LEXLAW Solicitors & Barristers
Growing scrutiny of regulatory oversight has reignited claims that small businesses were exposed to hidden liabilities through complex lending structures, raising significant legal questions around misrepresentation, regulatory accountability, and SME redress.
An application for relief from sanctions under CPR 3.9 is available where a party has failed to comply with court deadlines or procedural rules. The court will apply the three-stage test from Denton v TH White Ltd, considering (1) the seriousness of the breach, (2) the reasons for the default, and (3) all the circumstances of the case. Relief must be sought promptly, as delay may undermine the application.
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McGuinness v Goldentree [2025] EWHC 870 (Ch) clarifies investment property loan exemptions under Article 61A FSMA 2000. The High Court struck out regulatory challenges to commercial development finance, confirming contemporaneous evidence establishes business purposes. The judgment reinforces that former directors lack litigation authority during administration without administrator consent. This decision protects legitimate commercial lending from spurious consumer credit challenges whilst emphasising robust documentation practices for development finance practitioners.
Unjust enrichment is a powerful remedy in English law allowing recovery where one party is enriched at another’s expense without legal justification. This guide by LEXLAW Solicitors explains how restitution claims arise in commercial, financial, and contractual disputes. We outline key legal principles, real-world examples, and common defences helping you understand your rights and take action.
Real Estate Tycoon, Tchenguiz challenged the £6.5 million claim by IG Index Limited over spread-betting debt but court upheld the claimant’s position. The ruling implicates critical precedent for financial instruments, spread betting, statutory interpretation of financial regulations.
Legally binding contracts in UK contract law can be made via WhatsApp, email, & text messages. The Jaevee Homes v Fincham High Court ruling confirms digital agreements require offer, acceptance, consideration, & intention (based on an objective test). Understand contract formation via electronic communication & risks of informal digital contracts in English law.
The ruling in Glaser KC & Miller v Atay [2023] EWHC 2539 (KB) affects individuals who have instructed direct access barristers and had to pay fixed fees even if a trial did not go ahead. The judge’s verdict rendered this inherently unfair term effectively null and void with no quantum meruit fallback.
The Court of Appeal case of Re Compound Photonics Group Ltd; Faulkner v Vollin Holdings Ltd [2022] EWCA Civ 1371, in the context of an unfair prejudice petition filed according to Section.994 of the Companies Act of 2006, the Court of Appeal has clarified the meaning of the contractual responsibility of good faith.
In the recent case of Ulster Bank DAC and Ors v McDonagh and Ors, the Court of Appeal confirmed that, as debt recovery cases are not considered actions for “damages”, the Civil Liability Act 1961 (CLA) does not apply to them.
The High Court has ruled that commercial leases were not “temporarily frustrated” by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and therefore the tenants were still obliged to pay rents to…