On 27 November 2024 Adam Solomon KC and Nick Goodfellow were successful in securing further interim injunctive relief and a wide-ranging indemnity costs order in the case of: Brown & Brown Insurance Brokers (UK) Limited (t/a Allcover Insurance Brokers) (“Allcover”) v The Broker Investment Group Limited (“TBIG”) and others (“the Ds”).
The claim concerns an unlawful team move of individuals from Allcover (“LDS Team”) to join a business within TBIG’s group of companies, that was unlawfully induced by the chairman of TBIG’s group of companies (Peter Cullum). At an interim hearing before the Honourable Mr Justice Bright (“Bright J.”) on 7 October 2024 (“7 October Hearing”), the case was listed for a 5-day speedy trial due to commence on 2 December 2024 (“December Trial”). At the 7 October Hearing, Allcover succeeded in obtaining various interim injunctive relief, but Bright J. declined to grant interim delivery up orders against the LDS Team in light of (inter alia) narrow undertakings given by certain members of the LDS Team to deliver up Allcover’s documents. The extremely compressed timetable for trial was ordered in light of the Ds’ counsel’s submission that their clients would be ready to give disclosure when they filed their Defence.
After the 7 October Hearing, and the filing of a Defence, it became apparent that the position adopted in that Defence was unsustainable and the Ds’ position at the 7 October Hearing had proceeded on the basis of a false premise; namely that, each of the LDS Team and Mr Cullum had made false statements about the extent to which they had retained, misused and/or received Allcover’s confidential information. In light of the extent of Allcover’s confidential information that had been disclosed by the Ds, and the true scope of their disclosure obligations, the December Trial could not proceed.
The matter came back before the Court on 27 November 2024, at a hearing before HHJ Freedman (sitting as a High Court Judge) (“the Judge”).
After cross-applications by the Ds and Allcover, the Judge granted further interim injunctive relief in favour of Allcover and made a wide-ranging costs order in Allcover’s favour, on the indemnity basis. Those costs covered (i) Allcover’s interim injunction application, (ii) the 7 October Hearing, (iii) the costs “thrown away” by the adjournment of the December Trial, (iv) the cross-applications and hearing on 27 November 2024, and (v) the costs of amendments to statements of case (caused by the false statements made in the original Defence).
In justifying the order for indemnity costs in an ex-tempore judgment, the Judge observed that the Ds’ counsel was asked (by their clients) to advance a case before Bright J. that the clients “knew to be utterly false” and that this was a “very serious matter” . The Judge was persuaded, applying the well-known case of Excelsior Commercial and Industrial Holdings Ltd [2002] EWCA Civ 879 that the Ds’ conduct took the case “out of the norm” such that an indemnity costs order was appropriate.
The liability and injunctive relief element of the claim is now due to be heard in a speedy trial in (or after) April 2025.
Adam Solomon KC and Nick Goodfellow are instructed by Tim Pickworth of DAC Beachcroft LLP.
