The Court of Appeal has allowed the appeal of Banca Nazionale Del Lavoro SPA represented by Jeff Chapman QC and Andrew de Mestre of 4 Stone Buildings. The bank appealed against a decision that it was liable for negligently giving a bank reference about a customer to a service company, Burlington Street Services Limited. The Playboy Club London Limited operated a Casino and relied upon the bank reference in giving a gambling customer a cheque cashing facility of £1.25 million. Unlike in Hedley Byrne there was no disclaimer on the reference. The Court of Appeal found that the customer’s identity and the purpose of the reference had been concealed from the bank to preserve the customer’s confidentiality and, in those circumstances, the bank had not assumed a responsibility to the Club and it was not fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty of care on the bank. Permission to appeal to the Supreme Court was refused. The full judgment is at [2016] EWCA Civ 457. Jeff and Andrew were instructed by Michael Brown and Jack Colthurst at Bird & Bird.
