Commercial Litigation UK

  • October 23, 2024

    Telefónica Scores 2 More Wins In 'E-Plus' TM Saga

    Telefónica's German arm has secured further victories in its ongoing "E-Plus" trademark feud with a U.S. tech company, persuading a European Union court Wednesday to chuck two last-ditch attempts to nix a pair of word marks.

  • October 23, 2024

    Driver On Gett App Was Self-Employed, Appeals Court Rules

    An appellate judge has refused to grant a black-cab driver the worker status that Uber drivers have won, ruling that his circumstances were different as he ferried hundreds of passengers hailing rides through the Gett app.

  • October 23, 2024

    Animal Charity Says 'Frankenchicken' Farming Is Unlawful

    An animal welfare charity on Wednesday told an appeals court that the British government is breaking the law by allowing the farming of fast-growing "Frankenchickens" that it says are prone to health problems because of selective breeding.

  • October 23, 2024

    Nike Loses Bid To Extend 'Support-Fit' TM At EU Court

    Nike failed to convince a European court on Wednesday to allow the sportswear giant to register its Support-Fit trademark for clothing and footwear, after the court agreed with an earlier ruling that the mark directly described the items' characteristics.

  • October 23, 2024

    Manchester Arena Bombing Survivors Win Harassment Case

    A self-professed journalist harassed survivors of the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing and caused them "enormous distress" by publishing theories that the attack was staged, a London court ruled Wednesday.

  • October 23, 2024

    BHP Pans 'Extreme' Brazilian Law Interpretation In £36B Trial

    BHP argued at a £36 billion ($46.6 billion) London trial Wednesday that it was not legally liable to more than 600,000 Brazilians for the country's worst environmental disaster, arguing it could not be held liable vicariously for the alleged wrongdoing of its joint venture.

  • October 23, 2024

    SAP Faces Trademark Infringement Claim Over 'Joule' AI Tool

    A financial trading platform provider has sued SAP for trademark infringement in a London court, alleging that the software giant's "Joule" artificial intelligence tool infringes its trademarks over the same word.

  • October 23, 2024

    UK Top Court Clarifies Solicitor Payment Rules In Fee Dispute

    The U.K.'s highest court ruled Wednesday that a crash victim should be able to challenge solicitors fees because he had not been given an opportunity to question the costs, meaning the time limit for reassessment did not apply.

  • October 22, 2024

    Spain Can't Dodge Enforcement Of €101M Renewables Award

    Spain can't use state immunity to escape enforcement of a €101 million ($109 million) arbitral award issued in a fight over slashed economic incentives for renewable energy, after a London appeals court ruled Tuesday that an exception was triggered when Madrid signed an underlying treaty.

  • October 22, 2024

    Real Estate Co. Hits Back At Taylor Wessing's Fees Claim

    A real estate company owned by Southend United Football Club's former chair has fought Taylor Wessing LLP's claim to recoup unpaid fees and expenses, saying the company is not liable to pay the football club's legal bills.

  • October 22, 2024

    Law Firm Wins Atty Fees In Texas Over Lies To Ghana Court

    An African energy company has to pay nearly $166,000 in attorney fees to an international arbitration specialty law firm after the company was sanctioned for lying to a Ghanaian court about proceedings in Texas, a Texas federal judge has ruled.

  • October 22, 2024

    Patients Seek To Revive Class Action Over Google Data Use

    Counsel for a group of patients urged an appeals court Tuesday to allow a claim accusing Google of misusing their health records for a kidney injury alert app to go ahead as a class action, arguing they had a reasonable expectation of privacy.

  • October 22, 2024

    Lenovo Accuses Ericsson Of 'Bullying' In 5G Patent Litigation

    Lenovo and Motorola on Tuesday accused Ericsson of breaching its obligations by trying to coerce Lenovo into licensing its 5G patent portfolio at premium terms before courts determined a fair rate for a global cross-license, in the latest chapter of the patent litigation saga between the companies.

  • October 22, 2024

    Financial Ombudsman Beats Ex-Staffer's Whistleblowing Case

    The Financial Ombudsman Service has defeated a former employee's claim that it did not offer him a new role due to his alleged whistleblowing, convincing a tribunal in a ruling released Tuesday that his emails were not protected disclosures.

  • October 22, 2024

    Commerzbank Urges Contempt Case Over False Assault Claim

    Commerzbank AG asked a London court in a hearing Tuesday to allow it to bring contempt of court proceedings against a former employee who made false sexual assault allegations against a colleague as part of his failed harassment case against the bank.

  • October 22, 2024

    Firm Says Client Knew Risks In Historical Sex Abuse Case

    Hugh James has said that a former client knowingly accepted the risk of being undercompensated when he followed the law firm's advice to accept an offer to settle a claim over alleged historical abuse at a Catholic school where he was a pupil.

  • October 22, 2024

    Dryrobe Sues Rival Over Copycat Athletic Gear

    Dryrobe has accused a rival robe maker of imitating its Olympian-backed brand to sell more products under the name "D-Robe."

  • October 22, 2024

    Reforms Set To Foist 15% More Cases On Struggling Tribunals

    Even though the U.K. government expects its proposed employment rights law to lead to a 15% rise in cases, it hasn't committed any additional funding for employment tribunals to handle such an increase, which would present an existential threat to the beleaguered system.

  • October 22, 2024

    Allianz Settles £16M COVID Loss Row With Restaurant Group

    A restaurant group and insurance giant Allianz have settled a £16.4 million ($21.3 million) dispute brought by the hospitality business over payouts for COVID-19-linked lockdown restrictions.

  • October 22, 2024

    Food Supplier Denies It Owes Ex-Director Unpaid Commission

    A food product business has said it never agreed to pay its former director £150,000 ($195,000) in commission he claims is outstanding, insisting instead that he owes over £1.1 million that he pocketed after artificially inflating suppliers' costs.

  • October 22, 2024

    Closed Law Firm Must Pay Ex-Staffer For Breach Of Contract

    A tribunal has ordered a shuttered law firm to pay a former employee £2,400 ($3,100) after it breached their contract by dismissing them without notice.

  • October 21, 2024

    Russia Says Stay Needed In $208M Ukraine Utility Award Fight

    The Russian Federation has once again asked a D.C. federal judge to pause litigation filed by a Ukrainian utility to enforce a nearly $208 million arbitral award, saying it is ignoring the potential impact of Dutch annulment proceedings on the award's confirmation.

  • October 21, 2024

    UK Director's Use Of Tax Planning Data Subject For Retrial

    Whether a director of a U.K. company is liable for a breach of confidence over the misuse of information in marketing a complex tax structure is an issue to be retried, a London court ruled.

  • October 21, 2024

    Former Unite Official Loses Tribunal Claim Amid Fraud Probe

    A tribunal has concluded that a former legal chief at Unite the Union did not face a "baseless" disciplinary investigation in connection with a police raid over a £112 million ($145 million) construction project that has since been referred to the Serious Fraud Office.

  • October 21, 2024

    Howard Kennedy LLP Ex-Partner Can't Claim £176K

    An employment tribunal has dismissed a former partner's claims that Howard Kennedy LLP owed him £176,725 ($230,238) in unpaid wages because he wasn't entitled to employment law protections.

Expert Analysis

  • Hugh Grant Case Raises Questions About Part 36 Offers

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    Actor Hugh Grant's recent decision to settle his privacy suit by accepting a so-called Part 36 offer from News Group — to avoid paying a larger sum in legal costs by proceeding to trial — illustrates how this legal mechanism can be used by parties to force settlements, raising questions about its tactical use and fairness, says Colin Campbell at Kain Knight.

  • Accounting For Climate Change In Flexible Working Requests

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    Although the U.K. government's recent updates to the country's flexible working laws failed to include climate change as a factor for evaluating remote work requests, employers are not prohibited from considering the environmental benefits — or drawbacks — of an employee's request to work remotely, say Jonathan Carr and Gemma Taylor at Lewis Silkin.

  • Opinion

    New Property Category Not Needed To Regulate Digital Assets

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    The U.K. Law Commission's exploration of whether to create a third category of property for digital assets is derived from a misreading of historical case law, and would not be helpful in resolving any questions surrounding digital assets, says Duncan Sheehan at the University of Leeds.

  • Employer Lessons From Red Bull's Misconduct Investigation

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    Red Bull’s recent handling of a high-profile investigation into team principal Christian Horner’s alleged misconduct toward a colleague serves as a reminder of the importance of thorough internal grievance and disciplinary processes, and offers lessons for employers hoping to minimize media attention, say Charlotte Smith and Adam Melling at Walker Morris.

  • Breaking Down The EPO's Revised Practice Guidelines

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    The European Patent Office's updated guidelines for examination recently took effect and include significant changes related to the priority right presumption, the concept of plausibility and artificial intelligence, providing invaluable insight on obtaining patents from the office, say lawyers at Finnegan.

  • Pharma Remains A Key Focus Of EU Antitrust Enforcement

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    The recently published European Commission report on pharmaceutical sector competition law illustrates that effective enforcement of EU rules remains a matter of high priority for EU and national authorities, say lawyers at Dechert.

  • Employment Tribunal Fee Proposal Raises Potential Issues

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    The proposal to reintroduce employment tribunal fees in a recent U.K. government consultation poses serious concerns over the right of access to justice, and will only act as a deterrent for claimants and appellants, says Yulia Fedorenko at CM Murray.

  • ECHR Climate Rulings Hint At Direction Of Future Cases

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    Three recent climate rulings from the European Court of Human Rights show the court's tendency toward a more formalistic, hands-off approach to procedural issues but a more hands-on approach to the application of the European Convention on Human Rights, setting the first guiding principles for key issues in EU climate cases, say Stefanie Spancken-Monz and Leane Meyer at Freshfields.

  • What UK Energy Charter Treaty Exit Would Mean For Investors

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    While the U.K.'s recent announcement that it intends to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty is a bold political signal, investor protections will remain in place for a significant period of time, ensuring that an element of certainty and business continuity will remain, say Karel Daele and Jessica Thomas at Taylor Wessing.

  • What To Know About The Russia-Stranded Plane Ruling

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    The High Court's recent decision in Zephyrus Capital Aviation v. Fidelis Underwriting, rejecting reinsurers' U.K. jurisdiction challenges in claims over stranded planes in Russia, has broad implications for cross-border litigation involving exclusive jurisdiction clauses, says Samantha Zaozirny at Browne Jacobson.

  • Uber Payout Offers Employer Lessons On Mitigating Bias

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    Uber Eats' recent payout to a driver over allegations that the company's facial recognition software was discriminatory sheds light on bias in AI, and offers guidance for employers on how to avoid harming employees through the use of such technology, says Rachel Rigg at Fieldfisher.

  • Apple Ruling Offers Morsel Of Certainty On Litigation Funding

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    An English court's recent decision in Gutmann v. Apple, finding that a litigation funder could be paid via a damages award, offers a piece of guidance on the permissibility of such agreement terms amid the ongoing uncertainty around funded group litigation in the U.K., says Mohsin Patel at Factor Risk Management.

  • Clarifying Legal Elements To Support A Genocide Claim At ICJ

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    Reporting on South Africa’s dispute against Israel in the International Court of Justice largely fails to clearly articulate what a case for genocide alleged in the context of war requires — a technical analysis that will evaluate several key factors, from the scale of the devastation to statements by officials, say Solomon Shinerock and Alex Bedrosyan at Lewis Baach.

  • Opinion

    Employment Tribunal Fees Risk Reducing Access To Justice

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    Before the proposed fee regime for employment tribunal claims can take effect, the government needs much more evidence that low-income individuals — arguably the tribunal system's most important users — will not be negatively affected by the fees, says Max Winthrop, employment law committee chair at the Law Society.

  • Tribunal Cases Illustrate Balancing Act Of Anti-Bias Protection

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    Recent employment tribunal discrimination cases show employers the complexities of determining the scope of protected characteristics under the Equality Act, and responding proportionately, particularly when conflicts involve controversial beliefs that can trigger competing employee discrimination claims, say Michael Powner and Sophie Rothwell at Charles Russell.

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