Service of the Claim Form: A Cautionary Tale

01 Jul 2021 By Imogen Proud

R (Good Law Project) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
(Pharmaceuticals Direct, Interested Party)
[2021] EWHC 1782 (TCC)

Ewan West acted for the Secretary of State, instructed by the Government Legal Department.

Imogen Proud is instructed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in R (Good Law Project) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care HT-2020-0002226/291/292/419, referred to in this case note.

The judgment is available here.

Overview

This judgment will be of interest to all public law and procurement practitioners, as it is concerned with valid service of the claim form in a judicial review context.

The High Court has ruled that when a claimant sends an unsealed claim form to a defendant prior to the court issuing the claim form, that defect (the fact that the claim form was unsealed) cannot be cured under CPR 3.10 so as to render service valid. CPR 3.10 applies only to “steps taken in the proceedings” and there are no extant proceedings prior to the issue of the claim form (see [45]).

Please click here to read the full case note.

The comments made in this case note are wholly personal and do not reflect the views of any other members of Monckton Chambers, its tenants or clients.

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