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10 February 2023
Issue: 8012 / Categories: Case law , In Court , Law digest
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Law digests: 10 February 2023

Contract

Barton and others v Morris and another [2023] UKSC 3, [2023] All ER (D) 58 (Jan)

The Supreme Court allowed an appeal which arose out of the liquidation of the fourth respondent company (Foxpace). The first respondent (B) and Foxpace had orally agreed that an introduction fee of £1.2m would be paid to B if a purchaser he introduced bought Foxpace’s property in London for £6.5m. The property was later sold for £6m and B sought reasonable remuneration for his services. The High Court ruled that he was not entitled to any payment. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed his appeal, having held that Foxpace would be unjustly enriched if it took the benefit of the introduction without paying B a reasonable fee, and that the same result might have been achieved by the implication of a term into the contract that a reasonable fee would be paid if the purchaser had bought the property for less than £6.5m. The court, by a majority, held that the case was not a typical estate agent/vendor relationship, that there was no express

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Private wealth and tax team welcomes cross-border specialist as consultant

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

International hospitality and leisure specialist joins corporate team as partner

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Firm appoints head of intellectual property to drive northern growth

NEWS
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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