The High Court has refused an application by Andrea Monarca to strike out the defence filed by Hayes Solicitors LLP in his professional negligence proceedings against the firm.
Monarca is seeking damages over Hayes Solicitors' representation of him in legal claims against his former employer which were ultimately settled. He alleges negligence, breach of duty, breach of fiduciary duty and reputational harm.
Before the substantive case could be tried, Monarca asked the High Court to strike out Hayes Solicitors' defence on the basis that it disclosed no reasonable grounds of defence or amounted to an abuse of process.
Ms Justice Bolger dismissed that application in full. She stressed that striking out a defence is an exceptional jurisdiction and is not a method of deciding disputed issues summarily.
The court rejected Monarca's contention that observations by the Legal Services Regulatory Authority effectively established the merits of his complaints. As the plaintiff, he continues to carry the burden of proving his negligence case.
The judge also held that emails and other correspondence relied upon by Monarca could require proof and contextual evidence at trial. At this preliminary stage, the court could not simply prefer his account over Hayes Solicitors' pleaded version of events.
Monarca also argued that the firm should not be permitted to dispute the value or validity of his original employment claims because it had advised him to bring them. The court rejected that proposition. Representation in the original claims did not oblige the solicitors to admit their merits or maximum potential value in later negligence proceedings.
A further dispute concerns the absence of an employment reference from the settlement. The court noted that Monarca accepted he had not instructed Hayes Solicitors to obtain one and that there is no automatic legal entitlement to a reference.
The negligence action itself remains unresolved and can proceed toward trial. The judge's indicative view was that Hayes Solicitors should receive the costs of this failed application, subject to final orders.