header-logo header-logo

Unfair relationships & pleadings of fact

19 May 2023 / Fred Philpott
Issue: 8025 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Property
printer mail-detail
122334
Is alleging an unfair relationship a necessary pleading of a fact? Fred Philpott examines a recent judgment of the High Court
  • In Goldhill Finance Ltd v Smyth, a borrower lost her house on a pleading point because in the county court there was no specific allegation of an unfair relationship, despite fairness having been raised in her original statement.

In what may be seen by some as an unsatisfactory case, a county court judge ruled that the unfair relationship provisions of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (CCA 1974) only applied if the agreement was regulated. He therefore did not consider the unfair relationship provisions because he was not asked to do so. The case went to appeal in the High Court (Goldhill Finance Ltd v Smyth [2023] EWHC 362 (KB)).

The background

The case involved a bridging loan over six months with interest at 2% per month simple but on default 5% per month compound. The borrower had signed declarations which had the effect (if true,

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Birketts—trainee cohort

Birketts—trainee cohort

Firm welcomes new cohort of 29 trainee solicitors for 2025

Keoghs—four appointments

Keoghs—four appointments

Four partner hires expand legal expertise in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Real estate team in Yorkshire welcomes new partner

NEWS
Robert Taylor of 360 Law Services warns in this week's NLJ that adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms, unless tools are tailored to their needs
From oligarchs to cosmetic clinics, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) target journalists, activists and ordinary citizens with intimidating legal tactics. Writing in NLJ this week, Sadie Whittam of Lancaster University explores the weaponisation of litigation to silence critics
Delays and dysfunction continue to mount in the county court, as revealed in a scathing Justice Committee report and under discussion this week by NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School. Bulk claims—especially from private parking firms—are overwhelming the system, with 8,000 cases filed weekly
Writing in NLJ this week, Thomas Rothwell and Kavish Shah of Falcon Chambers unpack the surprise inclusion of a ban on upwards-only rent reviews in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve charts the turbulent progress of the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords, in this week's NLJ
back-to-top-scroll