making of an offer and its acceptance lies a critical window during which the offeror may change their mind. The legal rules...
March 17, 2026
At first glance, THG Plc v Zedra Trust Company (Jersey) Ltd looks like a technical limitations appeal. In reality, it is a major statement about the nature of the unfair prejudice jurisdiction itself. By a 4 – 1 majority, the Supreme Court held on 25 February 2026 that a petition...
March 17, 2026
Why a modest compensation-order dispute has become an important authority on finality, correction and the true reach of the magistrates’ post-sentence powers.
March 16, 2026
HMRC argued that part-time football referees in the National Group were employees of PGMOL for tax and National Insurance purposes. The Supreme Court held that individual match contracts satisfied the requirements of mutuality of obligation and control necessary for employment, remitting the case to determine overall employment status. Facts Professional...
March 16, 2026
Tesco sought to remove 'retained pay' from employees who had relocated in 2007 by dismissing and rehiring them without this benefit. The Supreme Court held that an implied term prevented Tesco from exercising its termination power to defeat the promised permanent retained pay, and granted an injunction restraining such dismissals....
March 16, 2026
Spain and Zimbabwe appealed against registration of ICSID arbitration awards in the UK, claiming state immunity. The Supreme Court held that by ratifying the ICSID Convention, particularly Article 54(1), contracting states waived their immunity from adjudicative jurisdiction for recognition and enforcement proceedings, while preserving immunity from execution only. Facts Two...
March 16, 2026
A daughter claimed financial provision from her deceased father's estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. The Supreme Court held that a success fee payable under a conditional fee agreement cannot be included in an award for reasonable financial provision, as this would circumvent section 58A(6)...
March 16, 2026
Data centre developers claimed enterprise zone capital allowances for construction expenditure incurred in the second 10-year period under a 'golden contract' made within the first period. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that section 298 requires contractual commitment to the specific expenditure by the tenth anniversary, not merely that...
March 16, 2026
A German bank sought an anti-suit injunction to restrain a Russian company from pursuing Russian court proceedings in breach of arbitration agreements governed by English law with a Paris seat. The Supreme Court upheld the injunction, confirming that a contractual choice of governing law for the contract applies to the...
March 16, 2026
Two appellants were charged under section 12(1A) of the Terrorism Act 2000 for expressing opinions supportive of Hamas following the 7 October 2023 attacks. The Supreme Court clarified the ingredients of the offence and held that it is compatible with Article 10 ECHR, dismissing the appeals. Facts The first appellant...
March 16, 2026
The PPS sought to add a compensation order to a sentence two years after the original sentencing. The Supreme Court held that while article 158A permits varying sentences by addition, the interests of justice require expeditious applications. The delay was fatal to the application. Facts On 28 June 2021, the...
March 16, 2026
Zedra, a minority shareholder in THG plc, brought an unfair prejudice petition alleging exclusion from a bonus share issue in 2016. The Supreme Court held that petitions under section 994 of the Companies Act 2006 are not subject to limitation periods under sections 8 or 9 of the Limitation Act...
March 16, 2026
The Supreme Court held that Tesco could not use dismissal to remove “retained pay”, implying a term preventing termination where it would defeat a core contractual benefit promised as permanent.
March 14, 2026
An RTM company failed to serve a claim notice on an intermediate landlord as required under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002. The Supreme Court held that such failure does not automatically invalidate the right to manage acquisition, but renders the transfer voidable rather than void, depending on whether...
March 14, 2026
QX, a British citizen, was subject to a temporary exclusion order and reporting obligations after living in Syria. He challenged whether Article 6(1) fair trial rights applied to reviews of the order's imposition. The Supreme Court held that Article 6(1) applies to imposition reviews where obligations interfere with civil rights,...
March 13, 2026
Three night-watchmen attended hospital after vomiting from drinking tea. The casualty officer refused to see them, advising they go home. Mr Barnett died hours later from arsenic poisoning. His widow's negligence claim failed as proper treatment would not have saved him, establishing the 'but for' test of causation. Facts On...
March 12, 2026
COHL, an investment holding company, sought to deduct professional advisory fees incurred when disposing of a subsidiary as expenses of management under section 1219 of the Corporation Tax Act 2009. The Supreme Court held that such fees were capital expenditure, not revenue, and therefore not deductible because they were incurred...
March 11, 2026
Mr and Mrs Lipton's flight from Milan to London was cancelled due to pilot illness. They claimed compensation under EU Regulation 261/2004. The Supreme Court held that pilot illness is not an 'extraordinary circumstance' excusing compensation, as managing staff absence is inherent to airline operations. Facts Mr and Mrs Lipton...
March 11, 2026
A contractor provided a collateral warranty to a lessee regarding construction of a care home. When fire safety defects arose, the lessee sought statutory adjudication. The Supreme Court held that collateral warranties which merely replicate obligations from the underlying building contract are not 'construction contracts' under the Housing Grants (Construction...
May 3, 2026
National Case Law Archive
May 3, 2026
National Case Law Archive
May 3, 2026
National Case Law Archive