Legal Practice Notes

Note: From 1 January 2026, the Financial List in the Chancery Division is running a pilot under CPR PD 51ZH under which specified documents deployed at public hearings (such as witness statements and skeleton arguments) will, by default, be accessible to the public at large. Practitioners issuing applications in this list should acquaint themselves with the pilot and ensure suitable measures are adopted to safeguard their clients, as necessary, when drafting any impacted documents. For guidance, see Practice Note: Non-party access to court documents and information in civil proceedings. Applications in the Chancery Division If your matter proceeds in the Chancery Division, the provisions of the Chancery Guide will govern any application you bring in that forum. This Practice Note offers guidance on Chancery Division applications, in particular closely cross-referring to the pertinent provisions of the Chancery Guide and the related regional guidance...

This Practice Note sets out when it may be suitable to seek pre-action disclosure under CPR 31.16. Drawing on leading authorities, it describes the courts’ two-stage analysis when considering an order under CPR 31.16(3): first, whether jurisdiction exists—namely that the four conditions in CPR 31.16(3)(a)–(d) are satisfied—and, if so, secondly, whether the court should exercise its discretion to grant the order. It also addresses disclosure before proceedings in the setting of split trials, the court’s jurisdiction to order pre-action disclosure after a claim form has been issued, pre-action disclosure where the dispute is to be determined by arbitration, and pre-action disclosure in procurement matters. This Practice Note should be read alongside Practice Note: Pre-action disclosure—making an application. The court’s power to order pre-action disclosure The courts’ authority to direct disclosure before proceedings commence—ie pre-action...

This Practice Note sets out an overview of a litigation process for a dispute in England and Wales. This Practice Note provides an outline of the litigation journey for disputes in England and Wales. It also offers a recap of the typical phases most civil cases will involve, spanning pre-action steps, issuing proceedings, trial, enforcement and any appeal, alongside related costs and funding considerations. It further addresses the court’s approach to case and costs management, lay and expert evidence, the obtaining of injunctions and the options for bringing proceedings to a close, including resolution by settlement. The Practice Note is arranged in a way that can be repurposed as a client letter to set out the principal stages of most civil disputes. It includes no outbound links to other Lexis+® UK materials. For links to content aligned to these key stages, refer to...

This Practice Note offers guidance on remote and hybrid hearings, conducted by video-conference or by telephone, in civil proceedings. It explains what amounts to a remote or hybrid hearing, identifies when a hearing may be held remotely, addresses telephone hearings, and outlines the electronic platforms available for remote hearings. It also gives direction on how non-parties may obtain remote access to hearings. Depending on the court hearing your matter, you may need to consider further provisions—see: Court specific guidance. What is a remote hearing? A remote hearing may proceed by video link or over the telephone. Some hearings run with a mixture of attendance, where certain participants join remotely while others appear in person at court; this is commonly described as a hybrid hearing. Hybrid arrangements can offer flexibility for legal teams, clients and witnesses, accommodating those able and willing to attend court and those who are not. In...

This Practice Note offers guidance on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR. Depending on the court handling your case, you may need to consider additional requirements—see below. It clarifies when the Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols (the Practice Direction) takes effect and outlines its aims and principles. It also covers what a claimant should include in a letter of claim and what is expected in the defendant’s reply, and briefly touches on ADR, limitation and experts. When does the Practice Direction on Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols apply? The Practice Direction sets out the conduct generally expected of parties before proceedings are issued. Its provisions apply across the board, but it is specifically stated to govern where none of the more detailed pre-action protocols is relevant to your claim (see Practice Direction Pre- Action Conduct and Protocols, para 2). For...

This Practice Note offers direction on applying for a Norwich Pharmacal order ( NPO) to obtain disclosure of documents within civil proceedings where necessary. It details matters to consider before issuing and describes the alternative routes for bringing the application, namely by a Part 8 or Part 7 claim, or by a Part 23 application. This Practice Note gives assistance on construing and applying the pertinent provisions contained in the CPR properly. According to the court where the case is progressing, you may have to take account of further provisions—see: Court specific guidance below. This Practice Note explains the process for issuing an NPO application seeking disclosure of documents within the context of civil proceedings properly. The following resources may likewise prove helpful: for guidance on the nature of an NPO and circumstances for its use, see Practice Note: Norwich Pharmacal orders ( NPOs) for insight into the key...

This Practice Note sets out how to conduct a reasonable search for standard disclosure under CPR 31.7. It tackles core questions under the Civil Procedure Rules ( CPR): ‘ What is standard disclosure?’, ‘ What counts as a document?’ and ‘ What constitutes a reasonable search?’, addressing meaning, relevance, reasonableness and control by reference to the overriding principles. It also considers practical issues with back-up data, keyword searches and metadata. Business and Property Court claims This Practice Note does not cover the disclosure scheme operating in the Business and Property Courts. For guidance on that regime, see: Disclosure Scheme ( Business & Property Courts)—overview. Claims issued on or after 1 October 2015 in the Business and Property Courts may fall within, and/or be governed by, one or both schemes under CPR PD 57AB: the shorter trials scheme and the flexible trials scheme. For more on these, see...

This Practice Note examines appeals arising from case management rulings, for which the court may take into account additional, proportionality-based factors when deciding whether to grant permission to appeal. For wider guidance on permission to appeal, see the following Practice Notes: Permission to appeal—preliminary considerations Permission to appeal—the application Permission to appeal—hearing and next steps What are case management decisions? The Practice Directions to Part 52 of the Civil Procedure Rules ( CPR 52) define case management decisions. Under CPR PD 52A, paragraph 4.6, they include decisions concerning: disclosure—this extends to orders for specific disclosure (see Hankin v Barrington, noted in News Analysis: Specific disclosure and permission to appeal case management decisions ( Hankin v Barrington)) the lodging of witness statements or experts’ reports directions governing the claim’s timetable adding a party to the claim security for costs, and use of...

Practice Note This Practice Note outlines how the Contracts ( Applicable Law) Act 1990 operates when assessing whether parties have selected the governing law for their agreement. It explores issues including whether that choice must be set out in writing, whether it must point to the law of a particular country, and whether the parties may divide the governing law. It also identifies mandatory rules—domestic, foreign and international—that can constrain the chosen law. To decide if the C( AL) A 1990 regime applies, see Practice Note: Understanding applicable law—a guide for dispute resolution practitioners. on the Act’s application and interpretation, see Practice Note: Contracts ( Applicable Law) Act 1990—application and interpretation on the approach where the parties have not chosen the applicable law, see Practice Note: Contracts (applicable law) Act 1990—parties fail to choose the applicable law Schedule 1 to the C( AL) A 1990...

ARCHIVED This Tracker compiles a range of English court rulings where the Court of Justice decision in Owusu v Jackson has been examined. It covers decisions from the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and High Court. Owusu confirmed that English courts may not invoke the common law doctrine of forum non conveniens to stay proceedings when a defendant is domiciled in an EU Member State. Supreme Court decisions Judgment Comment News Analysis Owusu applied/considered: Vedanta Resources Plc v Lungowe [2019] UKSC 20 at paras [16] and [38]–[39]. The Supreme Court concluded that the Owusu principle governs whether proceedings against a defendant sued in England can be stayed. A stay is impermissible where the defendant is domiciled in England, even if the alternative forum was not an EU Member State......

Grounds for objecting to inspection In general, a party is entitled to inspect documents that: have been disclosed to them under CPR 31.3—for general guidance on inspection, see Practice Note: Disclosure—inspection are referred to in a statement of case, a witness statement, and the like—for further detail, see Practice Note: Disclosure—inspection— Inspection of documents referred to in statements of case, witness statements are identified in an expert report under CPR 35.10(4)—for additional guidance, see Practice Note: Disclosure—inspection— What can be inspected? Nonetheless, there are instances where the disclosing party is obliged or entitled to refuse inspection of certain documents under CPR 31.3(1)(b) and CPR 31.19(3). Grounds for resisting inspection include: irrelevance rendering the documents not disclosable—for more detail, see Practice Note: Disclosure—standard disclosure and the reasonable search loss of the disclosing party’s control over the...

ARCHIVED This archived Practice Note sets out guidance on notices to admit facts under CPR 32.18. In particular, it outlines what a notice to admit is, what it can be used for, how notice is given using Form N266, whether there are any time limits for serving the notice to admit on other parties, and how to respond to such a notice. It is not maintained and is provided for background information only. For further discussion of notices to admit facts, see Practice Note: Evidence—status, use and admissibility of witness statements and proving other factual matters— Notices to admit facts. What is a notice to admit facts? Put simply, a notice asks the other side to admit facts in the case. The aim of such a notice is to save time and, importantly, costs, because a party need not go to the expense of proving...

This Practice Note explores the use of Norwich Pharmacal orders in cross border disputes. For guidance on: the principles of Norwich Pharmacal orders, see Practice Note: Norwich Pharmacal orders ( NPOs) making an application for a Norwich Pharmacal order, see Practice Note: Norwich Pharmacal orders—making an application Norwich Pharmacal relief in support of foreign proceedings For many years, it was assumed that Norwich Pharmacal relief was obtainable in support of existing or prospective foreign proceedings without the Evidence ( Proceedings in Other Jurisdictions) Act 1975 ( E( POJ) A 1975) presenting any barrier. In Shlaimoun v Mining Technologies International Inc (2011), the judge did not regard the statutory scheme under E( POJ) A 1975 as excluding Norwich Pharmacal relief. Instead, he took the view that the Act and the Norwich Pharmacal jurisdiction offered parallel or complementary routes to obtain documents later deployed in foreign...

This Practice Note outlines the court’s discretionary power under section 51 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 ( SCA 1981) to make a non-party costs order ( NPCO), meaning a costs order granted for or against someone who is not a party to the case. It summarises the Court of Appeal’s approach in Deutsche Bank v Sebastian Holdings (2016) to the operation of CPR 46.2 on NPCOs. It also gives guidance on the requirement to alert a third party to any intended NPCO application and on the necessity of adding that third party to the proceedings. In addition, this Practice Note explains the matters the court will evaluate when determining an NPCO application, including whether causation is a prerequisite... Non-party costs orders—application Non-party costs orders—company directors and shareholders Non-party costs orders—funders Non-party costs...

Practice Note: negative declarations This Practice Note examines negative declarations. It first addresses what a negative declaration entails, then the High Court’s jurisdiction to grant one. It next outlines the court’s approach, sets out the principles guiding the decision whether to grant such relief, and offers guidance on making an application for a negative declaration. What is a negative declaration? A declaration is, in essence, a formal statement issued by the court at a party’s request. This may concern the parties’ rights in a dispute, whether certain facts exist, or a rule of law. For general guidance on declarations, see Practice Note: Declaratory relief. A negative declaration is the declaratory remedy expressed in negative terms. It is an uncommon form of relief because it effectively flips the parties’ conventional positions. As noted by Lord Woolf in the Court of Appeal in Messier‑ Dowty Ltd v Sabena SA...

This Practice Note explores matters that arise where several defendants (including co-defendants), domiciled in England and Wales, are or might be drawn into proceedings before the courts of this jurisdiction, from the claimant and defendants’ perspectives. For guidance on the points to assess concerning liability in tort claims that involve more than one actual or potential defendant, see Practice Note: Multiple tortfeasors—liability issues. For details on joint and several liability as between multiple contracting parties or between joint tortfeasors, together with direction on who ought to be sued in such circumstances, see Practice Note: Joint, several, and joint and several liability. Considerations for the claimant Where a claimant has sustained loss or damage, they may conclude that more than one party bears responsibility for that loss or damage and will have to determine against whom proceedings should be brought......

This Practice Note explains what constitutes an actionable misrepresentation, outlines the essential components for advancing a misrepresentation claim, highlights the function of the Misrepresentation Act 1967 ( MA 1967), and contrasts it with related causes of action, providing a comparison with other, similar claims. For connected guidance on the fundamental elements needed to found a misrepresentation claim, see Practice Notes: Misrepresentation—what statements will establish a claim? Misrepresentation—what is inducement? Misrepresentation—falsity (fraudulent, innocent or negligent misrepresentation) For an overview of practical issues in misrepresentation claims, set against negligent misstatement claims, see Practice Note: Claiming negligent misrepresentation or negligent misstatement—practical considerations. What is a claim for misrepresentation? A misrepresentation claim arises where one party to a contract (the representor) makes an untrue statement that leads the other party (the representee) to enter the contract. A claim can also be brought where the statement is made by an agent of a...

This Practice Note explores the limitation period(s) that apply to professional negligence claims. It examines the date of accrual in both contract and tort, and summarises the courts’ approach to issues that commonly arise in such claims. For related limitation guidance, see: Limitation—overview and Practice Notes: Limitation Act 1980—general application Limitation—contract claims Limitation—tort claims For general guidance on professional negligence claims, see also: Professional negligence claims—overview. Professionals owe duties to their clients in both contract and tort Where a professional undertakes responsibility to perform services for another who will rely on them, a duty in tort to exercise reasonable skill and care may arise, even though those services are provided under a contract between the same parties ( Henderson v Merrett, contrasted with Tai Hing v Liu Chong Hing)......

This Practice Note This Practice Note explains the rules that govern the assessment of fixed costs in land claims where proceedings were started before 1 October 2023. It outlines the method for calculating fixed costs, the further costs recoverable, and the expense of obtaining a judgment. Note that this Practice Note addresses the current fixed costs regime for land claims. From 1 October 2023, the earlier provisions and the relevant Tables for land claims were renumbered within CPR 45 or relocated to CPR PD 45. Nevertheless, the substantive provisions and the Tables themselves have not altered in terms of content at all whatsoever......

Practice Note This Practice Note examines how the English courts approach the meaning and effect of a jurisdiction agreement (also referred to as a choice of court agreement) under English common law. It sets out the elements required for a valid jurisdiction agreement and the courts’ general method for construing these provisions. Matters addressed include whether a dispute falls within the clause’s ambit and how the jurisdiction promise interacts with the wider contract, covering separability and the position where the contract is alleged to be void or voidable. The Note also considers the courts’ approach to jurisdiction agreements contained in related contracts, as well as how conflicting jurisdiction provisions are handled. In addition, it reviews the use of jurisdiction clauses in an underlying contract for the purposes of settlement disputes, and the effect of an English law clause where no...