April 24, 2026
Two siblings challenged Scotland's children's hearings system, arguing article 8 ECHR required them to be granted 'relevant person' status in proceedings concerning their brothers/sisters subject to compulsory supervision orders. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeals but recognised a procedural gap requiring sensible operation to respect siblings' family life. Facts The...
April 24, 2026
Bresco, a company in liquidation, referred a construction dispute to adjudication against Lonsdale, which had cross-claims. The Supreme Court held that adjudication was compatible with insolvency set-off, confirming jurisdiction existed and refusing to restrain the adjudication by injunction as futile. Facts Bresco Electrical Services Ltd (“Bresco”) and Michael J Lonsdale...
April 24, 2026
Retailers sued Visa and Mastercard, claiming multilateral interchange fees (MIFs) charged on card transactions restricted competition unlawfully. The Supreme Court held the MIFs breached Article 101(1) TFEU, were not exempt under Article 101(3), and clarified the approach to pass-on damages. Facts Visa and Mastercard operate open four-party payment card schemes...
April 24, 2026
Mr Serafin sued a Polish-language newspaper for libel over an article alleging dishonesty and misconduct. The Supreme Court held the trial judge's hostile conduct rendered the trial unfair, ordered a full retrial, and clarified the public interest defence under section 4 of the Defamation Act 2013. Facts The claimant, Mr...
April 24, 2026
Actus reus guide covering conduct, omissions, causation, voluntariness, coincidence, possession and key English criminal cases.
April 24, 2026
Mr Fowler, a South African-resident diver, worked in UK waters. The Supreme Court held that section 15 ITTOIA's deeming provision, treating employed divers as self-employed traders, did not alter the meaning of 'employment' under the UK-South Africa Double Taxation Treaty, making his income UK-taxable. Facts Mr Martin Fowler is a...
April 24, 2026
Supermarkets and shops hosted ATMs operated by associated banking companies. The Supreme Court held that the ATM sites were not separately rateable hereditaments from the host stores, as the retailers remained in paramount occupation, dismissing the Valuation Officers' appeals. Facts The appeals concerned the rating treatment of automated teller machines...
April 24, 2026
Mr Dill sold a pair of 18th century lead urns on limestone piers from his garden, unaware they were listed. The Supreme Court held he could challenge whether they were 'buildings' at all in enforcement proceedings, and that the Skerritts tests apply. Facts The case concerned a pair of early...
April 24, 2026
Gerry Adams was detained in 1973 under an Interim Custody Order signed by a Minister of State, not the Secretary of State personally. The Supreme Court held the ICO was invalid, quashing his convictions for attempting to escape from lawful custody. Facts From 1922, legislation authorised detention without trial in...
April 24, 2026
A landlord of a block of flats sought to licence structural works by one lessee that would otherwise breach an absolute covenant. The Supreme Court held this would breach the landlord's covenant to other lessees requiring enforcement of such covenants on request. Facts 11-13 Randolph Crescent in Maida Vale comprises...
April 24, 2026
A Zimbabwean national with HIV challenged deportation under Article 3 ECHR, arguing removal would deny him access to life-sustaining medication. The Supreme Court departed from the restrictive N v SSHD approach, adopting the broader Paposhvili test for assessing medical cases under Article 3, and remitted the case for rehearing. Facts...
April 24, 2026
The Supreme Court considered whether the Secretary of State lawfully issued guidance prohibiting local government pension scheme administrators from pursuing investment policies contrary to UK foreign or defence policy. The majority held the guidance was unlawful as it exceeded statutory powers, which permitted guidance on how to approach investment decisions,...
April 22, 2026
Quick, a diabetic nurse, assaulted a patient whilst allegedly suffering from hypoglycaemia caused by taking insulin without eating properly. The Court of Appeal held that hypoglycaemia caused by external factors (insulin) did not constitute a ‘disease of the mind’ under the M’Naghten Rules, allowing a defence of automatism rather than...
April 22, 2026
Bratty strangled a young woman and claimed he acted unconsciously due to ‘blackness’. He raised defences of automatism and insanity based on possible psychomotor epilepsy. The House of Lords held that automatism requires evidential foundation and where the only suggested cause is disease of the mind, rejection of insanity precludes...
April 22, 2026
Mrs Pretty, suffering from terminal motor neurone disease, sought an undertaking that her husband would not be prosecuted if he assisted her suicide. The European Court of Human Rights held that the UK's prohibition on assisted suicide did not violate Articles 2, 3, 8, 9 or 14 of the Convention,...
April 22, 2026
Mrs López Ostra lived 12 metres from a waste treatment plant that emitted fumes, smells and noise causing health problems and nuisance. Despite complaints, Spanish authorities failed to adequately address the pollution. The ECtHR held Spain violated Article 8, establishing that severe environmental pollution can breach the right to private...
April 22, 2026
A journalist complained that Austrian courts failed to protect his reputation after being accused in a magazine of being part of a 'hunting society' that drove a professor to suicide. The ECtHR held that Austria violated Article 8 by failing to balance the applicant's right to reputation against freedom of...
April 22, 2026
Mr Leander was denied employment at a Swedish Naval Museum due to secret police records classifying him as a security risk. He was never told the contents of these records. The Court found Sweden's personnel control system lawful and necessary for national security, with adequate safeguards against abuse. Facts Torsten...
April 22, 2026
A mentally handicapped sixteen-year-old girl was sexually assaulted at a care home. Her father could not file a criminal complaint on her behalf due to a gap in Dutch law requiring victims over sixteen to complain personally. The Court found the Netherlands violated Article 8 by failing to provide effective...
April 22, 2026
Christine Goodwin, a post-operative male-to-female transsexual, challenged the UK's refusal to legally recognise her reassigned gender. She faced difficulties with employment records, pensions, and marriage rights. The ECtHR found violations of Articles 8 and 12, marking a significant departure from previous case law on transsexual rights. Facts The applicant, Christine...
April 22, 2026
Mr Dudgeon, a homosexual man in Northern Ireland, challenged laws criminalising private consensual homosexual acts between adult males. The European Court of Human Rights held that maintaining such legislation constituted an unjustified interference with his right to respect for private life under Article 8, as it was disproportionate to any...
April 22, 2026
Paula Marckx, an unmarried mother, challenged Belgian law which required formal recognition to establish legal ties with her illegitimate daughter Alexandra. The Court found Belgian law discriminated against illegitimate children and unmarried mothers regarding affiliation, family relationships, and inheritance rights, violating Articles 8 and 14 of the Convention. Facts Alexandra...
April 22, 2026
Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights is, without much competition, the most expansive and fact-sensitive provision in the Convention. It protects four overlapping but distinct interests – private life, family life, home and correspondence – and it has grown, through the Strasbourg Court’s dynamic interpretation, into a...
April 20, 2026
Zipvit claimed input VAT deductions for postal services from Royal Mail that were mistakenly treated as VAT-exempt by all parties. The Supreme Court referred questions to the Court of Justice regarding whether VAT could be deemed 'paid' or 'due' when neither party charged nor accounted for it, and whether alternative...
April 20, 2026
A woman rendered infertile due to negligent cervical cancer screening sought damages for surrogacy costs. The Supreme Court held damages could include costs of commercial surrogacy abroad using donor eggs, departing from earlier restrictive precedent, reflecting changed social attitudes to family formation. Facts The claimant, born in 1983, underwent cervical...
May 1, 2026
National Case Law Archive
May 1, 2026
National Case Law Archive
May 1, 2026
National Case Law Archive