XXX -v- Arif and Aviva Insurance (anonymity order CPR rule 39.2 (4))

Anonymity Order

Claim No: QB-2018-000300

In the High Court of Justice
Queen’s Bench Division

1 April 2020

 

Before:

The Honourable Mrs Justice Steyn DBE

Between:

XXX (a Protected Party proceeding by her Sister and Litigation Friend YYY)

-v-

Mr Mohammad Arif

Aviva Insurance Limited

 


ORDER

BEFORE MRS JUSTICE STEYN DBE sitting at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London on 1st April 2020 conducting the hearing by telephone
UPON HEARING Robert Hunter of Counsel for the Claimant and Marcus Dignum of Counsel for the Defendants
WHEREAS the Claimant is a Protected Party and a Protected Beneficiary who brings this claim by her Litigation Friend, YYY
AND WHEREAS the Claimant, through her Litigation Friend, has brought a claim against both Defendants for injury, loss and damage arising out of a road traffic collision on 6 February 2017 (“the Action”)
AND WHEREAS the Claimant and Defendants have agreed a settlement in the Action subject to the approval of the Court in order to compromise the Action
AND UPON reading the Advice of Counsel, Robert Hunter dated 27 March 2020 and the documents put before the Court for the purposes of the approval
AND UPON the Court approving the terms of the agreement between the Claimant and 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 is necessary in order to protect the interests of the Claimant
AND PURSUANT to rule 39.2(4) of the Civil Procedure Rules and section II of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 and rules 5.4C and 5.4D of the Civil Procedure Rules.

NOT BY CONSENT IT IS ORDERED THAT:

(1) Pursuant to CPR rule 39.2 (4) there shall not be disclosed in any report of the proceedings the name or address of the Claimant or of the Claimant’s Sister and Litigation Friend or any details leading to the identification of the Claimant; the Claimant and her Sister if referred to, shall only be referred to as “XXX” and “YYY” respectively.
(2) Pursuant to CPR rule 5.4 C a person who is not a party to the proceedings may obtain a copy of a statement of case, judgment or order from the court records only if the statement of case, judgment or order has been anonymised such that: (a) the Claimant is referred to in those documents only as “XXX” and her Sister as “YYY” and (b) the address of the Claimant have been deleted from those documents.
(3) That in so far as necessary, any statement of case or other document disclosing the Claimant’s name or address or the name or address of the Litigation Friend or Defendant already filed in the proceedings be replaced by a document describing such name or address in anonymised form as above.
(4) That the original of any such document disclosing the name or address of the Claimant, Litigation Friend or Defendant is to be placed on the Court file in a sealed envelope marked “not to be opened without the permission of a Judge, Master or District Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division”.
(5) That a non-party may not inspect or obtain a copy of any document on or from the Court file (other than this order duly anonymised as directed) without the permission of a Master or District Judge. Any application for such permission must be made on notice to the Claimant, and the Court will effect service. The file is to be retained by the Court and marked “Anonymised”.
(6) The provisions of this Order shall not apply:-
a. to communications between the Court Funds Office and the anonymised party, her Deputy or Litigation Friend 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;
b. to communications between the Court Funds Office and/or the anonymised party, his Deputy or Litigation Friend and any financial institution concerned as to the receipt or investment of such money; or
c. to records kept by the Court Funds Office or the anonymised party, his Deputy or Litigation Friend or any such financial institution in relation to such money.
(7) That any non-party affected by this Order may apply on notice to all parties to have this Order set aside or varied.
(8) The Defendants do pay the sum of £150,000 (one hundred and fifty thousand pounds) on account of costs to the Claimant’s Solicitors no later than 4pm on 15 April 2020.

BY CONSENT IT IS ORDERED THAT
(9) The Claimant’s damages be reduced by 20% in respect of contributory negligence.
(10) The Defendants do pay to the Claimant the sum of £910,000 (nine hundred and ten thousand pounds) net of contributory negligence in full and final settlement of the Action, such damages to be discharged as follows:
a) The sum repayable for deductible benefits due to the Compensation Recovery Unit of the Department for Work and Pensions is nil.
b) The Claimant gives credit for interim payments received to date totalling £110,000 (one hundred and ten thousand pounds).
c) The net sum due to be paid by the Defendants to the Claimant is therefore £800,000 (eight hundred thousand pounds), such sum is to be paid to the Claimant’s Solicitors by 4pm on 15 April 2020 to be distributed as follows:
a. The Claimant’s Solicitors are to pay the sum of £17,520 (seventeen thousand, five hundred and twenty pounds) to the Claimant’s Litigation Friend, YYY, in respect of past gratuitous care.
b. The balance to be paid to the Claimant’s Professional Deputy, Thomson Snell and Passmore Trust Corporation.
(11) The Defendants do pay the Claimant’s costs on the standard basis, such costs to be the subject of detailed assessment in default of agreement between the Parties and to be paid within 14 days of agreement or assessment (as the case may be).
(12) All further proceedings in this claim be stayed save for the purpose of carrying the terms of this Order into effect for which purpose the Claimant and Defendants shall have permission to apply to the Court.

A sealed order will be served within 7 days of the department reopening.
Dated this 1st day of April 2020