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13 February 2015 / Jeremy Gordon , Jolyon Connell
Issue: 7640 / Categories: Features , Commercial
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Dust off your old files

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Practitioners may be allowed to revive cases which might previously have appeared statute barred, say Jolyon Connell & Jeremy Gordon

In the recent case of FHR European Ventures LLP and others v Cedar Capital Partners LLC [2014] UKSC 45, [2014] 4 All ER 79 the Supreme Court determined that a bribe or secret commission obtained by an agent in breach of a fiduciary duty is held on trust by the defaulting agent for his beneficiary principal. Despite a number of articles considering that judgment and some of its implications, one consequence of potentially great significance to practitioners has been somewhat overlooked: limitation. This article considers that point specifically and highlights how the Supreme Court’s decision in FHR may allow claims which were once considered to be statute barred to be advanced in a new manner.

Underlying principles

Section 21(1) of the Limitation Act 1980 provides as follows: “No period of limitation prescribed by this Act shall apply to an action by a beneficiary under a trust, being an action—(a) in

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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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