The Commercial Court (Henshaw J) construed the terms of the Schedule to a Tomlin Order agreed between the parties at trial two years earlier.
The court concluded there had been no obligation for the Claimants to have used “reasonable endeavours” before being entitled to enter judgment for an agreed sum. The court considered the meaning and requirements of a “reasonable endeavours” obligation in the context of negotiations to reach and full and final settlement and said that, on the facts, the Claimants had discharged it, applying the summary judgment test. The court was prepared to admit evidence of the parties’ without prejudice negotiations, as an exception to the without prejudice rule or because the Defendants had put the parties’ conduct in issue.
Alexander Goold appeared for the successful Claimants.