March 31, 2026
Mr Moulsdale sold property without charging VAT, believing Schedule 10 VATA disapplied his option to tax. HMRC assessed him for VAT. The Supreme Court held that when determining if a grantor is a 'developer of land', the intention regarding VAT-bearing capital expenditure must relate to expenditure other than the acquisition...
March 31, 2026
Ukraine issued US$3 billion Notes to Russia, governed by English law. Ukraine defended against enforcement claiming duress through Russian economic pressure and threats of force, lack of capacity and authority, and countermeasures. The Supreme Court held Ukraine had capacity and the Minister had ostensible authority, but allowed the duress defence...
March 31, 2026
VIP Communications challenged a direction by the Secretary of State under section 5 of the Communications Act 2003, which instructed Ofcom not to exempt commercial multi-user GSM gateways from licensing requirements. The Supreme Court held the Secretary of State had power to give such directions on national security grounds, reversing...
March 31, 2026
Tenants in an unlicensed HMO sought a Rent Repayment Order against the superior landlord rather than their immediate landlord. The Supreme Court held that RROs under the Housing and Planning Act 2016 can only be made against the immediate landlord under the tenancy generating the relevant rent, not superior landlords....
March 30, 2026
Dr Day challenged planning permission granted for housing development on land forming part of Greenfields Recreation Ground. The land had been sold by Shrewsbury Town Council to a developer without complying with statutory advertising requirements for disposal of land held on statutory trust for public recreation. The Supreme Court held...
March 30, 2026
UniCredit Bank refused to pay under letters of credit issued for aircraft leases to Russian airlines, citing UK sanctions. The Supreme Court held that regulation 28(3)(c) prohibited payment until licences were obtained, as payments were 'in connection with' arrangements making aircraft available to Russia. Section 44 SAMLA provides protection for...
March 30, 2026
News Corp argued digital editions of its newspapers should be zero-rated for VAT like printed newspapers. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that 'newspapers' in the VAT Act referred only to physical printed items, not digital editions. The always speaking principle could not extend the meaning given EU law...
March 30, 2026
Residential tenants challenged their landlord's contractual power to re-apportion service charges, arguing section 27A(6) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 rendered such provisions void. The Supreme Court held that section 27A(6) only protects the tribunal's jurisdiction to review decisions for contractual and statutory legitimacy, not to replace landlords' discretionary...
March 30, 2026
Northern Ireland residents challenged the lawfulness of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, part of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement. They argued it violated the Acts of Union 1800 and section 1 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998. The Supreme Court dismissed all appeals, holding Parliament had expressly authorised the Protocol through...
March 29, 2026
Owners appealed an arbitration award concerning damages for breach of charterparty maintenance obligations causing delay and loss of a sub-charter. The court upheld the tribunal's finding that lost profits on the cancelled sub-fixture were recoverable, clarifying that The Achilleas did not establish a new general test for remoteness of damages....
March 29, 2026
A building society sued its auditors for negligently advising that hedge accounting could be used for interest rate swaps. When the error was discovered, the society had to close out swaps at significant cost. The Supreme Court held the loss fell within the scope of the auditor's duty of care,...
March 29, 2026
This landmark House of Lords decision concerned the recoverability of damages for loss of profit on a follow-on charter fixture caused by late redelivery of a vessel under a time charterparty. The House of Lords unanimously allowed the appeal, holding that the charterers were liable only for the difference between...
March 29, 2026
A galvaniser suffered a burn on his lip from molten zinc due to his employer's negligence. The burn triggered cancer in pre-disposed tissue, causing his death three years later. The court held the employer liable for the full consequences, establishing the eggshell skull rule in negligence. Facts The defendant company...
March 29, 2026
A factory worker was injured when an asbestos-cement lid fell into molten liquid, causing an unforeseeable chemical eruption. The Court of Appeal held the injury was too remote as the eruption was not foreseeable, distinguishing it from mere splashing which was a different class of harm. Facts A factory worker...
March 29, 2026
An 8-year-old boy was severely burned when a paraffin lamp fell into a manhole left unattended by Post Office workers, causing an explosion. The House of Lords held that liability arises where the type of harm is foreseeable, even if the precise manner of occurrence was not. Facts In November...
March 29, 2026
Stevedores negligently dropped a plank into a ship's hold, causing a spark that ignited petrol vapour, destroying the ship. The Court of Appeal held defendants liable for all direct consequences of negligent acts, regardless of foreseeability. This strict liability test was later replaced by The Wagon Mound. Facts The defendant’s...
March 29, 2026
Lessees of maisonettes sued the local council after structural defects emerged due to inadequate foundations. The House of Lords established a two-stage test for determining duty of care in negligence: first examining proximity and foreseeability, then considering policy reasons against imposing such duty. Facts In 1962, Merton London Borough Council...
March 29, 2026
Newman Industries delayed delivery of a boiler to Victoria Laundry by five months, causing loss of ordinary profits and a lucrative Ministry of Supply contract. The Court held that only ordinary loss of profits was recoverable, not extraordinary losses unknown to the defendant at contract formation. Facts Newman Industries Ltd...
March 29, 2026
A ship painter was injured when staging ropes provided by a dry dock owner failed. The Court of Appeal, through Brett MR's influential obiter, articulated an early general principle of duty of care in negligence, foreshadowing the modern law established in Donoghue v Stevenson. Facts The defendant was the owner...
March 25, 2026
Mr Miah, a Bangladeshi citizen, applied for indefinite leave to remain as a Tier 2 Migrant but fell two months short of the required five-year residence period. The Court of Appeal rejected the 'Near-Miss' argument that near-compliance with Immigration Rules should diminish the weight given to immigration control in Article...
March 24, 2026
Residents of Neo Bankside flats with glass walls claimed nuisance against the Tate Gallery whose viewing gallery allowed hundreds of thousands of visitors annually to look directly into their living areas. The Supreme Court held that visual intrusion can constitute actionable private nuisance and that the Tate was liable, remitting...
March 24, 2026
Mr Barton introduced a buyer for Nash House which sold for £6 million rather than the £6.5 million that would have triggered payment of £1.2 million under an oral agreement. The Supreme Court held that the contractual silence about sales below £6.5 million meant no payment was due, and unjust...
March 24, 2026
A dispute arose over service charges under a commercial lease. The tenant refused to pay certified charges, claiming they were excessive. The Supreme Court held that the landlord's certificate was conclusive as to the sum payable, but the tenant could later dispute underlying liability. This established a 'pay now, argue...
March 24, 2026
Mrs McCue, guardian for her disabled son Andrew, challenged Glasgow City Council's charges for community care services, arguing insufficient deductions for disability-related expenditure. The Supreme Court held the Council's charging policy did not constitute unlawful discrimination under sections 15 or 20 of the Equality Act 2010. Facts Andrew McCue, a...
March 24, 2026
Mrs Brazel, a part-year visiting music teacher, claimed her employer underpaid her holiday pay by using a percentage method rather than the statutory formula. The Supreme Court held that part-year workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks paid leave without pro-rating for weeks not worked, rejecting the employer's alternative calculation methods....
July 5, 2026
National Case Law Archive
July 1, 2026
National Case Law Archive
July 1, 2026
National Case Law Archive