In England and Wales, the ability to set aside judgments obtained by fraud reflects the principle articulated in the 70-year-old decision of the Court of Appeal in Lazarus Estates Ltd v Beasley [1956] that “fraud unravels everything”.
Whilst the burden on those bringing claims to set aside judgments on the basis of fraud is high and successful claims remain rare, 2025 saw a number of claims commenced and decided on the basis of this legal doctrine. This includes proceedings commenced by Lee Castleton (a former sub-postmaster and one of the most prominent individuals affected by the British Post Office scandal) against Post Office Ltd (the Post Office) and Fujitsu Services Ltd on a number of grounds, including that a prior judgment (from 2007) was obtained against him by fraud.
The recent activity in this area serves as a reminder of the delicate balance the court must strike between the finality of judgments and the need to rectify injustice. This GT Alert provides a recap of the relevant case law and looks ahead to the next step in Mr Castleton’s claim following a decision from the court on case management further to a hearing on 23 January 2026.
Click here to read the full GT Alert.
*Special thanks to London Litigation Paralegal Francesca Neagus˘ for her valuable contributions to this GT Alert.