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Civil way: 13 June 2008

12 June 2008
Issue: 7325 / Categories: Features , Civil way , Procedure & practice
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Sole agents: To charge for eternity? No bank account reconciliations secret funds

UNDESIRABLE JUDGMENT, GOOD FOR DEMOLITION
Things were going badly enough for estate agents without Foxtons Ltd v Bicknell and another [2008] EWCA Civ 419, [2008] All ER (D) 328 (Apr). That case will make their search for an effective linkage between their actions and an ultimate sale that much harder and, at the same time, will reduce the risk to the seller of being saddled with two sets of agents’ commission for the price of one property.

“A purchaser introduced by us…”
Sole agency terms (adopting the wording of the Estate Agents: Provision of Information Regulations 1991 (SI 1991/859), (the regulations) entitled Foxtons to commission where contracts were exchanged with “a purchaser introduced by us…” Foxtons said that meant a person who at some time in the future became a purchaser.

But hang on, say a client placed their property with sole agents, withdrew it and subsequently put it back on the market with other agents two years later and those agents

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Kingsley Napley—Claire Green

Kingsley Napley—Claire Green

Firm announces appointment of chief legal officer

Weightmans—Emma Eccles & Mark Woodall

Weightmans—Emma Eccles & Mark Woodall

Firm bolsters Manchester insurance practice with double partner appointment

Gilson Gray—Linda Pope

Gilson Gray—Linda Pope

Partner joins family law team inLondon

NEWS
The landmark Supreme Court’s decision in Johnson v FirstRand Bank Ltd—along with Rukhadze v Recovery Partners—redefine fiduciary duties in commercial fraud. Writing in NLJ this week, Mary Young of Kingsley Napley analyses the implications of the rulings
Barristers Ben Keith of 5 St Andrew’s Hill and Rhys Davies of Temple Garden Chambers use the arrest of Simon Leviev—the so-called Tinder Swindler—to explore the realities of Interpol red notices, in this week's NLJ
Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys [2025] has upended assumptions about who may conduct litigation, warn Kevin Latham and Fraser Barnstaple of Kings Chambers in this week's NLJ. But is it as catastrophic as first feared?
Lord Sales has been appointed to become the Deputy President of the Supreme Court after Lord Hodge retires at the end of the year
Limited liability partnerships (LLPs) are reportedly in the firing line in Chancellor Rachel Reeves upcoming Autumn budget
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