Yorkshire firm sues former client

Yorkshire-based Haven Solicitors, and its founding partner Ronald Thompson, is suing its former client The Police Federation for slander.

Haven Solicitors advised The Police Federation on pensions as a member of its panel of law firms between 2014 and 2018, however it was dropped from the panel citing “concerns about the services provided to [the Federation’s] members”.

Having sought clarity on its perceived failings, Haven felt it had not been provided with an adequate explanation for being taken off the panel and later Thompson was told that the Federation’s head of civil claims Craig Hewitt had made slanderous comments about the firm, in confidence, at a meeting. As a result, Thompson decided to sue.

The claim was put before the High Court in a preliminary hearing last month. The claimants applied to amend their original claim to slander, malicious falsehood and pursued an injunction to prevent defendants from preventing them gaining access to witnesses of the meeting.

Judge Richard Spearman QC granted permission to amend the claim and ordered that a one-day hearing for the injunction application would be tabled for the first convenient date after 1 November.