Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Court of Appeal (England and Wales) restricts post‑limitation substitution under CPR 19.6/LA 1980 s35: ‘same claim’ excludes successor‑liability cases; ‘mistake’ gateway limited to misnomer

Published on: 10 February 2026

Published by a LexisNexis Dispute Resolution expert

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Article summary

Adcamp LLP v Office Properties [2026] EWCA Civ 50

What are the practical implications of this case?

This ruling underscores that, once the limitation period has lapsed, the court’s jurisdiction to join or replace parties is narrowly circumscribed. The ‘necessity’ limb—the second gateway—in CPR 19.6(3)(b), reflecting LA 1980, s 35(6)(b), applies only where the cause advanced before and after substitution is, in essence, the same. In successor or assumed liability scenarios, the pleaded case against the successor hinges on proving the mechanism by which liability moved or was taken on—such as novation, estoppel, acknowledgement for limitation purposes, etc—so the case against the original party is not substantively identical; the core facts required to fix liability diverge. It was accepted that the ‘mistake’ limb—the first gateway—under LA 1980, s 35(6)(a) and CPR 19.6(3)(a) is confined to errors as to name rather than identity. Accordingly, where the mistake concerns who is in fact liable, neither gateway will assist a claimant seeking substitution once the relevant limitation period has expired...

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