Court's permission not required to add claimants before service of proceedings (Rawet v Daimler)

Table of contents

• What are the practical implications of this case?
• What was the background?
• What did the court decide?
• Case details

Article summary

Dispute Resolution analysis: The High Court has clarified when claimants can be added to claim forms where proceedings have been issued but not yet served under CPR 17.1. Disagreeing with the earlier decision in Various Claimants v G4S plc, the court held that CPR 17.1 permitted new parties to be added or substituted to claims before they were served without the need for consent or the court's permission. An amendment to a statement of case under CPR 17.1 can include an existing party 'introducing' additional parties to its claim. Justice Mann's first instance decision in G4S had adopted too restrictive an approach. Written by Harriet Campbell, senior knowledge development lawyer at Stephenson Harwood LLP.