Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Relative definition

What does Relative mean? In legal practice, “relative” identifies family relationships that can make parties connected persons, especially for insolvency rules on preferences and transactions at an undervalue. The term is often defined by statute. For insolvency in England & Wales and Scotland, Insolvency Act 1986, s 435 provides that: - a relative of an individual includes that individual’s brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal ancestor or lineal descendant - any half-blood relationship is treated as of the whole blood, and a stepchild or adopted child is treated as that person’s child - an illegitimate child is treated as the legitimate child of the mother and...

Appealing forum non conveniens decisions: Spiliada to VTB—appellate approach, limited grounds, 'one right answer' issues, and CPR 11 consequences (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Dispute Resolution expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note addresses appealing a ruling on the proper forum for resolving a dispute.

Considerations before making an appeal

When a forum contest arises, the court’s central inquiry is: which venue is the natural and suitable place to try the case? In answering that, the judge considers the totality of evidence presented. For those advising on a potential appeal against a forum decision, that assessment matters because appellate courts seldom entertain challenges that ask them to revisit the evidential evaluation made at first instance. The point is illustrated by the House of Lords in Spiliada Maritime v Cansulex (1986), which stressed that weighing the comparative advantages of a trial in England versus abroad is quintessentially for the trial judge, reflecting the considerable expertise of Commercial Court judges in such issues, and that appeals should be exceptional, indeed, with appellate intervention exercised sparingly. The same stance has been echoed subsequently, including the Court of Appeal in Alliance Bank v Aquanta (2012) and the Supreme Court in VTB Capital v Nutritek (2013). Accordingly, while an appeal remains possible, the threshold for disturbing a first-instance forum ruling is high, and practitioners should calibrate prospects with care before seeking to challenge the decision...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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