Walker v Wilsher
1889 · 23 QBD 335
Posted By lanbuk.com
- Facts
- After judgment the judge was asked to look at letters headed , in order to decide the costs. One side said the letters showed the other had refused a reasonable offer.
- Issue
- May a judge read without-prejudice correspondence when the only remaining question is costs?
- Held
- No, not without the consent of both parties. Lord Esher MR held that without prejudice means without prejudice to the position of the writer if the offer is not accepted. The letters stay out.
- Principle
- An offer of settlement is not an admission. The protection covers the negotiations, and it covers costs as well as liability.
- Why it matters
- Rush & Tompkins extends the same protection against other parties in the litigation. The label is not magic. The letter must be a genuine attempt to settle.
Words and Latin in this note
- Without prejudice
- A genuine offer to settle a civil dispute, and the negotiations around it, cannot be shown to the court as an admission. The label does not protect a letter that is not a real attempt to compromise. Open the note.
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