The Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. advertised that anyone using their smoke ball correctly and contracting influenza would receive £100. Mrs Carlill followed instructions, contracted influenza, and successfully sued for her reward. The court held the company's advertisement was a legally binding unilateral offer accepted by Mrs Carlill's conduct.
A property developer secured oral assurances from his bank to fund both the purchase and development of a Gleneagles plot subject to a buy-back clause. The bank later refused development funding. The Supreme Court restored the Lord Ordinary's finding that a binding promise existed.
A child under four years old escaped from a nursery school onto a busy street, causing a lorry driver to swerve and fatally crash while avoiding the child. The House of Lords held the local education authority liable for negligently failing to prevent the child's escape, establishing a duty of care owed to highway users.
The Heimgar suffered collision damage from the Carslogie, then heavy weather damage on voyage to repairs. Both were repaired concurrently. The House of Lords held the Carslogie's owners were not liable for detention damages as the Heimgar was already immobilised by the weather damage when collision repairs occurred.
Richemont Group obtained website-blocking injunctions against major UK ISPs to stop access to sites selling counterfeit luxury goods infringing its trade marks. The Supreme Court held that rights-holders, not innocent ISPs acting as 'mere conduits', must indemnify the ISPs' reasonable compliance costs.
Minority shareholders petitioned under s.459 Companies Act alleging unfair prejudice when the company allowed a third party to invest in a subsidiary rather than the company. The court ordered disclosure of legal advice documents, holding that legal professional privilege does not protect documents created for company administration purposes in shareholder disputes.
A same-sex couple's first child was wrongly adopted by the non-birth mother due to a clinic's lost consent form. The President of the Family Division declared legal parentage under the 2008 Act and, exceptionally, revoked the adoption order.
Publishers Cassell & Co Ltd published a book containing serious libels against Captain Broome, a retired naval officer, despite warnings that the material was defamatory. The jury awarded £15,000 compensatory damages and £25,000 exemplary damages. The House of Lords upheld Rookes v Barnard on exemplary damages and dismissed the appeal, affirming the jury's award.
Two conjoined appeals examined the law on contractual penalty clauses. In Cavendish, share sale clauses forfeiting deferred payments and forcing share transfers at undervalue upon breach of restrictive covenants were upheld. In ParkingEye, an £85 parking overstay charge was held neither penal nor unfair under consumer regulations. The Supreme Court reformulated the penalty rule.
A child suffered severe brain injury at birth due to clinical negligence, reducing her life expectancy to 29 years. The Supreme Court overruled Croke v Wiseman, holding that young children can recover 'lost years' damages for pecuniary losses during the years of life lost due to injury, subject to normal principles of proving loss.
During World War II, a landlord agreed to reduce rent on flats that became difficult to let. After the war ended, the landlord sought to recover full rent. The court held that the promise to accept reduced rent was binding during the war period, establishing the doctrine of promissory estoppel in English law.
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 to achieve the disposal of a capital asset.
Mr Chahal, a Sikh activist detained for deportation to India on national security grounds, challenged his removal and detention. The European Court of Human Rights held that deportation would violate Article 3 as he faced a real risk of torture, establishing that Article 3 protection is absolute regardless of national security considerations.
A passenger injured in a Hong Kong road accident appealed against damages awarded. The Privy Council considered whether courts should compare awards across jurisdictions and whether future loss of earning capacity required specific pleading and evidence. The appeal succeeded in part, deleting the unpleaded and unproven future earning capacity award.
Mr Chandler contracted asbestosis from exposure to asbestos dust while employed by Cape Products Ltd, a subsidiary of Cape plc. The subsidiary was dissolved and uninsured. The Court of Appeal upheld the finding that Cape plc owed a direct duty of care to its subsidiary's employees based on assumption of responsibility, establishing that parent companies can be liable for subsidiaries' employees' health and safety in appropriate circumstances.
Members of the Committee of 100 planned to occupy and immobilise RAF Wethersfield, a prohibited place, to protest nuclear weapons. Convicted under the Official Secrets Act 1911, they argued their aim benefited the State. The House of Lords held that obstructing defence facilities was a prejudicial purpose and upheld the convictions.
Nestlé offered gramophone records for 1s 6d plus three chocolate bar wrappers. The copyright owners argued this arrangement meant there was no ordinary retail selling price for calculating royalties under the Copyright Act 1956. The House of Lords held the wrappers formed part of the consideration, not merely a qualifying condition.
Actors from 'Neighbours' sued over newspaper publication featuring their faces superimposed on pornographic images. Despite defamatory headlines and photographs, the accompanying text explained the deception. The House of Lords held that a publication must be read as a whole, and the ordinary reader standard applies uniformly.
A car dealer sued a buyer who repudiated a contract to buy a new car. Since demand for the car exceeded supply, the dealer easily resold it without loss. The court awarded only nominal damages, finding no actual loss of profit.
SWP Group acquired shares in DRCH, with DRC (a subsidiary) paying fees to accountants D&T for due diligence work. SWP claimed these payments constituted unlawful financial assistance under s.151 Companies Act 1985. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding the payments were financial assistance 'for the purpose of' the acquisition.
Miss Chester underwent spinal surgery without being warned of a 1-2% risk of nerve damage. The risk materialised, causing partial paralysis. Although she could not prove she would never have had surgery, the House of Lords held the surgeon liable, modifying conventional causation principles to protect patient autonomy and the right to informed consent.
Police officers executing a search warrant for specific stolen goods seized other items they reasonably believed were stolen, though not mentioned in the warrant. The Court of Appeal held that police may lawfully seize goods they reasonably believe to be stolen when lawfully on premises, even if not specified in the warrant.
Police officers and civilian staff claimed underpaid holiday pay dating back to 1998, as their pay excluded overtime. The Supreme Court held that the EU principle of equivalence allowed police officers to benefit from the 'series extension' for bringing claims, and that a series of deductions is not broken by gaps exceeding three months or by intervening lawful payments.
Mr and Mrs Chilton sued Saga Holidays over a disappointing holiday. In the small claims arbitration, the registrar refused to allow Saga's solicitor to cross-examine the unrepresented claimants. The Court of Appeal held this violated natural justice, as cross-examination is a fundamental right in adversarial proceedings.
The Supreme Court held that the named person provisions in Part 4 of the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014, particularly the information-sharing measures, were outside the Scottish Parliament's legislative competence as they breached Article 8 ECHR rights to private and family life.
October 4, 2026
National Case Law Archive
October 4, 2026
National Case Law Archive
October 4, 2026
National Case Law Archive