R (on the application of L1T FM Holdings UK Limited and another) (Appellants) v Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in the Cabinet Office (formerly the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) (Respondent)

Case summary

Case ID

UKSC/2026/0012

Parties

Appellant(s)

L1T FM Holdings UK Limited & LetterOne Core Investments S.À.R.L

Respondent(s)

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in the Cabinet Office (formerly the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)

Issue

Whether the state is entitled, in light of Article 1 of the First Protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights (“A1P1”), to deprive a person of their possessions in the public interest without paying, or ensuring they recover, market value for those possessions, in circumstances where the policy objective of the deprivation measure is not undermined or diminished by ensuring market value is recovered.

Facts

The Appellants are part of an investment group. In January 2021, the First Appellant (L1TFM Holdings UK Ltd) acquired 100% of the share capital in the Interested Party (Upp Corporation Ltd). Before doing so, representatives of the Appellants met with national security officials at what was then the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, seeking reassurance that the Government would not intervene under the National Security and Investment Act 2021 (“NSIA”). Key operative provisions of NSIA were commenced by regulations in January 2022, a year after the acquisition of Upp. Section 2 of NSIA gave NSIA retrospective effect in relation to transactions occurring after 12 November 2020. On 5 May 2022, the First Appellant’s acquisition of Upp was retrospectively called in by the Secretary of State. In December 2022, the Secretary of State made the Final Order requiring the First Appellant to divest itself of its shareholding in Upp. This Order made no provision for compensation should the Appellants be unable to obtain market value for their shareholding. On 5 September 2022, Upp was sold to Virgin Media O2 at a sum substantially below the sums invested by the First Appellant and for a sale price below the true economic value of Upp. The Appellants challenged the Final Order by judicial review and, by amendment following the sale of Upp, sought damages under the Human Rights Act 1998 for the difference between the sale price that had been achieved and the market value of Upp. In November 2024, Mrs Justice Farbey in the Administrative Court dismissed the claim. In November 2025, the Court of Appeal dismissed the claim. The Appellants now appeal to the Supreme Court.

Date of issue

27 January 2026

Case origin

PTA

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