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29 May 2015 / Andrew Francis
Issue: 7654 / Categories: Features , Property
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Lessons to be learnt

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How has Lawrence v Fen Tigers Ltd been treated at first instance, asks Andrew Francis

A key question arising from the judgment of the Supreme Court in Lawrence v Fen Tigers Ltd [2014] 1 AC 822, [2014] 2 All ER 622 was how trial judges would decide whether the proper remedy for breach of property rights was an injunction, or damages in lieu.

Fen Tigers stated two key principles. First, where there is a breach of property rights the prima facie position is that an injunction should be granted. Second, as to the choice between an injunction and damages, the outcome should depend on all relevant facts, circumstances and arguments. Overlying both principles is the point made by the Supreme Court in Fen Tigers that there should no longer be slavish adherence to the “good working rule” in Shelfer v City of London Electric Lighting Co Ltd [1895] 1 Ch 287, [1891-4] All ER Rep 838. While there were differences between the justices of the Supreme Court as to what might be relevant

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Patrick Ormond

Carey Olsen—Patrick Ormond

Partner joinscorporate and finance practice in British Virgin Islands

Dawson Cornwell—Naomi Angell

Dawson Cornwell—Naomi Angell

Firm strengthens children department with adoption and surrogacy expert

Penningtons Manches Cooper—Graham Green

Penningtons Manches Cooper—Graham Green

Media and technology expert joins employment team as partner in Cambridge

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
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