RB -v- North East London NHS Foundation Trust (anonymity order)
Claim No.: QB-2022-001495
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
Date: 29/07/2022
Before:
Master Sullivan
BETWEEN:
RB
(as Executor of the Estate of RA, Deceased)
-v-
North East London NHS Foundation Trust
ORDER
BEFORE Master Sullivan by video hearing on 29 July 2022
UPON HEARING Counsel for the Claimant.
AND UPON
(1) Consideration of the Article 8 rights of the Claimant and her two children, namely
Abbie Thomas and Macey Thomas, to respect for private and family life, and the
Article 10 right to freedom of expression.
(2) It appearing that non-disclosure of the identity of the Claimant and her two
children is necessary to secure the proper administration of justice and in order
to protect the interests of Claimant and her two children and that there is no
sufficient countervailing public interest in disclosure.
(3) The Defendant indicating its neutrality to the making of the order and there being
no representations from the press or any other interested party.
AND PURSUANT to section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998; section 11 of the
Contempt of Court Act 1981; and CPR rules 5.4C, 5.4D and 39.2(4).
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 (i) 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 THAT:
1. The identity of the Claimant as a party to these proceedings is confidential 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shall not be published.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 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 and her two children in these proceedings. The
Claimant and her two children 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:
i. The Deceased shall be referred to as “RA”
ii. The Claimant shall be referred to as “RB”
iii. Abbie Thomas shall be referred to as “RC”
iv. Macey Thomas shall be referred to as “RD”
v. Any other details which, on their own or together with other
information publicly available, may lead to the identification of
the Claimant (including any names of other immediate family
members or their addresses) shall be redacted before
publication.
4. Provided that the parties and/or their advisors and/or any Trustee appointed for
the Claimant and/or the NHS Litigation Authority do not publish any documents
containing references to those mentioned in paragraph 3 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.
5. Pursuant to CPR rules 5.4C and 5.4D:
i. 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.
ii. 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.
6. 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 19 August 2022, and re-filed in the event that any
statement of case is amended, within 21 days of such amendment being
approved.
7. The Court file shall be clearly marked with the words “An anonymity order was
made in this case on 29 July 2022 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.”
8. 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 7 days’ notice to the Claimant’s solicitor, trustee or deputy.
9. 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.
10. The costs of obtaining this order be 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.