David Greene reflects on the impact & importance of the Mitchell Three
It is tempting to re-order the names that form the three appeals the Court of Appeal has just opined upon following on from the Mitchell decision. How much more memorable would be “Utilise Decadent Denton” rather than “Denton Decadent Utilise”. However you order the title, the decision is no doubt a landmark in the post Jackson world, in the continuing tug of war between practitioners and the bench over the control of proceedings. The consequential judgment shows that even in the Court of Appeal there remain differences about interpretation of the CPR in the exercise of that control (Denton v TH White Ltdr; Decadent Vapours Ltd v Bevan; Utilise TDS Ltd v Davies [2014] EWCA Civ 906).
Last month the Court of Appeal orchestrated three appeals to be heard at the same time following on from the decision in Mitchell v News Group Newspapers Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 1537, [2014] 2 All ER 430. Each
