Case Alert - [2017] EWHC 2965 (Ch)
Judge confirms English courts have jurisdiction to permit
service out of the jurisdiction of an application for pre-action
disclosure
One of the issues raised in this case was whether the English
courts have jurisdiction to give leave to serve an application for
pre-action disclosure out of the jurisdiction (there is some
textbook commentary to suggest it does not). The judge held as
follows:
(1) In relation to service, CPR r6.2(c) defines a
"claim" as including an application before action.
(2) For service out of the EU (here, service was to be in New
York), the applicant must come within one of the gateways in PD6B
para 3.1. The relevant gateway in this case was potentially para
20(a): "A claim is made (a) under an enactment which allows
proceedings to be brought and those proceedings are not covered by
any of the other grounds referred to in this paragraph".
