GJA -v- The Sea Cadet Association (anonymity order)
Claim Number: QB-2022-002741
In the High Court of Justice
King’s Bench Division
9 November 2023
Before:
Master Dagnall
Between:
GJA
-v-
The Sea Cadet Association
Order
Upon hearing Counsel for the Claimant and Counsel for the Defendant at a hearing before Master Dagnall on 9 November 2023
And Upon the Court considering in relation to the Claimant’s witnesses that their identities and addresses should be anonymised as:
(1) The Court has considered the Claimant’s and the Witnesses’ Article 8 right to respect for private and family life and the Article 10 right to freedom of expression
(2) The action is one which is likely to attract significant media attention and publicity
(3) The action relates to events which occurred when the Claimant was a child as were various of the Witnesses and to matters which do or may attract statutory anonymity and provisions against publication of the identity or address/location of the Claimant and the Claimant’s Witnesses
(4) Publicity revealing the identity or address/location of the Claimant or the Claimant’s Witnesses could unfairly damage the interests of the Claimant and the Claimant’s Witnesses and give rise to serious harm to all or any of them
(5) Non-disclosure of the identity of and anonymity of the Claimant and of the Claimant’s Witnesses and of their addresses/locations is necessary in order to protect the interests of the Claimant and of the Claimant’s Witnesses and to secure the proper administration of justice
(6) The Claimant’s and the Claimant’s Witnesses’ identity and address/location ought to be withheld from the public and should not be published.
AND pursuant to the section 11 Contempt of Court Act 1981, section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998, Civil Procedure Rules 1998 rules 1.1, 1.2, 3.1, 3.3, 3.10, 5.4 A-D and 39.2 and the inherent jurisdiction of the Court.
IT IS ORDERED THAT:
- The Defendant’s application (for limitation to be dealt with as a separate preliminary issue) is dismissed.
- The Defendant do pay the Claimant’s costs of the application to be assessed by way of detailed assessment at the conclusion of the Claim if not agreed. By way of an interim payment towards those costs, the Defendant pay to the Claimant’s solicitor the sum of £2750 by 24 November 2023.
- At all stages the parties must consider settling this litigation by any means of Alternative Dispute Resolution (including round table conferences, early neutral evaluation, mediation and arbitration). Any party not engaged in any such means proposed by another is to serve a witness statement giving reasons within 21 days of that proposal; such witness statement must not be shown to the trial judge until questions of costs arise.
- The Claimant do have permission to rely upon the Reply to the Defence served on 22 March 2023.
- The Defendant has permission to ask CPR Part 18 questions of the Claimant should it choose to do so. Any Part 18 questions to be put by 8 December 2023.
- The Claimant must respond to any Part 18 questions by 2nd February 2024 or explain why they are not able or prepared to do so.
Disclosure
- Disclosure of documents will be dealt with as follows:
a) by 4pm on 1 March 2024 the parties must give to each other standard disclosure of documents by list and category.
b) by 4pm on 15 March 2024 any request must be made to inspect the original of, or to provide a copy of, a disclosable document.
c) any such request unless objected to must be complied with within 14 days of the request.
Witness Evidence
- Evidence of Fact will be dealt with as follows:
a) Witness statements of parties and of all witnesses of fact on whom they intend to rely and all notices relating to evidence shall be simultaneously exchanged by no later than 26 April 2024.
b) There is to be no limit on the Claimant’s witness statement. In respect of all other witness evidence the Claimant is limited to 50 pages in total to include any headers and the statement of truth. The Claimant has permission to apply should they contend that the limit needs to be increased.
c) Any witnesses that may identify the Claimant are to have their identities and addresses anonymised, subject to further order of the Court as to which there is to be permission to apply
d) Oral evidence will not be permitted at trial from a witness whose statement has not been served in accordance with this Order or has been served late, except with permission from the Court or by consent of the parties.
Expert Evidence
- Expert evidence will be dealt with as follows:
a) Permission to the Claimant to rely on the expert evidence of psychiatrist, Dr Mogg dated 9 November 2022, already served.
b) The Defendant be allowed to obtain and rely upon the expert evidence of a consultant psychiatrist, to be served by 4pm on 7 June 2024.
c) Unless the reports are agreed, there must be a without prejudice discussion between the experts of like discipline in which the experts will identify the issues between them and reach agreement if possible. The experts will prepare for the court and sign a statement of the issues on which they agree and on which they disagree with a summary of their reasons in accordance with Rule 35.12 Civil Procedure Rules, and each statement must be sent to the parties to be received by 12 July 2024.
d) A copy of this order must be served on each expert.
e) The expert Psychiatrists do have permission to give oral evidence at trial limited to matters of significant disagreement.
Schedules of Loss
- Schedule of loss will be dealt with as follows:
a) The Claimant has permission to serve an updated schedule of loss, should they wish, no later than 4pm on 9 August 2024.
b) The Defendant shall if so advised serve a Counter Schedule of loss no later than 4pm on 9 September 2024.
Trial
- The trial will be listed as follows.
a) Trial: Judge alone; London
b) Category: B (preferably to be heard by a judge with experience of abuse claims).
c) Trial window: 18 November 2024 – 31 January 2025.
d) Time estimate: 5 days
e) A copy of this order shall be sent to the KBD listing officer who will notify all parties of the date for a listing appointment.
f) The parties shall file Pre-Trial Check Lists as directed by the King’s Bench Judges’ Listing.
g) Not more than 10 or less than 7 clear days before the trial, the Claimant must file at court and serve an indexed and paginated bundle of documents, which complies with the requirements of Rule 39.5 Civil Procedure Rules and paragraphs 27.5-27.15 of Practice Direction 32. The parties must endeavour to agree the contents of the bundle not less than 35 days before trial. The bundle will include a chronology and trial timetable
h) The parties must file with the Court and exchange skeleton arguments at least 4 days before trial by email and hard copy.
i) An agreed bundle of authorities must be filed no less than 2 clear days before trial.
j) Each party must inform the court immediately if the case is settled.
Costs Budgeting
- A hearing in relation to costs budgeting only is to be listed before Master Dagnall on 4th January 2024 at 2.30pm with a time estimate of one hour. The parties are to attend 30 minutes before the hearing to seek to reach agreement on phases and amounts of estimated costs. While costs budgeting in no way involves any fixing of solicitors’ rates, the parties’ attention is drawn to the decision in Samsung v LG Display [2022] EWCA Civ 466.
- Updated costs budgets from both parties are to be filed and served not less than 28 days before 4 January 2024.
- Updated Precedent R forms from both parties are to be filed and served not less than 14 days before 4 January 2024.
- Costs in the case.
- A copy of this Order shall be published on the judicial website of the High Court of Justice.