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Hearings in the Supreme Court are now shown live on the Court’s website.

On Monday 20th and Tuesday 21st February 2023, the Court will hear the case of Lifestyle Equities C.V. and another v Ahmed and another, on appeal from [2021] EWCA Civ 675. The case concerns two issues; 1) What is the nature and extent of the liability of a director, or senior executive employee, for causing a company to commit a civil wrong, for which a claim can be brought without a finding of fault by the wrongdoer (e.g. a ‘strict liability tort’)? Here, the strict liability tort was trademark infringement. 2) If a director is legally responsible for the tort, can they be ordered to pay profits made as a result of the tort to the wronged part (e.g. a ‘account of profits’), even if those profits were not personally received? Does this extend to the director paying back the portion of their salary that was attributable to the tort? The hearing will begin at 11am in Courtroom 1.

On Wednesday 22nd February 2023 the Court will hand-down the judgment in News Corp UK & Ireland Ltd v Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs [2023] UKSC 7. The Court will determine whether the Court of Appeal erred in finding that News Corp’s supplies of digital issues of The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and The Sun on Sunday were not supplies of “newspapers” within the meaning of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 (the “VAT Act”) such that they could not be zero-rated for Value Added Tax (“VAT”) during the period 30 August 2010 – 4 December 2016. The hand-down will take place at 9:45am in Courtroom 1.

On Wednesday 22nd and Thursday 23rd February 2023, the Court will hear the case of Morgan and others v Ministry of Justice (Northern Ireland), on appeal from [2021] NICA 67. The Court will consider whether section 30 of the Counter Terrorism and Sentencing Act 2021 is incompatible with Articles 5, 6, and/or 7 of the ECHR, and if so, what (if any) remedy is appropriate. The hearing will begin at 10:30am in Courtroom 1.

The following Supreme Court judgments remain outstanding: (As of 24/02/23)

  • The Law Debenture Trust Corporation plc v Ukraine (Represented by the Minister of Finance of Ukraine acting upon the instructions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine) Nos. 2 and 3, heard 9-12 December 2019
  • East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust v Flowers and Ors, heard 22 June 2021
  • Canada Square Operations Ltd v Potter, heard 14th June 2022
  • R (on the application of VIP Communications Ltd (In Liquidation)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, heard 4th October 2022
  • Unger and another (in substitution for Hasan) v Ul-Hasan (deceased) and another, heard 20th October 2022
  • Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and another v Agnew and others (Northern Ireland), heard 14th-15th December 2022
  • Smith and another v Royal Bank of Scotland, heard 12th January 2023
  • Moulsdale t/a Moulsdale Properties v Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Scotland), heard 17th January 2023
  • Republic of Mozambique (acting through its Attorney General) v Privinvest Shipbuilding SAL (Holding) and others, heard 24-25th January 2023
  • Rakusen v Jepson and others, heard 26th January 2023
  • Trustees of the Barry Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses v BXB, heard 13th February 2023
  • R (PACCAR Inc and others) v Competition Appeal Tribunal and others, heard 16th February 2023.
  • Lifestyle Equities C.V. and another v Ahmed and another, heard 20th February 2023
  • Morgan and others v Ministry of Justice (Northern Ireland), heard 22nd February 2023