On 20 July a nine-panel Supreme Court handed down judgment in Patel v Mirza, concerning illegality in private law. Professor Graham Virgo, Professor of English Private Law advised the Respondent in this case whom the Justices unanimously decided should recover money he had paid, even though he had participated in a criminal conspiracy involving insider dealing.
The decision of the Supreme Court is significant in resolving a long-standing controversy as to how claims in tort, contract and unjust enrichment should be affected by the taint of illegality. A majority of the Justices have adopted a discretionary approach to the defence of illegality, which has regards to a variety of factors to determine whether the taint of illegality should defeat a claim.