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This Practice Note outlines the law concerning criminal recklessness. The subjective test for recklessness Certain statutory and common law offences allow the prosecution to prove mens rea through ‘recklessness’. Put simply, recklessness is where the accused takes an unjustified risk that results in unlawful harm or damage. The House of Lords in R v G reaffirmed the subjective approach to recklessness. Before R v G, two distinct tests were used, depending on the offence charged: Subjective recklessness from R v Cunningham: the prosecution had to establish that the accused personally foresaw the risk. Objective recklessness from R v Caldwell: the prosecution only needed to show that the risk would have been obvious to a reasonable person, without proving the accused themselves foresaw it. In R v G, the House of Lords concluded that the objective test could operate unfairly where a defendant did not foresee the
This Practice Note examines the remedy of rescission, explaining when and in what manner a contract can be unwound (at common law, in equity and under statute) and thereby terminated and brought to an end. It covers the consequences and effects of rescission, the principal grounds for setting aside an agreement (misrepresentation, mistake, undue influence, duress, non‑disclosure, fiduciary misdealing and bribery) and the main obstacles to claiming rescission—affirmation, the intervention of third‑party rights and the impossibility of restitution. For further guidance on rescission in the context of misrepresentation, see Practice Note: Misrepresentation—rescission as a remedy. There are many ways in which a contract may reach its end; see: Terminating contracts—how and when a contract ends—overview for a brief and accessible summary, with links to the related further practical guidance, including Practice Note: Termination and expiry of contracts. For a table
What is a res judicata? A res judicata is a determination by a court or tribunal with jurisdiction over the cause of action and the parties, which finally disposes of the issues decided so they cannot be litigated again by those bound, save on appeal. Final judgments entered by default or by consent fall within this concept, whereas rulings on purely procedural points and any decision lacking finality do not. The doctrine’s aim is to bring litigation to an end and shield parties from being harassed by the same dispute twice. in personam—binds the parties and their privies in rem—binds all persons, privy or otherwise (ie a judgment binding the whole world) A party may rely on res judicata: as an estoppel to defeat an opponent’s claim or defence; and/or as the basis of their own claim or
The offence of causing grievous bodily harm with intent Wounding or causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent can be tried solely in the Crown Court on indictment. Elements of the offence Under the Offences against the Person Act 1861 (OATPA 1861), the prosecution must establish that the defendant unlawfully and maliciously: wounded with the intention of causing GBH, or caused GBH with that intention, or wounded intending to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person, or caused GBH intending to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person ‘Unlawfully’ and ‘maliciously’ Unlawfully The wounding or causing of GBH must be unlawful. Such conduct may be lawful if used: in self-defence in defence of another in defence of property for the prevention of crime where the victim gave express or implied consent For further information on these defences, see below:
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This Practice Note Sets out how tax considerations affect a court’s determination of the sum to be paid to a claimant as damages for financial loss, and how tax is taken into account when computing any interest component of the award. The court’s aim is to award a figure that restores the claimant to the position they would have been in if the wrong or injury (for example negligence, misrepresentation, or breach of contract) had not occurred. This may make it relevant to consider the following: any tax charge that will arise on the damages award (see Practice Note: Direct tax treatment of damages and compensation payments); and/or the tax that would have been due if the wrong or injury had not taken place—for instance, where damages replace a loss of trading profits, whether the claimant would have been taxable on those...
The legal technology landscape is changing at pace, spawning a fresh vocabulary of AI-related terms and expressions. For those who are not product developers or software engineers, it is useful to clarify what these phrases mean. This Practice Note is intended to help legal professionals gain a clearer grasp of key Artificial Intelligence ( AI) concepts. For further detail on the technology underpinning AI, see Practice Note: Artificial intelligence and machine learning—an introduction to the technology. The Basics Algorithm: a coded series of instructions within software that resolves a problem or executes a computation. Artificial Intelligence ( AI): computer software and systems capable of exhibiting human intelligence. They can learn, plan, reason, or handle natural language as they operate, rather than relying only on pre-programmed tasks; for example, speech recognition, computer vision, translation between natural languages, and other mappings of inputs. In the UK and EU,...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. The UK and EU’s particular proposals for addressing the enforcement of judgments across the EU will be a central concern for UK practitioners. This Practice Note examines how Brexit will affect the enforcement of court judgments in the EU once the UK leaves the bloc. It reviews the existing framework under Regulation ( EU) 1215/2012, Brussels I (recast), sets out the respective stances of the UK and the EU, and evaluates the probable outcomes based on the information currently available. The Note highlights issues that may arise upon the UK’s exit and points to regimes that could support the enforcement of court judgments, including the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements and the Lugano Convention 2007. It provides a concise summary of the current position and the foreseeable scenarios for...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated. It explains the requirement to obtain permission to appeal to the UK Supreme Court ( UKSC) and outlines the procedure, whether the challenge comes direct from the High Court (via a leap-frog) or from the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal. It reviews the deadlines for lodging the application (including how to request extra time) and the way in which the request will be decided, including where a Community law point is raised. It is not kept up to date and is supplied for background only. This Practice Note concerns appeals to the Supreme Court. It should be read alongside Practice Notes: Supreme Court—starting and managing the appeal—appeals pre-2 December 2024 and Supreme Court—completing an application for permission or notice of appeal and how to...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. It gathers News from 1 January 2021, ie after IP completion day, up to 28 January 2025. It explores a range of issues on the consequences of Brexit for dispute resolution ( DR) practitioners, including the Retained EU Law ( Revocation and Reform) Bill. From 1 January 2024, ‘retained EU law’ has been styled as ‘ Assimilated’ law; this is a change of name only, with no alteration to the provisions discussed. For further detail, see Practice Note: Assimilated law. For News Analysis predating exit day (31 January 2020), see: Dispute Resolution News Analysis— Brexit (exit day to IP completion day) [ Archived] Dispute Resolution News Analysis— Brexit (up to exit day) [ Archived] For wider reading on legal requirements and the implications of Brexit, consult the Brexit collection, which provides links to...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived. It outlines the regulatory requirements under the SRA Code of Conduct that were in force from 6 October 2012 to 24 November 2019, and will apply to any funding agreement concluded between those dates. In 2011, the Solicitors Regulation Authority implemented a change of regulatory regime for the profession and its regulation of the industry and, as part of that reform, a new Code of Conduct took effect on 6 October 2011. The framework contains ten principles together with a set of mandatory outcomes, i.e. standards of behaviour that solicitors must satisfy. To help achieve those mandatory outcomes, the 2011 Code includes a non-exhaustive list of behaviours that are ‘indicative’ of whether or not the required outcomes are likely to be achieved. The mandatory outcomes concerning funding and costs are expressly set out within the '1st...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. The provisions in this Practice Note ended on Monday 31 March 2014, when the second mediation scheme was replaced by a permanent mediation service introduced under CPR 26.4A. Information on that service is available in Practice Note: Small claims mediation service. Two mediation pilot schemes This Practice Note relates to two mediation service pilot schemes that operated consecutively: first scheme—1 October 2012 to 31 March 2013 ( Practice Direction 51H) second scheme—1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014 ( Practice Direction 51I) Second Mediation Service Pilot Scheme The second Mediation Service Pilot Scheme (the second scheme) commenced on 1 April 2013 in the County Court Money Claims Centre ( CCMC), Production Centre and Money Claims online (see Second Mediation Service Pilot Scheme), and continued until Monday 31 March 2014......
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated. The UK is no longer subject to the Rome Convention as a matter of international law, following departure from the EU. Even so, its substantive provisions still apply in certain instances, namely where a contract was concluded between 1 April 1991 and 16 December 2009 and meets the requirements in the Act. As a result, those rules remain in the C( AL) A 1990, but with changes made by The Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations and Non– Contractual Obligations ( Amendment etc) ( EU Exit) Regulations 2019, SI 2019/834. For current guidance, see Practice Note: Contracts ( Applicable Law) Act 1990—application and interpretation. This Practice Note outlines when the Rome Convention governs and when it does not. It also explains the exclusion of renvoi, considers public policy implications, and addresses the position where a state has more...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated. It is retained for historical context only because it addresses CPR 81 as it stood before 1 October 2020, and Practice Direction 81, which was revoked in full from 1 October 2020. If your committal application is dated after 1 October 2020, you must consult the current CPR 81 and the Practice Notes dealing with it; see: Contempt and committal—overview. For the pre‑1 October 2020 version of CPR 81 or Practice Direction 81, see: This Practice Note explains how to apply for permission to commence committal proceedings. Not every contempt scenario requires permission before issuing committal proceedings. For further guidance, refer to: Practice Note: When is permission required to bring committal proceedings? [ Archived] Practice Note: Committal applications—applying for permission—where to apply [ Archived] Practice Note: Committal...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is retained for historical reference. It addresses pre-action behaviour in non-protocol matters under the Practice Direction— Pre- Action Conduct that applied before 6 April 2015. For details on the Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols, which replaced the earlier Practice Direction— Pre- Action Conduct and has been in effect since 6 April 2015, see Practice Note: Pre-action behaviour in non-protocol cases— Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols... Practice Direction— Pre- Action Conduct Where a claim is not captured by any of the protocols, the parties should adhere to the principles in the Practice Direction— Pre- Action Conduct before issuing proceedings (para 2.1). For information on the various protocols, to check whether any apply to your claim, see: The pre-action protocols and when they apply— Protocols in force prior to 6 April 2015......
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated or maintained. It is preserved for historical reference only, as it sets out CPR Part 36 as it operated before 6 April 2015, and reflects the position at that time. If you have received, or are putting forward, a Part 36 offer on or after 6 April 2015, you should consult the CPR 36 currently in force together with our Practice Notes and Precedents on this topic, which cover the current regime; see: Part 36 offers—overview. Where a Part 36 offer was made, or received, before 6 April 2015, the Part 36 provisions in effect before that date continue to apply to that offer or response. You can obtain a copy of the pre‑6 April 2015 Part 36 rules here for reference: If a Part 36 offer predates 6 April 2015, but a trial of any...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer updated. It is provided solely for historical context, setting out Part 36 of the CPR as it operated before 6 April 2015. If you have received, or intend to make, a Part 36 offer on or after 6 April 2015, you must consult the CPR 36 currently in force together with our relevant Practice Notes and Precedents; see: Part 36 offers—overview. Where a Part 36 offer was made, or received, before 6 April 2015, the Part 36 provisions then in force will govern. A copy of the pre‑6 April 2015 Part 36 rules can be accessed here: If your Part 36 offer predates 6 April 2015 but a trial of any element of the claim, or any issue within it, is scheduled to begin on or after 6 April 2015, you should refer to the new CPR 36 for...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is archived and no longer maintained. Except where an appeal notice was lodged, or permission to appeal obtained, before 1 October 2012, this Note is for historical reference only. For up-to-date guidance on permission to appeal, see the Practice Notes: Grounds for appealing and preliminary considerations; Permission to appeal—the application; Permission to appeal—preliminary considerations; and Permission to appeal—hearing and next steps. Any CPR rules and practice directions mentioned here link to the current provisions, not those in force before 1 October 2012. For the pre- October 2012 position, refer to the attached PDFs: CPR 52 (old) and CPR PD 52 (old). The following legislation is cited in this Practice Note: Children Act 1989 ( Ch A 1989) Access to Justice Act 1999 ( AJA 1999) Requiring permission An appeal requires the court’s permission. If both the lower court and the...
ARCHIVED This Practice Note formerly outlined the Bill of Costs pilot scheme, which concluded on 30 September 2017, and is retained for historical reference only. For current guidance on detailed assessment, see: Detailed assessment—overview. The Note relates to the pilot contained in the now-superseded Practice Direction 51L, operating from 1 October 2015 until 30 September 2017. It applied to detailed assessment proceedings in the Senior Courts Costs Office ( SCCO) and participation was voluntary. Why is the bill of costs changing? The traditional method of preparing a Bill of Costs failed to utilise available technology, even though a bill could, in practice, be generated from solicitors’ time-recording across the life of the litigation. Moreover, since the roll-out of the costs budgeting regime, further concerns have arisen—for instance, there is no requirement to set out how the Bill of Costs accords with the most recently approved budget. Taken...
This practice note is kept for historical reference only because, from 6 April 2014, it is no longer possible to obtain a writ of feiri facias or a warrant of execution; instead, the applicable process is now to issue a writ or warrant of control under the Taking Control of Goods ( TCG) procedure operated under the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, Schedule 12; see: Taking control of the debtor’s goods—overview. Introduction The mechanisms for enforcing a judgment for the payment of money by taking possession of a debtor’s goods are set out in: CCR Order 26 (county court) and RSC Orders 46–47 ( High Court) Practice Directions PD RSC 46 and CCR 26 Attendant provisions in Schedule 7 of the Courts Act 2003 and Part V of the County Courts Act 1984 Note: amendments intended by Part 3 of the...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is retained for historical context. It addresses failures to adhere to any pre-action protocol and/or the Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols that applied before 6 April 2015, including when such failures may lead to a party being penalised and the forms those penalties might take. For guidance on non-compliance under the revised Practice Direction in force from 6 April 2015, see Practice Note: Non-compliance with pre-action provisions, and more generally the Practice Note: Pre-action behaviour in non-protocol cases— Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols. To view the Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols that operated prior to 6 April 2015, please click: Where paragraph references are provided in this Practice Note, they are to the pre–6 April 2015 Practice Direction, unless stated...
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note has been archived and is no longer maintained. It reviews the provisions in Regulation ( EC) 44/2001, Brussels I (also called the Judgments Regulation) that govern insurance disputes. The underlying purpose is to protect the insured, as the weaker party, and to prevent them being drawn into court proceedings in a jurisdiction selected by the insurer and likely unfamiliar to them. Where an insurer can be sued Where an insured party may start proceedings Situations where the parties are on an equal footing, eg reinsurer v insurer Note: since 10 January 2015, Brussels I has been repealed in its entirety and replaced by Brussels I (recast). Transitional arrangements have been introduced. For details of those arrangements, and to determine whether Brussels I still applies to the matter you are handling, see Practice Note: E& W Brussels I...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note reflects provisions that were revoked on 1 April 2013 and is retained solely for historical reference purposes only. Limits on the level of fees Caps apply to the recoverable costs awarded for advocates’ fees where a party succeeds, namely in the following specific circumstances: a fast track trial — the cap only operates if, at the trial date, the case remains allocated to the fast track a hearing to determine the quantum of damages following a default judgment ( Part 12) or an admission ( Part 14) The relevant provisions are set out in CPR 46, which governs these particular limits......
ARCHIVED : This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note reviews the framework governing European cross-border procedures as they operated from the UK’s exit from the EU on 31 January 2020 through to the close of the implementation period, which the EU terms the transition period. The applicable regimes are contained in Regulation ( EC) 805/2004, European Enforcement Orders ( EEO), Regulation ( EC) 1896/2006, European Payment Orders ( EPO), and Regulation ( EC) 861/2007, European Small Claims Procedure ( ESCP). Be aware that both Regulation ( EC) 1896/2006, EPO, and Regulation ( EC) 861/2007, ESCP were each revised by Regulation ( EU) 2015/2421. For a handy Brexit research aid also offering answers to key Brexit queries together with useful Brexit updates, research pointers and materials, see: Brexit Bulletin—key updates, research tips and resources. The Practice Note also...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note relates to provisions revoked on 1 April 2013 and is kept for historical reference only. With the establishment of the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court Costs Office became the Senior Courts Costs Office. The associated guide has not yet been reissued and therefore still bears the title Supreme Court Costs Office Guide. Applicable rules In general, parties should ensure they are familiar with CPR 47.14, the relevant sections of the Costs Practice Direction (practice direction 47, Section 40), and the Supreme Courts Costs Office Guide ( SCCO Guide). This note does not set out all of the detail contained in the SCCO Guide. How to apply for the detailed assessment hearing For guidance on making an application for a detailed assessment hearing, see Detailed assessment: how to apply for a hearing (prior to April 2013) [...
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When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...
Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...
I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
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