Litigation & Dispute Resolution

The Court of Appeal has handed down its judgment in the case of Prismall v Google UK Ltd and DeepMind Technologies Ltd [2024] EWCA Civ 1516. Finding for Google, the Court of Appeal upheld the lower Court’s decision to strike out the claim, and offered some further guidance on the threshold to be met for a claim to proceed as a representative action under CPR 19.8, particularly in relation to claims for the misuse of private information. The Court of Appeal explained that “a representative class claim for misuse of private information is always going to be very difficult to bring”. This is because the circumstances of individual claimants will affect the determination as to whether any particular claimant has a reasonable expectation of privacy. This will in turn affect whether all members of the represented class can meet the required “same interest” test in order to found a representative action under CPR 19.8 (see our previous article).

We explore the trends for Business and Commercial Disputes in the UK, US and France/EU in 2025. Here's what you should know. UK In the spotlight: corporates asserting privilege against shareholders Continued focus on litigation funding Increase in open justice Easier enforcement Court-compelled Negotiated Dispute Resolution – watch this space France Rise of mass claims in France and rise of class actions in France and the EU The new EU product liability directive adopted on October 11, 2024 Rise of ESG related claims US More M&A deals means more post-closing disputes? Head off rising number of workplace issues with internal investigations Disclosure of litigation funding in the United States

Being able to enforce a judgment is of crucial importance for businesses: securing a judgment is a pyrrhic victory unless it can be enforced. Here we explore whether concerns about the recognition and enforcement procedure between France and England can now be laid to rest. Our answer is that for commercial and finance parties, the answer is to a large degree, yes.

As we look ahead to 2025, several key areas within the real estate sector are poised to see an uptick in disputes. This report outlines ten pressing issues that property owners, occupiers, developers and investors should be aware of.