header-logo header-logo

11 November 2020
Issue: 7910 / Categories: Case law , In Court , Law digest
printer mail-detail

Law digests: 13 November 2020

Damages

Leach v North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust [2020] EWHC 2914 (QB), [2020] All ER (D) 08 (Nov)

The claimant suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage, from which she recovered. She brought a claim for damages after she developed a significant Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The defendant admitted breach of duty to the extent that it was accepted that there had been a 31-minute negligent period of delay in the ambulance arriving at the claimant’s house for the purposes of taking her to hospital. However, it was disputed whether the negligent period of delay had caused, or contributed to, the onset of the PTSD. The Queen’s Bench Division held that the negligent period of delay had made a material contribution to the claimant’s PTSD and that an apportionment exercise was not permissible in those circumstances. Accordingly, judgment was granted in favour of the claimant in the sum of £40,000.


Employment

Nair v Lagardere Sports and Entertainment UK Ltd [2020] EWHC 2608 (QB), [2020] All ER (D) 09 (Nov)

The case concerned

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Cripps—Radius Law

Cripps—Radius Law

Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire

Switalskis—Grimsby

Switalskis—Grimsby

Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

Property team boosted by two solicitor appointments

NEWS
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
back-to-top-scroll