Island Records Ltd v Tring International Plc and Another
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judgment Date | 12 April 1995 |
| Date | 12 April 1995 |
| Court | Chancery Division |
Practice - Discovery - Application for summary judgment - Plaintiff claiming inquiry as to damages or account of profits - When election between remedies to be made - Court declaring entitlement to judgment for either of alternative remedies - Directions to enable plaintiff to make informed election within reasonable time
The plaintiff, as owner of the copyright in certain sound recordings, commenced proceedings against the defendants alleging infringement of the copyright and claiming an injunction restraining further infringement, an order for delivery up of infringing copies, and either an inquiry as to damages or an account of profits.
On the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment by way of, inter alia, an order that there be, at the plaintiff's option, either an inquiry to damages or an account of profits: —
Held, that although a plaintiff could not obtain judgment for both damages and an account of profits, and once judgment for either had been obtained the right of election and any claim to the alternative remedy was lost, a party ought not to be required to elect between remedies until and unless he was able to make an informed choice provided that the election was not unreasonably delayed to the prejudice of the defendant; that on a split trial or any application for judgment the court could grant a declaration that the plaintiff was entitled at his election to judgment for either remedy and give directions to secure that the plaintiff obtained such information as was reasonably required to enable him to make an informed election and that it was made within a reasonable time; and that, accordingly, there would be a declaration that the plaintiff was entitled at its election to an assessment of damages or an account of profits in respects of the defendants' infringements, and directions requiring the defendants to provide the plaintiff with a schedule detailing the figures which it sought within two months and the plaintiff to elect between the two remedies within seven days thereafter (post, pp. 1258F–H, 1259A–B, F–G, 1260B–D).
The following cases are referred to in the judgment:
Baldock v. Addison [
Benbow v. Low (
De Vitre v. Betts (
Fennessy v. Clark (
Mahesan s/o Thambiah v. Malaysian Government Officers' Co-operative Housing Society Ltd. [
Mate & Son v. Samuel Stephen Ltd. [
Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Co. v. C. Jeffries Pty. Ltd. [
Neilson v. Betts (
United Australia Ltd. v. Barclays Bank Ltd. [
MOTION
By a writ endorsed with statement of claim dated 20 November 1992 the plaintiff, Island Records Ltd., alleged against the defendants, Tring International Plc. and The Long Island Music Co. Ltd., infringement of copyright and claimed, inter alia, an injunction restraining further infringement, an inquiry as to damages and in the alternative an account of profits.
By notice of motion dated 7 March 1995 the plaintiff applied for summary judgment under
The facts are stated in the judgment.
Stephen Bate for the plaintiff.
Michael Silverleaf for the defendants.
12 April. LIGHTMAN J. handed down the following judgment.
I have before me a motion for judgment which raises a novel question of some far reaching importance relating to the election between remedies.
The plaintiff is the owner of the...
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