UK Supreme Court Blog

EDITORS: Dan Tench, Emma Cross, Zainab Hodgson, Francesca Knight, James Warshaw and Natalie Haefner (CMS)
Hugh Tomlinson KC, Matthew Ryder KC, Nandini Bulchandani and Daniel Rudd (Matrix)

Running from Monday 21 May until Thursday 24 May 2012 is the appeal of Rubin & anor v Eurofinance SA & ors, to be heard in Courtroom 1 of the Supreme Court by Lords Walker, Mance, Clarke, Sumption and Collins. The appellant finance company created a trust which operated under English law for the benefit of consumers who participated in a programme in the US and Canada. After the trust instigated bankruptcy proceedings in the US the respondents were appointed as receivers of the trust in the UK, and also brought proceedings against the appellants in the US seeking to recover funds. The appellants did not submit to the jurisdiction of the US court and judgment was entered against them. The respondents then made their application to the UK High Court for an order recognising the US insolvency proceedings as a “foreign main proceeding”. It is for the Supreme Court to determine whether the US adversary proceedings should be recognised as “foreign main proceedings” and be enforced as a judgment of the English court. The case details are available here.

In Courtroom 2 on Wednesday 23 May 2012 is the appeal of Gow v Grant, on appeal from the Court of Session (Scotland). The appellant and respondent are a former couple that had cohabited in the respondent’s house. Upon their separation the appellant sought payment under The Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 s28(3)(b), which allows a former cohabitant that has suffered ‘economic disadvantage in the interests of’ the other to claim payment of a capital sum. The Inner House stated that the objective of s28 is limited in scope: it was intended to enable the court to correct any clear and quantifiable economic imbalance that might have resulted from cohabitation and that it could not be said that the sale of the appellant’s house took place “in the interests of” the respondent – the proceeds of sale had been used for the appellant’s purposes and to meet joint living expenses. The appellant contended that the Inner House erred by reading into the relevant section a test of intention, as opposed to a factual test of suffering an economic disadvantage, and so it is for the Supreme Court to determine the correct application of s28. Case details are unavailable for this appeal.

On Wednesday 23 May 2012 the Supreme Court will hand down judgment in the following: Test Claimants in the Franked Investment Income Group Litigation v Commissioners of Inland Revenue and anor, Lukaszewski v The District Court in Torun, Pomiechowski v District Court of Legunica 59-220, R (Halligen) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, Rozanski v Regional Court 3 Penal Department, and NJDB v JEG and anor.

Starting on Monday 21 May 2012 in the Privy Council is the appeal of ANS & anor v ML, listed for two days in front of a panel of five (L Hope, L Hale, L Wilson, L Reed, L Carnwath). There are no case details available.

On Wednesday 23 May the Privy Council will hear Donald Phipps v The Director of Public Prosecutions and the Attorney General of Jamaica, an appeal on procedural issues stemming from the appellant’s murder conviction after human remains were found being burnt in an area of Kingston. Case details are available here.

There are no judgments scheduled to be handed down by the Judicial Committee this week.

The following Supreme Court judgments remain outstanding:

Stanford International Bank Ltd (acting by its joint liquidators) v Director of the Serious Fraud Office, heard 23 – 25 January 2012.

Assange v The Swedish Judicial Authority, heard 1 – 2 February 2012.

R (KM) (by his mother and litigation friend JM) v Cambridgeshire County Council, heard 7 – 9 February 2012.

R (HH) v Deputy Prosecutor of the Italian Republic, R (PH) v Deputy Prosecutor of the Italian Republic, Genoa, BH (AP) and another v The Lord Advocate and another (Scotland), KAS or H (AP) v The Lord Advocate and another (Scotland) and Genoa  Filipek-Kwasny v Polish Judicial Authority, heard 5 – 8 March 2012.

Perry & Ors v Serious Organised Crime Agency and Perry & Ors (No. 2) v Serious Organised Crime Agency, heard 20 – 23 March 2012.

R v Waya, heard 27 – 30 March 2012.

Fairclough Homes Ltd v Summers, heard 18 – 19 April 2012.

R (Alvi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, heard 24 – 27 April 2012.

Secretary of State for the Home Department v Munir and anor, heard 24 – 27 April 2012.

Oracle America Inc (formerly Sun Microsystems Inc) v M-Tech Data Ltd, heard 30 April – 1 May 2012.

Phillips v Mulcaire, heard 8 May – 10 May 2012.

Al-Sirri v Secretary of State for the Home Department, heard 14 – 15 May 2012.

DD (Afghanistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, heard 16 – 17 May 2012.