''Norwich Pharmacal Co. & Others v Customs and Excise Commissioners''
974AC 133 was a case involving the owner and exclusive licensee of a patent, which was infringed by unknown importers of the chemical into the
United Kingdom. Norwich Pharmacal Co brought proceedings against the Excise Commissioners to force the disclosure of information which would identify the importer of the chemical, and therefore those who infringed the patent. The
House of Lords held that where an innocent third party had information relating to unlawful conduct, a court could compel them to assist the person suffering damage by giving them that information. The case established the Norwich Pharmacal jurisdiction and disclosure orders against innocent third parties are now known as
Norwich Pharmacal order
A Norwich Pharmacal order is a court order for the disclosure of documents or information that is available in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is granted against a third party which has been innocently mixed up in wrongdoing, forcing the disclos ...
s in the UK.
The case
The case was brought by
Norwich Pharmacal Co. and the exclusive licensee of a patent for an
antibacterial called
furazolidone
Furazolidone is a nitrofuran antibacterial agent and monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI). It is marketed by Roberts Laboratories under the brand name Furoxone and by GlaxoSmithKline as Dependal-M.
Medical uses
Furazolidone has been used in human ...
. Between 1960 and 1970 unlicensed shipments of the chemical were imported into Britain, therefore Norwich Pharmacal Co. knew that its patent was infringed but was unable to identify the importers. The
Commissioners for Customs & Excise held information that would identify the importers, but would not disclose this, claiming that they had no authority to give such information.
Norwich Pharmacal Co. brought proceedings against the Excise Commissioners, to force the Commissioners to disclose the names of the importers, which were the ''Intended Defendants''. In ''Norwich Pharmacal Co. v Customs and Excise Commissioners''
974the
House of Lords held that where an innocent third party has information relating to unlawful conduct, a court could compel them to assist the person suffering damage by giving them that information.
[ The judgement is based on the 19th Century procedure known as the ''bill of discovery''.]
Norwich Pharmacal jurisdiction
The 1974 House of Lords ruling in ''Norwich Pharmacal Co. v Customs and Excise Commissioners'' established what is known as the Norwich Pharmacal jurisdiction, which allows UK courts to grant disclosure orders, known as ''Norwich Pharmacal orders'', against innocent third parties which have been mixed up in wrongdoing. By identifying individuals the documents and information sought are disclosed in order to assist the applicant for such an order in bringing legal proceedings against individuals who are believed to have wronged the applicant. While first developed in relation to intellectual property, such as patents, Norwich Pharmacal orders are now granted in relation to other torts
A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...
, as well as defamation
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
and breach of contract
Breach of contract is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party ...
, and alleged criminal offences. More recently Norwich Pharmacal orders are used against internet hosting services
An Internet hosting service is a service that runs servers connected to the Internet, allowing organizations and individuals to serve content or host services connected to the Internet.
A common kind of hosting is web hosting. Most hosting provi ...
and internet service providers
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise privatel ...
to identify users which have allegedly engaged in wrongdoing.
See also
* Anton Piller order
In English and English-derived legal systems, an Anton Piller order (frequently misspelled ''Anton Pillar order'') is a court order that provides the right to search premises and seize evidence without prior warning. This is intended to prevent t ...
References
External links
Full transcript
at BAILII
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norwich Pharmacal Co. v Customs and Excise Commissioners
House of Lords cases
1973 in case law
1973 in British law