Alexander Kuznetsov v War Group Ltd & Anor
[2024] EWHC 311 (KB)
Alexander Kuznetsov v War Group Ltd & Anor (Second Judgment)
16 February 2024
[2024] EWHC 328 (KB)
High Court
A buyer tried to get a court order to force a property sale without telling the court about emails showing he'd been told to hire a solicitor weeks earlier. The court threw out the case because the buyer hadn't been honest about all the facts.
Key Facts
- •Claimant (in person) sought court orders regarding property transactions, alleging unresponsive sellers' solicitors (GLS Solicitors).
- •Initial application was made without notice to the defendants or their solicitors.
- •Claimant presented a selective set of emails suggesting a lack of response from GLS Solicitors.
- •GLS Solicitors responded, providing additional emails showing communication and advising the claimant to instruct solicitors.
- •The additional emails revealed the claimant had bid on three properties, not two, and had been advised to use solicitors weeks prior.
- •Claimant's application contained material non-disclosure regarding prior communications and the requirement to instruct solicitors.
- •Special conditions of sale required funds to be remitted from a solicitor's client account.
Legal Principles
Duty of full and frank disclosure in applications made without notice to the other party.
King's Bench Guide to the Working Practices of the King's Bench Division, §2.7
Assessment of legal merits for interim orders; requires a ‘high degree of assurance’ that the claim is likely to succeed.
Case law principles regarding interim orders
Adequacy of damages as a remedy; consideration of whether damages are an adequate remedy for both claimant and defendant.
Case law principles regarding interim relief
Outcomes
Claimant's application dismissed.
Material non-disclosure and lack of merit in the application. The court found the claimant's actions misleading and that he had deliberately withheld crucial information.