Case update: Stoke-on-Trent City Council, the Home Office and asylum seekers

The deceased had issued proceedings in 1991 against the defendants for personal injury arising from exposure to asbestos. Liability was admitted and in October 1993 the High Court made an order for damages (accompanied by a statement of agreed facts), which included a provisional damages order (PDO) under s32A Senior Courts Act 1981 in the following terms:
‘The Plaintiff do have leave to apply (without time limit) for further damages pursuant to Order 37 Rule 10 if he does develop the aforesaid conditions or diseases or any of them.’
(Ord.37, r.10 RSC has since been replace...
The late claimant was the settlor of eight family trusts of which Equity Trust (Jersey) Ltd was the original trustee. Two of the trusts, ZII and ZIII, both Jersey discretionary trusts, were relevant to the proceedings.
In 2006, Equity Trust retired as trustee and was replaced by Volaw Trustees Ltd. Equity Trust had the benefit of an indemnity. In 2008, a property crash led to the trusts becoming insolvent. In 2012, a company owned by ZII and in compulsory liquidation issued proceedings against its director and Equity Trust, which notified Volaw of its intention to rely on the inde...
In the main action, the claimant sought to prove a purported will dated 2014. The second and fourth defendants challenged the validity of the will on the grounds first of lack of knowledge and approval and secondly, by a late amendment, of undue influence. That amendment required a substantial amount of further evidence to be filed. In a judgment following trial ([2022] EWHC 159 (Ch), available in the WTLR web reports as WTLR(w) 2022-08) the judge found the 2014 will to be invalid for want of knowledge and approval, but dismissed the claim that it was procured by undue influence. The jud...
The late Hartar Singh Sangha (Mr Sangha) died on 3 September 2016, leaving a complex family life and a large portfolio of property and other assets in both the UK and India. He had made a large number of wills at various times. The interaction of these instruments produced significant disputes among his family members. Mr Sangha had at some times during his life regarded himself as married to the first respondent (Diljit). At other points, he regarded himself as married to the appellant (Jaswinder).
Four wills made by Mr Sangha were placed before the court. These were as follows:<...