KLM -v- Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (anonymity order)

High CourtKing's Bench DivisionAnonymity Order

Claim Number: KB-2023-002495

In The High Court Of Justice
King’s Bench Division

31 May 2023

Before:
Master Eastman

Between:
KLM (by his mother and litigation friend KLL)
-v-
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Anonymity Order

UPON THE APPLICATION OF THE CLAIMANT
AND WHEREAS THE COURT is satisfied that an order in the terms below is necessary to protect the interests of the Claimant and his family pursuant to section 11 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981, section s.6 of the Human Rights Act 1998 and CPR Rule 5.4A to 5.4D and CPR Rule 39.2 and that there is no countervailing public interest

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that: –

  1. There be substituted for all purposes of this case, in place of references to the Claimant by name and whether orally or in writing references to the letters KLM and his Litigation friend to KLL.
  2. A non-party may not inspect or obtain a copy of any document on the court file without the permission of a Master. Any application for such permission must be made on notice to the Claimant and in accordance with CPR r.5.4C(6).
  3. A non-party may not obtain any copy statement of case or document from the court file unless it has been anonymised in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Order and there has been redacted any information which might identify the Claimant or his Litigation Friend.
  4. There shall be no publication or other disclosure of any name, address, image or other information tending to identify the Claimant as the Claimant in this action.
  5. A copy of this Order shall be published on the Judicial Website of the High Court of Justice specifying that the Claimant shall be referred to as KLM and his litigation friend as KLL.
  6. Representatives of the media shall have liberty to apply to set aside or vary paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4 above provided that: –
    a) any such application shall be made within 14 days of the date of this Order and be put in the applications list (with a maximum time estimate of one hour) to be heard within 14 days of such application being made;
    b) Written notice of such application shall be given to the Claimant’s solicitors.
  7. Provided that the parties and/or their advisors and/or any Deputy appointed for the Claimant and/or the NHS Litigation Authority do not publish any documents containing references to those mentioned in paragraph 1 above by name, the parties are at liberty to retain their files in this case without alteration or substitution and to retain and generate documentation which identifies those people for the purposes of their continuing professional rights and obligations under this clinical negligence claim and paragraph 1 shall not apply in those respects.
  8. The Claimant do within 14 days of the date of this Order draw and file this Order and serve the same on the Defendant.
  9. (in so far as the Order is made under rule 23.9 without service of a copy of the application notice on the Defendant). That the Claimant do comply with rule 23.9(2) by service on the Defendant.
  10. That the Defendant may apply under rule 23.10 to have this Order set aside or varied.
  11. Costs in the case

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 non-exhaustive 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.