Farrar (claimant/respondent) v Miller respondent/respondent) & Candey Ltd (applicant/appellant)
Thursday 3 March 2022
The Appellant appeals the Order of Marcus Smith J (High Court, Chancery Division) dated 16 July 2021 (para 1) and paragraph 2 of the consequential Order of Mr Justice Marcus Smith dated 28 July 2021.
This appeal is concerned with whether solicitors should be permitted to take assignments of causes of action in which they have previously acted.
Brief Factual Background: Mr Farrar sued the Respondent, Mr Miller, for damages for failing to honour a property deal pursuant to which Mr Farrar claims he is owed over £1.3mn (‘the Claim’). The Claim reached the pleadings stage in 2014, but thereafter was subject to appeal by both Mr Miller and Mr Farrar from 2015 to 2018, and it was not until 31 July 2018, when the Supreme Court refused Mr Miller’s application for permission to appeal, that the case could proceed. Since 2014, Mr Farrar had instructed the Appellant firm of solicitors (`Candey’) under a Damages-Based Agreement (`DBA’), but by 2018 ran out money and was seeking different funding. By deed dated 3 September 2019, Mr Farrar assigned his claim to Candey (`the Assignment’) on terms that were more favourable to him than under the existing DBA.
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