“Estoppel per rem judicatam is a rule of evidence whereby a party (or his privy) is precluded from disputing in any subsequent proceedings matters which had been adjudicated upon previously by a competent court between him and his opponent. If the evidence of the res was admissible and properly admitted it becomes judicata irrespective of the time the proceedings involving it were initiated. In Morrison Rose and Partners v. Hillman [1961] 2 Q.B. 266, a similar argument was addressed to the Court of Appeal and was rejected. In the course of his judgement Holroyd Pearce, L.J. observed at p.277 as follows:- “I can find no ground for creating an artificial exception from the general rule of estoppel per rem judicatam by distinguishing res judicatae that follow the issue of a writ from those which precede it. The principles which make the latter desirable have no less application to the former, and should be applied to both alike.”
LawCompass
… the Digital Solution Research Tool
