Latin for the matter has been decided. At common law, once a court has made a decision, the matter cannot be re-opened once the time limit for appealing or the relevant limitation period has expired.

There is a degree of overlap between the doctrine of res judicata and the principle of Henderson abuse, as considered below. Note also that these two concepts also overlap with the procedural basis for striking out a claim as an abuse of the court’s process under CPR 3.4(2)(b), see below and Practice Note: Strike out for abuse of process (civil) (CPR 3.4(2)(b))—Abuse of process by second proceedings. What is res judicata? A res judicata is a decision given by a judge or tribunal with jurisdiction over the cause of action and the parties which disposes, with finality, of a matter decided so that it cannot be re-litigated by those bound by the judgment, except on appeal. For further guidance on the purpose of and when you can establish a res judicata, see Practice Notes: • The doctrine of res judicata • Key requirements to establish a res judicata What is Henderson abuse? In a legal context abuse of process occurs where

This Practice Note considers res judicata and provides an introduction as to whether it can be raised in respect of a foreign judgment. It is necessary to determine whether the foreign judgment will be recognised and whether it is res judicata. The Practice Note considers specific issues regarding foreign judgments and the doctrine of merger in judgment, issue estoppel and abuse of process as well as defences to a res judicata in respect of a foreign judgment and res judicata in respect of foreign arbitral awards. This Practice Note assumes a general understanding of the common law doctrine of res judicata. For guidance, see Practice Note The doctrine of res judicata. Relevance of res judicata for foreign judgments The relevance of res judicata is that the foreign judgment operates as a defence to proceedings in the courts of England and Wales. Where a foreign court has delivered a judgment in a civil or commercial matter, a defendant to proceedings in the courts of England and Wales

Rights that can be exercised at will and which do not prescribe if they are not exercised, eg a right of ownership of heritable property, see further: Imprescriptible rights and obligations: Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia [2126]

Spectrum, mobile network operators and mobile virtual network operators Spectrum (ie the range of wavelengths or frequencies over which electromagnetic radiation extends) is the basis for wireless communications, eg mobile voice and data services and wi-fi services. A mobile network operator (MNO) is normally allocated certain bands of spectrum in order to operate within the telecoms industry and thereby provide the network that enables customers to send and receive calls and texts and access the internet. However, spectrum is a finite resource and there can be issues with respect to its use. Therefore, spectrum licensing, assignment and management is regulated nationally and also at a EU level. A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a mobile communications service provider that contracts with an MNO in order for the MNO to provide wholesale mobile electronic communications services to the MVNO, which it then resells. This is often described in the industry as ‘piggybacking’, in that the MVNOs will normally be smaller operators who are not licensed to use spectrum and do not operate

STOP PRESS: From 1 October 2026, section 48 of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 (inserting sections 14A and 15A of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006) extends right to work civil penalty liability in certain contractual arrangements, including where a supplier which, having contracted to provide services to a customer, engages a subcontractor to perform all or part of those services. Although the subcontractor remains responsible for carrying out prescribed right to work checks on individuals it employs or engages to perform the subcontracted services, the supplier may be treated as 'employing' any individual who personally performs the services and so may also be held liable for illegal working unless it satisfies the prescribed requirements for establishing a statutory excuse. The extended liability requirements apply to relevant contractual arrangements entered into on or after 1 October 2026. See News Analysis: Extended scope of the right to work regime: how will it work in practice? and LNB News 14/09/2026 18 for further information. This Practice Note will be updated shortly to reflect the changes. When

The alteration of the terms of a loan facility when the borrower is unable to comply with the original terms of the facility

Property Disputes analysis: This was an application for summary judgment before the High Court to rescind the erroneous discharge of mortgages secured by the lender against multiple borrowers’ properties as part of the lender’s own project to tidy up the mortgage book—the discharges were based on a mistake of fact and the mortgages had not in fact been redeemed. It provides a useful consideration of the application of the law of mistake and also of the power under the Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002) for the court to order the amendment or alteration of the Register in order to bring it up to date. The decision also considers the procedural provisions contained in CPR 19.8 and CPR 19.9 dealing with representative parties. Written by Caroline DeLaney, partner at Stevens & Bolton LLP.

The right in equity to rescind is the right of a party to set aside a transaction and to be restored to their former position. It is a remedy for misrepresentation or for common/mutual mistake.

This Practice Note considers the remedy of rescission, summarising when and how a contract may be rescinded (at common law, equity and under statute) and thereby brought to an end. It includes the effect of rescission, the main grounds for rescinding a contract (misrepresentation, mistake, undue influence, duress, non-disclosure, fiduciary misdealing and bribery) and the main bars to seeking rescission as a remedy of affirmation, intervention of third party rights and impossibility of restitution. For guidance on rescission in the context of a misrepresentation, see Practice Note: Misrepresentation—rescission as a remedy. There are numerous ways in which a contract can come to an end, see: Terminating contracts—how and when a contract ends—overview for an outline, together with links to the underlying practical guidance, including Practice Note: Termination and expiry of contracts. For a summary, in tabular format, of illustrative judgments handed down since 1 January 2020, considering contract law issues, see Practice Notes: • Contract disputes—illustrative decisions (2026) • Contract disputes—illustrative decisions (2024–2025) [Archived] • Contract disputes—key and illustrative decisions (2020–2023) [Archived] What is rescission

Family analysis: This case concerned applications by each of the parties to divorce proceedings regarding a decree nisi which had been made in 2012. The wife applied to have the decree nisi rescinded and the husband applied to have it made absolute. The court found that as a result of the parties’ reconciliation and their actions and conduct towards each other since decree nisi, there had been a material change of circumstances which invalidated the fundamental assumption upon which the decree nisi was made. It could not be said that the marriage had broken down irretrievably nor that it was unreasonable to expect the petitioner to live with the respondent. Further, the fact that the parties had lived together since decree nisi and the delay in applying for decree absolute were factors to be taken into account on the exercise of judicial discretion in deciding whether to grant decree absolute. The court therefore rescinded the decree nisi and refused the husband’s application to grant decree absolute. Rhiannon Guibert, consultant at Simons Muirhead Burton LLP, considers the decision.

Most leases require landlord's consent to assignment. This Practice Note sets out what happens when the seller fails to obtain landlord's consent in time for completion and how the issue is dealt with under the Standard Conditions of Sale (5th Edition) (SCs) and the Standard Commercial Property Conditions (SCPCs) (Second or Third Editions). While this Practice Note primarily covers commercial property matters, it also touches on residential considerations. Standard Conditions of Sale Where: • a contract for the sale of leasehold property incorporates the SCs (fifth edition—2018 Revision): Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents para [460], and • the lease requires the landlord’s consent to an assignment the SCs set out an express right to rescind in certain circumstances. SC 8.3.3 provides: ‘Unless he is in breach of his obligation under condition 8.3.2, either party may rescind the contract by notice to the other party if three working days before completion date (or before a later date on which the parties have agreed to complete the contract): (a) the consent has not been given, or (b)