Lydia Pemberton has been successful for the Defendants in the High Court, the Claim against them having now been dismissed following the Claimant’s failure to pay the Security for Costs award ordered by Master Clark as reported in Nattachai v Burrage and Burrage [2025] EWHC 568 (Ch).
The Judgment on the Defendants’ Security for Costs application was handed down on 27 March 2025 and has been published elsewhere on LinkedIn, as well as garnering wider interest and intrigue both in the UK and Thailand. We are pleased to report that following Master Clark’s order, the Claimant indicated that she wished to withdraw her clams, and a final order has now been made disposing of the proceedings in the Defendants’ favour, along with costs orders against the Claimant. How enforceable those orders will prove to be in Thailand remains to be seen.
Lydia represented the Defendants throughout the High Court proceedings bought by the Claimant, a Thai national residing in Thailand who claimed to still be in a relationship with the Deceased at the time of his death. The Claimant made a number of claims against and to the Deceased’s estate – firstly claiming that an equity had arisen in her favour on the basis of proprietary estoppel, secondly claiming that the Deceased was indebted to her for the sum of c.£200,000, thirdly claiming that she had been maintained by the Deceased and was eligible for provision under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 and, finally, seeking an order passing over the executors under section 116 of the Senior Courts Act 1981.
The Claimant’s claim was littered with procedural errors throughout and following the Defendants’ successful application for an unless order in relation to the payment of the Issue Fee, and numerous other orders against the Claimant, Lydia went onto successfully represent the Defendants in their Security for Costs application where Master Clark agreed with Lydia that the Claimant had not given “full, frank and unequivocal” disclosure of her financial position.
This case serves as a reminder to Defendants that Security for Costs applications should not be shied away from and that claims to and against estates should be treated no differently to other civil litigation.
Lydia’s practice encompasses all types of claims to and against estates and in respect of proprietary interests and remedies.
A link to the judgment can be found here.
To learn more about Lydia’s practice, please visit https://www.selbornechambers.co.uk/barrister/lydia-pemberton/
