The Court of Appeal has held that a notification injunction (an order requiring a respondent to give notice of any dealings with or disposal of assets or other transactions that fall within the scope of the order) drawn in wide… Read more

In a claim by JSC BTA Bank against the son-in-law of its former Chairman alleging conspiracy to injure by unlawful means, the Court of Appeal held that breach of the terms of a freezing order could qualify as the requisite… Read more

The High Court has recently considered when, and for how long, injunctive relief should be granted as a remedy for breach of confidence: Kerry Ingredients (UK) Limited v Bakkavor Group Limited and others [2016] EWHC 2448 (Ch). Here the confidential… Read more

The Supreme Court has today allowed an appeal by a celebrity (PJS) seeking an injunction preventing publication of details of his private life, by a majority of four to one: PJS v News Group Newspapers Ltd [2016] UKSC 26.  In… Read more

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court has confirmed that the right to draw down under loan agreements is caught by the expanded definition of "asset" contained in the current standard Commercial Court form of freezing order which includes "any… Read more

Over the next few weeks we will be delivering a number of disputes-related webinars for Herbert Smith Freehills clients and contacts, including on: what to do when you've been given notice of a freezing order; the increasing risk of class actions… Read more

Very often, when seeking to obtain a freezing injunction, the true extent of the defendant's assets is unclear. Complex and opaque offshore corporate or trust structures may mask the true ownership of assets. A mere connection between a defendant and… Read more

A recent Court of Appeal decision provides useful guidance on how the court will determine the effect of a "without prejudice save as to costs" (or Calderbank) offer in a non-money claim: Coward v Phaestos Limited and others [2014] EWCA… Read more

The Court of Appeal has upheld an order requiring the claimant to fortify its cross-undertaking in damages after it obtained a worldwide freezing order against the defendant: Energy Ventures Partners Ltd v Malabu Oil & Gas Ltd [2014] EWCA Civ… Read more

A new EU Regulation will come into force tomorrow establishing a European Account Preservation Order (EAPO) procedure to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and commercial matters (Regulation (EU) 655/2014). The main provisions will not however apply until January 2017.… Read more

A recent Court of Appeal decision has confirmed that the usual contractual rules, including as to remoteness of damage, apply by analogy to the assessment of compensation under a cross-undertaking in damages in a freezing order. However, there is also… Read more

The Court of Appeal has clarified the definition of "assets" for the purpose of the standard form freezing injunction, confirming that assets belonging beneficially to a wholly owned company are not directly caught by an injunction against that company's sole… Read more

The Court of Appeal has held that an interim injunction should be granted to prevent the defendant's alleged breach, on the basis that damages would be an inadequate remedy due to a limitation clause in the relevant contract: AB v… Read more

The High Court has reaffirmed its jurisdiction under section 37(1) of the Supreme Court Act 1981 to compel defendants who are subject to the court's jurisdiction to disclose their assets worldwide in order to aid execution of a judgment or (as… Read more

In a judgment handed down yesterday, the Supreme Court held that there is no general rule that an authority such as the FSA, seeking an injunction in the course of its public functions, should be required to give a cross-undertaking in damages… Read more

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU are currently considering a proposed Regulation for a new European Account Preservation Order, which will introduce a new and additional kind of bank freezing order available throughout the EU (see post). The UK… Read more

On Thursday 19 January (12:45 to 1:45 UK time) Robert Hunter will present a live audio webinar offering practical advice to those who want to know what they can do after being served with a Freezing Order. This is part of our series of… Read more

The government yesterday announced that the UK would not be opting in to the proposed Regulation establishing a Europe-wide bank account freezing order (click here for our summary of the proposals). Although the government recognises the benefits of the proposal in facilitating cross-border debt-recovery,… Read more

On 25 July 2011, the European Commission released the proposed European Account Preservation Order (EAPO) Regulation, which has been submitted for consideration by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU. Whilst it is likely to be several years… Read more

Our summer fraud update has been published, with articles on the following: Delaying asset disclosure under worldwide freezing orders: No more pulling yourself up by your bootstraps? JSC BTA Bank v Ablyazov & Others [2010] EWHC 2352 (Comm) Accepting the… Read more

It has long been held that the English court has power to grant a freezing injunction against a third party (against whom no claim lay), provided that it is ancillary and incidental to a good arguable claim against a defendant… Read more

The House of Lords has today held in HM Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Barclays Bank plc [2006] UKHL 28 that a bank, when served with a freezing injunction affecting an account held by one of the bank's customers,… Read more

The Court of Appeal has laid down new guidelines on how the court should exercise its discretion when considering whether to permit a party to enforce a worldwide freezing order (“WFO”) (formerly called a worldwide mareva order), or seek an… Read more