The Practical Lawyer

What happens if a document that has legal professional privilege is accidentally disclosed to the other side? Given that large-scale disclosure can involve millions of documents, it is more or less inevitable that there will be a few privileged documents that are accidentally disclosed. What happens?

The default position under the CPR remains that correspondence should be via the post. If you want to use e-mail or fax then there are clear pitfalls to avoid (and you need to carefully check the PD to Part 5):  

If there is an adjudication in a construction contract dispute, can the referring party recover its adjudication costs?  

The new pre-action protocol for debt claims against individuals came into force on 1 October 2017. It applies to all debt claims brought by businesses (including sole traders and public bodies) against individuals (including sole traders). But, the protocol does not apply to: debt claims against debtors who are not individuals; debt claims covered by other pre-action protocols (eg mortgage arrears); or claims for the recovery of taxes and duties. Key stages of the debt protocol are: 

We do not normally recommend DIY guides but we are very impressed with ‘How to be a Litigant in Person in the New Legal World’ by Michael Langford. It really is an excellent, and practical, guide to litigation (of all sorts).  

Can a judge’s handwritten notes be disclosable under a subject access request?

The Information Commissioners Office has updated its code of practice on subject access requests. This is largely to reflect the recent court decisions (noted in our April 2017 issue, p31). In particular, the code has altered its guidance on when a data controller can claim that it will require a ‘disproportionate effort’ to comply with the SAR.

The time limit for challenging an arbitration award is 28 days. This short time limit reflects the underlying policy of Arbitration Act 1996, namely the finality of arbitration awards. Note that the time limit of 28 days runs from the date the award is made (not the date on which the award is released to the parties). This is a very important point, since in commercial arbitrations there will often be a delay before the award is released to the parties. This is particularly so if the arbitrator’s fees are outstanding.

There is still confusion about whether it is necessary for a claimant to state in the claim form (or particulars of claim) whether they have complied with the relevant protocol.

Are we seeing the end of the outdoor clerking profession? The introduction of electronic filing and working (CE-File) in the Rolls Building (soon to be called the Business and Property Courts) has virtually abolished the need for outdoor clerks in those courts – and it must surely be a matter of time before others (eg QBD, Senior Costs Office, and the Mayor and City of London Court) follow suit. With CE-File there is simply no need for outdoor clerking.