Searchable transcripts of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry hearings
  • Transcripts
  • Evidence list
Searchable transcripts of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry hearings
  • Evidence
  • WBON0001495 - Email from Andrew Parsons to Tom Beezer, David Cavender, Gideon Cohen and others re: URGENT: Litigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL PRIVILEGE [WBDUK-AC.FID26896945] - with attachments.

WBON0001495 - Email from Andrew Parsons to Tom Beezer, David Cavender, Gideon Cohen and others re: URGENT: Litigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL PRIVILEGE [WBDUK-AC.FID26896945] - with attachments.

Evidence on official site

WBONO0001495
WBON0001495,

From: Andrew Parsons

David Cavender

Subject: RE: URGENT: itigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL
PRIVILEGE. [WBDUK-AC.FID26896945]

Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2019 23:47:27 +0000
Importance: Normal
Attachments: draftPOL.DOCX

Inline-Images: image001.png; image002.png; image003.png; image4c6b18.PNG; imagec52c57.PNG;
imagef95f0b.PNG

Tom

I've had a good go at this. My version attached.

Did Jane want us to offer a recommendation on whether to do this or not? It seems like we are sitting on the fence
slightly, but sometimes she prefers that.

A

Andrew Parsons
Partner
Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP.

Stay informed: sign up to our e-alerts

Join us for Disrupting Disputes 2.0
20 March 2019 at the British Library

Book your place here

WOMBLE womblebonddickinson.com
BOND
DICKINSON ¥) (i)

From: Tom Beezer

Sent: 15 March 2019 20:46

To: David Cavender

Cc: Gideon Cohen; Amy Prime; Andrew Parsons

Subject: RE: URGENT: Litigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL PRIVILEGE. [WBDUK-
AC.FID26896945]

WBD_001365.000001
WBONO0001495
WBON0001495

All

See attached.

I may be on Jane's wavelength — I may not be...

I took Jane's few questions verbatim and addressed them as best I could with the info know to me or that I can ferret
out. I limited myself to two pages.

All comments welcomed.

Andy, I followed Nick B's format and warning at the header of the doc. Normal ? Useful ?

All - be as harsh as you like. I am not proud.

I would like to get something out to Jane early tomorrow — 10am or earlier.

I hope I have broken the back of it for you and it is quick and easy to comment...

Cheers

Andy/Primer — note this is NOT a doc’ on the system yet it is from my desktop...

Tom Beezer
Partner
Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP

Stay informed: sign up to our e-alerts

Join us for Disrupting Disputes 2.0
20 March 2019 at the British Library

Book your place here

WBD_001365.000002
WBONO0001495
WBON0001495,

WOMBLE womblebonddickinson.com

N
DICKINSON (J) (in)

From: David Cavender
Sent: 15 March 2019 19:24

To: Tom Beezer

Cc: Gideon Cohen; Amy Prime; Andrew Parsons

Subject: Re: URGENT: Litigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL PRIVILEGE. [WBDUK-
AC.FID26896945]

Tom,

Many thanks for this. Sounds like a plan.

I can attend the board meeting if necessary.
Best

Dz.

Sent from my iPhone

On 15 Mar 2019, at 18:50, Tom Beezer I
wrote:

David, Gideon

The plan is that I cobble together a short note addressing Jane's points (see below — addressing the first set of
points anyway, perhaps not the financial impact questions on which I have no info’) and then send that out to
you & Andy P later tonight or early tomorrow morning.

Andy will be in the land of the living again tomorrow am and so will comment and make into the kind of
note we would actually send to POL (as I am new into all of this and kind of shooting blind) and it would be
great if you could cast your eve over it too. It won't be long as it needs to be really punchy and accessible for
non-legal Board members. Either AP or I will send to Jane by (say) 10am tomorrow. This e mail is just to
give you a heads up on that, and if you are around to review, then great. If not then no worries.

David — there is talk of a POL Board Meeting on Monday afternoon at some point. 5pm has been mentioned.
Jane has not said it yet (and may not) but I can see the request coming that you (and perhaps me too) join
that meeting. If that request comes, are you free to do that ? I think this is the meeting at which they decide
yes/no on recusal application.

I have asked Rob at OEC (at Jane's request) to see if Lord Neuberger were available in theory to dial in.

T'll be in touch with a draft later.

Kind regards

WBD_001365.000003
WBONO0001495
WBON0001495,

Tom Beezer
Partner
Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP

Stay informed: sign up to our e-alerts<https://www.womblebonddickinson.com/uk/preferences>

Join us for Disrupting Disputes 2.0
20 March 2019 at the British Library

Book your place here<https://www.womblebonddickinson.com/uk/insights/events/disrupting-disputes-20>

<imageb244c1.PNG><http://>
womblebonddickinson.com<https://www.womblebonddickinson.com>
<image966575.PNG><https://www.twitter.com/wbd_uk> <image6e0530.PNG>

<https://www.linkedin.com/company/womble-bond-dickinson-uk-IIp/>

From: Tom Beezer

Sent: 15 March 2019 15:52 i _

To: Andrew Parsons; David Cavender . GRO.
Ce: Amy Prime; Gideon Cohen ee ~
Subject: RE: URGENT: Litigation Options - CONFIDENTIAL AND SUBJECT TO LEGAL PRIVILEGE.
[WBDUK-AC.FID26896945]

Parson...lets discuss this when you surface at some point.

David — copied to you too as we may need some input from you as my bank of historic knowledge on all this
is thin to put it kindly !

Jane says:

We are setting up a board call for Spm Monday, and I will need to issue a ‘plain English’ paper to the Board
over the weekend to get them familiarised with the issue. In particular that will need to address:

* Why we are considering a recusal application

* What the application (if successful) will achieve

+ Risks of not proceeding

+ Prospects of success: what advice have we received, who from

+ Process & timing

In addition, the following Monday (25th) we have a scheduled Board meeting and I will need to be able to

WBD_001365.000004
WBONO0001495
WBON0001495,

brief in more detail on an appeal, recognising that it will still be a work in progress. However as we don’t
have another scheduled Board until end May, it is likely that we will need the Board to endorse the appeal
strategy at end March, with a further approval meeting/call once the appeal grounds are finalised and we can
assess ‘risk’.

As mentioned I think that as part of the initial Appeal discussion, the board will want to understand the scale
of the financial risk of:

(a) not appealing (and therefore how many existing & historic contracts will be affected by the judgement?)
(b) appealing and losing (same as above?)

(c) appealing and winning — restores contracts to pre-judgement position

Recognising in each case that the consequences apply not just to the claimant group but to all postmasters on
those contracts types, and potentially, all those on other contract types but who have substantially the same
provisions.

I copy this to us all at this point to get us all thinking.

t

Please consider the environment! Do you need to print this email?

The information in this e- mail and any attachments is confidential and may be legally privileged and
authorised to access

protected by law. dcavendert GRO.
this e-mail and any attachments. If you a are not deavendert
please notify tom.beezer possible and delete
any copies. Unauthorised use, dissemination, distribution, publication or copying of this communication or
attachments is prohibited and may be unlawful. Information about how we use personal data is in our
Privacy Policy<https://www.womblebonddickinson.com/uk/privacy-policy> on our website.

Any files attached to this e-mail will have been checked by us with virus detection software before
transmission. Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP accepts no liability for any loss or damage which may be
caused by software viruses and you should carry out your own virus checks before opening any attachment.

Content of this email which does not relate to the official business of Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP, is
neither given nor endorsed by it.

This email is sent by Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP which is a limited liability partnership registered
in England and Wales under number OC317661. Our registered office is 4 More London Riverside, London,
SEI 2AU, where a list of members' names is open to inspection. We use the term partner to refer to a
member of the LLP, or an employee or consultant who is of equivalent standing. Our VAT registration
number is GB123393627.

Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP is a member of Womble Bond Dickinson (International) Limited, which
consists of independent and autonomous law firms providing services in the US, the UK, and elsewhere
around the world. Each Womble Bond Dickinson entity is a separate legal entity and is not responsible for
the acts or omissions of, nor can bind or obligate, another Womble Bond Dickinson entity. Womble Bond
Dickinson (International) Limited does not practice law. Please see
www.womblebonddickinson.com/legal<http://www.womblebonddickinson.com/legal> notices for further

details.

Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

WBD_001365.000005
WBONO0001495
WBON0001495

This email has been scanned by the Symantec Email Security.cloud service.
For more information please visit http://www.symanteccloud.com

This email has been scanned by the Symantec Email Security.cloud service.
For more information please visit http://www.symanteccloud.com

WBD_001365.000006
Previous Next

© Crown Copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Converted by Matthew Somerville.