The Court of Appeal has affirmed a three-step test for penalty clauses: (1) is it a secondary obligation; (2) does the clause protect a legitimate interest; and (3) is it extortionate by reference to the legitimate interest?...more
The U.K. Supreme Court has recently clarified the English courts’ power under Section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (“Section 9”) to stay proceedings which are properly the subject of an arbitration agreement....more
Over a year has now passed since Russia invaded Ukraine, and the U.S., the EU and its member states, the U.K., and many others—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada—continue to exert pressure on Russia...more
In a decision of major importance for litigation in the UK, the UK Supreme Court has held that litigation funding agreements (“LFAs”) under which a litigation funder receives a percentage of any damages recovered by the...more
Authorised push payment (“APP”) fraud allegations involve a third-party bad actor fraudulently inducing a bank customer to give authorised instructions to their bank to make a payment to the third-party (or someone connected...more
In 2022, the DOJ and the SEC resolved a total of ten corporate enforcement actions under the FCPA, more than double the number in the previous year. While the average corporate penalties only slightly increased to $168...more
In our insight “Personal Liability of Directors for Climate Strategy: Landmark Case against Energy Company Board,” we analyzed the claim filed in the English High Court by non-profit organization ClientEarth against the...more
The Court of First Instance in Hong Kong has adopted the English law principles for determining the governing law of dispute resolution clauses, such as arbitration clauses, in a recent judgment (China Railway v Chung Kin...more
In a potentially precedent-setting case, 11 directors of global energy company Shell Plc (formerly Royal Dutch Shell Plc) are being sued in their personal capacity over the company’s energy transition strategy. The claim,...more
The High Court has once again grappled with novel issues raised by disputes concerning cryptoassets, this time in the context of an interim application for information orders....more
12/15/2022
/ Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Transactions ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Popular ,
UK ,
UK Cryptoassets Taskforce
In what some may regard as a surprising outcome, the English Court of Appeal has held that a force majeure clause was not triggered because the affected party could have accepted performance that was not in accordance with...more
The English law concerning contractual duties of good faith (express and implied) has received considerable judicial attention in recent years. It will therefore be of interest to those who use English law contracts,...more
11/7/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
Breach of Contract ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Officers ,
Good Faith ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
UK
The Singapore Court of Appeal’s recent decision in CEF and CEG v CEH [2022] SGCA 54 provides interesting guidance for arbitrators and parties alike on the dividing line between mere procedural complaints, which will not be...more
UK Supreme Court gives important judgment on directors’ “creditor duty” The UK Supreme Court in BTI 2014 LLC v Sequana SA and ors [2022] UKSC 25 has given an important judgment clarifying the nature of the so-called “creditor...more
10/7/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Creditors ,
Debt Financing ,
Debt Restructuring ,
Dischargeable Debts ,
Insolvency ,
Shareholders ,
UK ,
UK Insolvency Act ,
UK Supreme Court
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada—have imposed sweeping...more
8/11/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Belarus ,
Blocking Sanctions ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Relations ,
Trade Suspensions ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
UK ,
Ukraine
Will 2022 be seen as the year in which the gates finally opened for damages claims in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT)?...more
In a significant development for environmental litigation in the U.K., the English Court of Appeal has allowed a £5 billion damages claim brought by around 200,000 Brazilian individuals and other persons to proceed against...more
The so-called ‘Quincecare duty’ has received heightened attention in the English courts in recent years. The duty requires a bank not to execute a customer’s payment instructions where, and for so long as, the bank has...more
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others — including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada — have imposed...more
4/28/2022
/ Australia ,
Canada ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Japan ,
Military Conflict ,
New Zealand ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
Taiwan ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
Vladimir Putin
Since late February 2022, the United States (U.S.), the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and many others—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Canada—have imposed sweeping...more
3/23/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Canada ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
UK ,
Ukraine
Over the past week, the United States, the European Union and its member states, the United Kingdom, and several other countries have imposed rounds of sweeping new sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine....more
3/1/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Canada ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
UK ,
Ukraine
The recent decision of the English Court of Appeal in NTN Corporation v. Stellantis concerned an appeal against a successful application to strike out an off-setting defence to a competition damages claim. It is an important...more
Welcome to the second edition of the UK Litigation Review—an annual publication focused on outcomes, trends and developments in civil litigation over the past year of relevance to both practitioners and clients.
This...more
Prospective Class Action Against Google is Stopped -
Summary -
The UK Supreme Court has handed down its much anticipated judgment in Lloyd v Google LLC. Google has successfully appealed against the Court of Appeal’s...more
The U.K. Supreme Court recently handed down its long-awaited judgment in Kabab-Ji SAL (Lebanon) v Kout Food Group (Kuwait). The judgment confirmed and applied the principles concerning the governing law of arbitration...more