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Hello all

An interesting footnote to the Woolwich decision has recently been reported in the Times. It seems that the Government moved swiftly to enact legislation to ensure that no other building society could maintain a similar restitution action to that which the Woolwich had successfully maintained. That legislation was the subject of a challenge before the European Court of Human Rights, which has recently held that, although it retrospectively removed a cause action which had accrued to the applicants, constituted neither an invasion of their property rights (Art 1 of Protocol 1 to the Convention), nor unjustifiable dissimilar treatment (Art 14 of the Convention).

I seem to recall that Lord Goff had in Woolwich referred to "prudence, also known as the Treasury". It seems that prudence has managed to limit the fiscal fall-out from Woolwich.

For those who are interested, the full title to this case is

CASE OF THE NATIONAL & PROVINCIAL BUILDING SOCIETY, THE LEEDS PERMANENT BUILDING SOCIETY ANd THE YORKSHIRE BUILDING SOCIETY v. THE UNITED KINGDOM

and it is available from the server of the European Court of Human Rights at

http://www.dhcour.coe.fr/eng/ NATIONAL%20&%20PROVINCIAL%20ENG.html

Best regards to all

Eoin.

EOIN O'DELL
Barrister, Lecturer in Law
Trinity College
Dublin 2
Ireland
ph (+ 353 - 1) 608 1178
fax (+ 353 - 1) 677 0449
Live Long and Prosper !!
(All opinions are personal; no legal responsibility whatsoever is accepted.)