AXB -v- Blazinski and another (anonymity order)

High CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim Number: QB-2020-003894

In The High Court Of Justice
King’s Bench Division

28 March 2023

Before:
Master Brown

Between:
AXB (A Protected Party by Her Father and Litigation Friend, CXD)
-v-
1) Mr Hubert Blazinski
2) Southern Rock Insurance Company Limited

Anonymity Order

BEFORE Master Brown sitting at The Royal Courts of Justice on 20 March 2023.

WHEREAS the Claimant has made a claim (‘the Claim’) against the Defendants for damages for personal injury suffered by him arising out of a road traffic collision on 15 November 2017.

AND WHEREAS the Claimant is a protected party within the meaning of CPR 21.1 and brings this claim by his Litigation Friend, Ms CXD.

AND UPON HEARING Counsel on behalf of the Claimant and Leading Counsel on behalf of the Defendants.

AND UPON consideration of the Claimant’s Article 8 right to respect for private and family life and the Article 10 right to freedom of expression.

AND UPON IT APPEARING that non-disclosure of the identity of the Claimant and the Claimant’s Litigation Friend is necessary in order to protect the interests of the Claimant.

AND UPON the Defendants indicating their neutrality to the making of the order and there being no representations from the press or any other interested party.

AND PURSUANT to rule 39.2(4) of the Civil Procedure Rules and section 11 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 and rules 5.4C and 5.4D of the Civil Procedure Rules.

WHEREAS for the purposes of this order:
(1) ‘Publication’ includes any speech, writing, broadcast, or other communication in whatever form (including internet and social media), which is addressed to the public at large or any section of the public.
(2) Publication for the purpose of this Order includes any further publication (as defined in subparagraph (1) above) from the date of this Order, even if such information has derived from a previous stage or stages of these proceedings.

IT IS ORDERED:

  1. That the identity of the Claimant and of the Litigation Friend as a party to these proceedings
    is protected and shall not be published.
  2. Pursuant to CPR Rule 39.2(4), there shall not be disclosed in any report of these proceedings or other publication the name or address of the Claimant, the Claimant’s Litigation Friend or other immediate family members, or any details (including other names, addresses, or a specific combination of facts) that could lead to the identification of the Claimant in these proceedings. The Claimant and the Litigation Friend shall be referred to as set out at paragraph 3 of this Order.
  3. In any judgment or report of these proceedings, or other publication (by whatever medium) in relation thereto:
    3.1. The Claimant shall be referred to as “AXB”.
    3.2. The Litigation Friend shall be referred to as “CXD”.
    3.3. Any other details liable to lead to the identification of the Claimant (including any names of other immediate family members or their addresses) shall be redacted before publication.
  4. Pursuant to CPR Rules 5.4C and 5.4D:
    4.1. A person who is not a party to the proceedings may not obtain a copy of a statement of case, judgment or order from the Court records unless the statement of case, judgment or order has been anonymised in accordance with subparagraphs 3(i) to (iii) above.
    4.2. If a person who is not a party to the proceedings applies (pursuant to CPR r.5.4C(1B) or (2)) for permission to inspect or obtain a copy of any other document or communication, such application shall be on at least 7 days’ notice to the Claimant’s solicitor, trustee or deputy, c/o the Claimant’s solicitors, [RWK Goodman LLP, Godstow Court, Minns Business Park, 5 West Way, Oxford OX2 0JB. Ref: IZC/MZW/351217.0001] and the Court will effect service.
  5. The Claimant’s solicitor shall file with the Court an electronic (PDF) bundle of the statements of case that has been anonymised in accordance with paragraph 3 above by within 21 days of the date on which this Order is made.
  6. The Court file shall be clearly marked with the words “An anonymity order was made in this case on 20th day of March 2023 and any application by a non-party to inspect or obtain a copy document from this file must be dealt with in accordance with the terms of that Order.”
  7. Any interested party, whether or not a party to the proceedings, may apply to the Court to vary or discharge this Order, provided that any such application is made on notice to the Claimant’s solicitor, trustee or deputy, and that 7 days’ prior notice of the intention to make such an application is given.
  8. Pursuant to the ‘Practice Guidance: Publication of Privacy and Anonymity Orders’ issued by the Master of the Rolls dated 16 April 2019 a copy of this Order shall be published on the Judicial Website of the High Court of Justice (www.judiciary.uk). For that purpose, a court officer will send a copy of the order by email to the Judicial Office at judicialwebupdates@judiciary.uk.
  9. Provided that the parties and/or their advisers do not publish any documents containing references to the Claimant by name, the parties be at liberty to retain their files in this case without alteration or substitution and to retain and generate internal documentation (and external documentation to experts instructed) which identifies the Claimant for the purposes of the litigation.

    EXPLANATORY NOTE
    The order defines the scope of ‘publication’ and makes clear that it is a communication which is “addressed to the public at large or any section of the public”. Set out below is a nonexhaustive list of examples of communications and records which would not constitute publication within the meaning of this order (providing always that proper steps are taken to protect the confidentiality of information from being made public). In this list references to ‘the anonymised party’ include that party’s appointed representatives and advisers, such as solicitor, Litigation Friend, attorney, trustee and deputy.
    (i) Communications between the Court Funds Office and the anonymised party in relation to the payment of money into the Court Funds Office for the benefit of the anonymised party or the investment or treatment of payment out of such money.
    (ii) Communications between the Court Funds Office, the anonymised party, and any financial institution concerned as to the receipt or investment of such money.
    (iii) Records kept by the Court Funds Office, the anonymised party, and any financial institution concerned as to the receipt or investment of the Claimant’s money.
    (iv) Retention by all parties to the claim, their representatives, and their advisers of their unredacted files for the purposes of their continuing functions and obligations in relation to the proceedings.
    (v) Communications between the Defendant(s), their insurers, or their successors in title and their legal and professional advisers, reinsurers, HM Revenue and Customs (or its successor), the Compensation Recovery Unit or any other person required by law.
    (vi) Communications between the anonymised party’s representatives and advisers in managing that party’s affairs.
    (vii) Communications for the purpose of obtaining medical care, advice or treatment for the anonymised party.
    (viii) Communications by or on behalf of a paying party for the purposes of ascertaining whether the anonymised party is alive, so entitled to continuing periodical payments.