THE HONOURABLE MR JUSTICE NICKLIN Approved Judgment
MBR Acres Ltd -v- McGivern
The Honourable Mr Justice Nicklin : 1.
This is the judgment following a contempt application made against Gillian McGivern (“Ms McGivern”) for alleged breaches of an injunction order that was originally granted on 10 November 2021 (“the Injunction”). The judgment handed down on that date ([2021] EWHC 2996 (QB)) explains the terms in which the Injunction was granted (“the Injunction Judgment”). It also sets out the background and circumstances in which the Injunction was sought and imposed. 2. The hearing took place over two days. At the end of the hearing, I dismissed the contempt application and indicated that I would give my reasons in writing at a later date. This judgment explains my decision. 3. The issues raised in the Contempt Application, particularly service of the Injunction on Ms McGivern, require that I set out some of the history of the litigation. A: The parties to the Contempt Application 4. The Claimants are described in the Injunction Judgment (see [3]-[6]). 5. Ms McGivern was called to the Bar in 1994. She transferred to become a solicitor and has spent a career since working primarily in criminal litigation. She has obtained higher rights of audience in the criminal courts and regularly practises there. Ms McGivern undertakes police station work as part of the duty solicitor scheme. 6. As a result of the contempt application that was made against her, Ms McGivern self-reported to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (“SRA”) and she ceased working for her firm. Although the SRA subsequently confirmed that she could continue working as a solicitor, Ms McGivern found the stress of facing the contempt application, and the possible consequences for her, too much to be able to continue work as a solicitor. She therefore remained absent from her firm, pending determination of the contempt application. A solicitor who is found to be guilty of contempt of court is likely to find that, in addition to any penalty imposed by the Court, s/he is likely to face further regulatory sanction that could include being struck off. For Ms McGivern the personal and professional stakes could not have been higher. B: The Injunction in the underlying proceedings and orders for alternative service 7. The claim brought by the Claimants was commenced on 13 August 2021. It sought interim and final remedies against those protesting about the activities of, primarily, the First Claimant at its site Wyton, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire (“the Wyton Site”). As originally framed, the claim was made against two representative Defendants (the First and Second Defendants), seven named Defendants (the Third to Ninth Defendants) and the Tenth Defendant, “Persons Unknown” then identified as those: “… who are protesting within the area marked in blue on the Plan attached at Annex 1 of the Claim Form and/or engaging in unlawful activities against the Claimants and/or trespassing on the First Claimant’s Land at [the Wyton Site] and/or posting on social media images and details of the officers and employees of MBR Acres Limited, and the officers and employees of third party suppliers and service providers to MBR Acres Limited”
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