Clifford Chance

The coming year promises to be another busy one in the class action space. Stay informed with our top 10 cases that will have cross-industry impact and shape the conduct of class actions in England and Wales.

1. High Court decision in Municipio de Mariana & Ors v BHP Group

The 12-week first stage trial of the largest group litigation in the English High Court, Municipio de Mariana & Ors v BHP Group, commenced in late 2024 involving over 600,000 claimant parties seeking compensation of up to £36bn in relation to the collapse of the Fundão Dam in Brazil in 2015.

The judgment, expected in late 2025, will be closely followed by both corporations and potential claimants considering the viability of pursuing group litigation to seek redress in respect of mass human rights or environmental harm. More detail on the claim can be found here.

2. Appeal decision in Wirral Council v Indivior plc

Late last year, the Court of Appeal heard Wirral Council's appeal against a High Court decision that blocked its securities claim from proceeding as an opt-in, bifurcated representative action. The Council accused the defendants of fraudulently marketing a drug for opioid addiction treatment and when it failed to disclose that information, investors allegedly suffered losses.

The appellate decision will provide insight as to what cases may be suitable to proceed as representative actions and, in particular, their applicability to securities claims under sections 90 and 90A FSMA. Learn more about the appeal here.

3. Appeal in Alex Neill v Sony

Following the Supreme Court’s decision in PACCAR, litigation funders were quick to amend their litigation funding agreements (“LFAs”) to survive in a world where their typical recoveries, a percentage of any damages recovered, were considered damages-based agreements that (in many instances) fell afoul of the relevant legislation and as such, were unenforceable.

In the meantime, the CAT has held that revised LFAs that calculate the funder’s fee based on the greater of a multiple of the funding the funder is contractually obliged to provide, or a percentage of the proceeds (to the extent such recovery is enforceable and permitted by law), are enforceable. Sony, the defendant in a class action that is funded on this revised basis, is appealing the CAT’s decision. The Court of Appeal was due to hear the case in December 2024. Like us, we expect litigation funders will be keeping a close eye out for the outcome of the appeal.

4. Trial for Dr Rachael Kent v Apple

This week, the first of the Big Tech collective action trials started with the 7-week hearing in Kent v Apple. Dr Kent represents 19.6m iPhone and iPad users in a claim said to be worth between an estimated £500m and £1.7bn, alleging that Apple abused its dominant position by forcing iOS app developers to distribute exclusively through the Apple App Store, and imposing excessive charges for downloads and in-app purchases.

Given the number of other Big Tech cases in the pipeline against Alphabet (Google), Meta and Sony, the outcome of the Apple case may well have a significant bearing on those cases and the growing use of the CAT as a forum for bringing actions against Big Tech.

5. Trial for Mark McLaren v MOL (Europe Africa) Ltd

Another first to start the new year – the first follow-on cartel damages collective action to proceed to trial in the UK kicked off this week, with the 10-week hearing in McLaren v MOL and Ors – a claim initially estimated to be worth £150m. Following the European Commission's Maritime Car Carriers decision (2018), McLaren represents millions of UK consumers and businesses who, it is claimed, overpaid for cars due to a cartel among major shipping companies, who colluded to manipulate delivery charges.

This case was making headlines long before the trial kick-off, given several mid-litigation settlements, the first in December 2023 being the very first settlement under the new opt-out collective action regime. The two remaining defendant parties will be hoping that the ship has not yet sailed on their chances of success.

6. Trial for Liz Coll v Alphabet

Later this year and one to watch, is the trial of the Coll v Alphabet collective action, scheduled for October 2025. Coll represents 19.5m consumers in an opt-out claim allegedly worth up to an estimated £920m, and where it is claimed that Google abused its dominant position, both by excluding competition through restrictions on distribution of apps outside of the Google Play store, and in imposing an excessive commission on digital purchases from the Play store. The case has been part-consolidated with similar proceedings brought by Epic Games against the same defendants.

7. Trial for 'Pan-NOx’ emissions (dieselgate) group litigation: 

Stemming from the dieselgate scandal, the technical trial for the 'Pan-NOx' emissions group litigation is due commence in October 2025. The group action is comprised of 1.2m claimants, grouped within 13 separate Group Litigation Orders ("GLOs"), against multiple defendants in car manufacturing.

The High Court has taken a proactive strategy towards case management and cost control throughout the litigation to date. Following a CMC in summer 2024, the High Court criticised the claimants' substantial budgeted costs and significantly reduced them by nearly 75%. It has also designated four of the GLOs as 'lead' cases, with the others stayed pending trial, and outlined that the litigation will proceed in tranches.

As it evolves, the case will continue to be of significant interest to all parties involved in group actions as an example of bespoke case management that the High Court is increasingly adopting in complex multi-party litigation.

8. Merricks settlement dispute

The CAT will soon hear from Mr Merricks as he seeks approval for the in-principle settlement of the interchange fee umbrella class action, which was set to have trial 2 commencing in March 2025. Merrick’s litigation funder, Innsworth, is expected to intervene as it has publicly disclosed its displeasure with the proposed settlement calling it “too low and premature”. 

9. Certification hearing for Bulk Mail Claim

This opt-out claim is being brought on behalf of a proposed class of 290,477 retail customers following Ofcom's 2018 decision that found discriminatory pricing in the supply of bulk mail delivery services. . The claim is estimated to be worth up to £878.5m. It is alleged that Royal Mail introduced discriminatory prices, abusing its dominant position in the market for bulk mail.

A 3-day certification hearing is listed to begin on 3 March 2025.

10. Trial for the military deafness group litigation

In October 2025, the trial for the military deafness litigation will commence. The trial follows a settlement reached with the Ministry of Defence in July 2024 which disposed of the issues of duty of care and limitation in return for an agreed percentage reduction of final damages. Given the thousands of ex-military claimants now expecting compensation, the trial will focus on the issue of medical causation and the resulting impact on quantum.