Skip to main content

Current cases

Current cases

Cases only appear here a few weeks before the appeal is due to be heard by the Court. Lists of cases seeking permission to appeal to the Court appear on the monthly lists published on our Permission to appeal page, once such an application is determined.

The abbreviations 'FC' and 'AP' stand for 'Funded Client' and 'Assisted Person' respectively. They denote a party in receipt of legal aid - the former in respect of cases from England and Wales and from Northern Ireland and the latter in respect of cases from Scotland.

The Current cases table below can be sorted either in ascending or descending order by clicking on the following title headings:

  • Case ID
  • Case name

Cases can also be found by using the search engine below:

Current cases
Case ID Case name Case summary - Issue
UKSC 2022/0080 Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Respondent) v Mercer (Appellant) Can a worker who is subject to detriment for the purpose of preventing or deterring her participation in a union-organised industrial action can potentially bring a claim under s. 146(2)(b) of the Trade Union & Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 ("TULRCA")?
In particular: (i) does Article 11 ECHR protect workers in such circumstances, and can the absence of sufficient protection under s. 146 TULRCA as conventionally interpreted be justified under Article 11(2)?; and (ii) is it possible to interpret s. 146 TULRCA so as to be compatible with Article 11 pursuant to the duty in s. 3 HRA 1998, or should the court make a declaration of incompatibility pursuant to s. 4 HRA 1998?
UKSC 2022/0113 R (on the application of AM (Belarus)) (Respondent) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Appellant)
UKSC 2021/0184 Nasir (Appellant) v Zavarco Plc (Respondent) Was the Court of Appeal wrong: (i) when it determined that the doctrine of merger did not extinguish Zavarco's cause of action in the 2016 Claim and thereby prevent pursuit of the identical cause of action in the 2018 Claim; (ii) to find that the doctrine of merger does not depend on the cause of action asserted, but instead upon the relief obtained; (iii) to find that the doctrine of merger does not apply to any judgment granting a declaration.
UKSC 2022/0127 Merticariu (Appellant) v Judecatoria Arad, Romania (Respondent) (1) Would a requested person be entitled to a retrial or (on appeal) to a review amounting to a retrial where the law of the requesting state confers a right to retrial which depends on a finding by a judicial authority, in the requesting state, as to whether the requested person was deliberately absent from his trial?
(2) Would a requested person be entitled to a retrial or (on appeal) to a review amounting to a retrial where it is not possible for a judge to say that a finding of deliberate absence by a judicial authority, in the requesting state, is "theoretical" or "so remote that it can be discounted"?
UKSC 2022/0162 Argentum Exploration Ltd (Respondent) v Republic of South Africa (Appellant) Whether the silver and the ship carrying it fell within the following provision of the State Immunity Act 1978 s.10(4)(a): "both the cargo and the ship carrying it were, at the time when the cause of action arose, in use or intended for use for commercial purposes" such that the Republic of South Africa is not immune to the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom in respect of Argentum's salvage claim.
UKSC 2022/0103 Bertino (Appellant) v Public Prosecutor's Office, Italy (Respondent) (1) For a requested person to have deliberately absented himself from trial for the purposes of section 20(3) Extradition Act 2002, must the requesting authority prove that he has actual knowledge that he could be convicted and sentenced in absentia?
(2) Where the requesting authority asserts that it can be demonstrated by inference that a requested person could reasonably foresee that he could be convicted and sentenced in absentia, must the inference be the only reasonable inference?
UKSC 2022/0100 Armstead (Appellant) v Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Company Ltd (Respondent) Can the terms of a contract signed between the hirer of a motor car and the hire car company be relied upon to calculate the damages claimed by the hirer against the insurance company of a negligent driver who collided with the hire car?
UKSC 2022/0037 Kireeva (Appellant) v Bedzhamov (Respondent) Whether the Court has the jurisdiction/power to recognise a foreign bankruptcy at common law. This depends on the nature and effect of the choice of law rule of private international law known as the "immovables rule" that, as a matter of English law, a foreign Court has no jurisdiction to make orders in respect of land situated in England and that rights relating to such land are governed exclusively by English law ("Immovables Rule").
UKSC 2022/0144
UKSC 2022/0145		 In the matter of an application by RM (a person under disability) by SM, his father and next friend (AP) (Respondent) for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland)
In the matter of an application by RM (a person under disability) by SM, his father and next friend (AP) (Respondent) for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland) No 2 		Whether the Review Tribunal (the Tribunal) was entitled to conclude that RM's mental disorder continues to be of a nature or degree warranting his continued detention in hospital for medical treatment (i.e. whether the test for discharge from a Restriction Order under Article 78 of the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (the Order) is met).
UKSC 2022/0108 Lifestyle Equities CV and another (Respondents) v Amazon UK Services Ltd and others (Appellants) When does the sale or advertising of trade-marked goods on a foreign website infringe the relevant trade marks in the UK or EU?
UKSC 2022/0019 Jersey Choice Ltd (Appellant) v His Majesty's Treasury (Respondent) Was the Court of Appeal wrong to uphold the order striking out Jersey Choice Limited's claim on the basis the pleadings disclosed no reasonable grounds?
UKSC 2022/0135 Mueen-Uddin (Appellant) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Respondent) This case is about whether the Court of Appeal was correct to strike out a defamation claim as an abuse of process. The UKSC is asked to decide:
  1. Whether a foreign criminal conviction which a claimant did not have a full opportunity to contest was a relevant factor in showing that English proceedings which require determination of the same issues as those before the foreign criminal court are an abuse of process?
  2. Are prior press publications of defamatory allegations admissible evidence of bad reputation in this context if such publications have taken place some months prior to the publication complained of and are uncontradicted by a successful claim for libel?
  3. Can potential difficulties which the Respondent may have in proving the truth of the allegations which it had published about the conduct of the Appellant some 50 years ago be a relevant factor supporting a finding of abuse?
  4. Did the Court of Appeal err in finding that a combination of partial aspects of the Hunter and Jameel abuse jurisdictions, none of which necessarily amount to abuse on its own, can properly ground a finding of abuse of process?
UKSC 2021/0130 Potanina (Respondent) v Potanin (Appellant) Should the court have granted the wife permission to apply for financial relief pursuant to Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984?
UKSC 2022/0148
UKSC 2022/0149		 YXA (a protected party by his litigation friend the Official Solicitor) (Respondent) v Wolverhampton City Council (Appellant)
HXA (Respondent) v Surrey County Council (Appellant) 		The central issue in this case is whether the local authority had assumed responsibility to protect a child from harm through its conduct, and therefore owed them a duty of care at common-law?
UKSC 2022/0147 George (Respondent) v Cannell and another (Appellants) What does a claimant need to demonstrate to rely on s3(1) of the Defamation Act 1952 in a claim for malicious falsehood?
UKSC 2022/0078 In the matter of an application by Stephen Hilland for Judicial Review (Appellant) (Northern Ireland) Is applying a lower threshold test for the recall of prisoners on licence who are subject to a "determinate custodial sentence", such as the Appellant, than is applied for the recall of prisoners subject to other allegedly comparable types of sentence discriminatory and a breach of the Appellant's rights under Article 5 (right to liberty and security) read with Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)?
UKSC 2022/0009 Herculito Maritime Ltd and others (Respondents) v Gunvor International BV and others (Appellants) What is the proper interpretation of a charter agreement and bills of landing for a vessel, in respect of losses arising out the seizure of the vessel by pirates.
UKSC 2022/0048 Byers and others (Appellants) v Saudi National Bank (Respondent) Whether a claim in knowing receipt requires a claimant to prove a continuing proprietary interest in the property transferred to the defendant in breach of trust, in addition to knowledge on the part of the defendant so as to render his receipt unconscionable.
UKSC 2021/0181 SkyKick UK Ltd and another (Appellants) v Sky Ltd and others (Respondents) (1) What is the test for determining "bad faith" in s.3(6) of the Trade Marks Act 1994?
(2) If such bad faith is found, what is the correct approach to determining the specification that the proprietor of the trademark should be permitted to retain?
UKSC 2021/0220 Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (Respondent) v Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (Appellant) Is the relationship between a company responsible for providing football referees to the Football League and part-time referees an employment relationship so as to trigger an obligation on the company to deduct Income Tax and National Insurance from the payments it makes to the referees?
UKSC 2022/0064 R (on the application of Finch on behalf of the Weald Action Group) (Appellant) v Surrey County Council and others (Respondents) Under Directive 2011/92 EU of the European Parliament and of the Council and the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017, was it unlawful for the Council not to require the environmental impact assessment for a project of crude oil extraction for commercial purposes to include an assessment of the impacts of downstream greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the eventual use of the refined products of the extracted oil?
UKSC 2022/0083 Zubaydah (Respondent) v Foreign and Commonwealth Office and others (Appellants) Is the law applicable to the Respondent's claim the law of England and Wales or the law of the six countries in which he alleges he was unlawfully detained and tortured by the United States' authorities?
UKSC 2022/0009 Herculito Maritime Ltd and others (Respondents) v Gunvor International BV and others (Appellants) What is the proper interpretation of a charter agreement and bills of landing for a vessel, in respect of losses arising out the seizure of the vessel by pirates.
UKSC 2022/0044 Polmear and another (Appellants) v Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust (Respondent) Can an individual make a claim for psychiatric injury caused by witnessing the death or other horrifying event of a close relative as a result of earlier clinical negligence?
UKSC 2022/0038 Paul and another (Appellants) v Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust (Respondent) Can an individual make a claim for psychiatric injury caused by witnessing the death or other horrifying event of a close relative as a result of earlier clinical negligence?
UKSC 2021/0125 R (on the application of Wang and another) (Respondents) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Appellant) This appeal raises issues concerning: (1) the meaning of "control" of investment money in the relevant provisions of the Immigration Rules and the facts and circumstances relevant to the assessment of "control"; and (2) the approach to the interpretation of the Immigration Rules.
UKSC 2021/0147 Lifestyle Equities C.V. and another (Respondents) v Ahmed and another (Appellants) What is the nature and extent of the liability of a director, or senior executive employee, for causing a company to commit a tort of strict liability, here trade mark infringement?
UKSC 2021/0150 Lifestyle Equities C.V. and another (Appellants) v Ahmed and another (Respondents) What is the nature and extent of the liability of a director, or senior executive employee, for causing a company to commit a tort of strict liability, here trade mark infringement?
UKSC 2021/0201 Thaler (Appellant) v Comptroller-General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (Respondent) The facts and issues in this case will be published, in due course.
UKSC 2022/0121 The Manchester Ship Canal Company Ltd (Appellant) v United Utilities Water Ltd (Respondent) No 2 Can The Manchester Ship Canal Company Limited bring a private law claim in nuisance and/or trespass against United Utilities Water Limited ("UU") in respect of unauthorised discharges of untreated foul water by UU into the canal?
UKSC 2021/0172 Shanghai Shipyard Co. Ltd (Respondent) v Reignwood International Investment (Group) Company Ltd (Appellant) This case concerns the proper characterisation of a shipbuilding performance guarantee (the "Guarantee"). There are two issues of law: