Horizon - not fit for purpose, and Post Office knew it!
Monday 16 December 2019 - Horizon Issues Judgment handed down. What hundreds of Subpostmasters have been saying since Post Office installed its Horizon system circa 2000, has been upheld in the court findings handed down at the High Court.
“The approach by the Post Office to the evidence of someone such as Mr Latif demonstrates a simple institutional obstinacy or refusal to consider any possible alternatives to their view of Horizon, which was maintained regardless of the weight of factual evidence to the contrary. That approach by the Post Office was continued, even though now there is also considerable expert evidence to the contrary as well (and much of it agreed expert evidence on the existence of numerous bugs)”…“This approach by the Post Office has amounted, in reality, to bare assertions and denials that ignore what has actually occurred, at least so far as the witnesses called before me in the Horizon Issues trial are concerned. It amounts to the 21st century equivalent of maintaining that the earth is flat.” - Hon. Mr Justice Fraser
This, the second of a series of trials, addressed the issues relating to the Horizon system itself, including expert evidence from IT experts, began on 11th March 2019. This trial was interrupted on 21st March 2019 when Post Office Limited lodged an application for the Managing Judge, Hon. Mr Justice Fraser to recuse (sack) himself, alleging that he was 'biased' in the Judgment he had handed down on 15th March. On 9th April 2019 the application was refused, as was leave to apply to the Court of Appeal.
The Judgment follows on from the 5 week Common Issues trial held in the High Court’s Technology and Construction Court at the Rolls Building in London during November 2018, the Judgment for that trial, the first major victory for the group, was handed down on March 15th 2019.
Friday 10th May 2019, The Court of Appeal dismissed Post Office Limited’s application for permission to appeal Mr Justice Fraser’s recusal judgment. The Horizon trial continued from 4th June 2019 under the same Managing Judge.
Thursday 23rd May 2019, at a hearing under the direction of the Managing Judge, HH Justice Fraser, Post Office Limited was refused permission to appeal the Common Issue Judgment on all of the 48 grounds it had sought permission to. Post Office Limited was also ordered by the court to pay £5.5 million towards the Claimants' legal costs of the Common Issues Trial and a further £300,000 towards the legal costs of Post Office Limited's failed recusal application.
The second part of the delayed Horizon trial took place during weeks of the 3rd and 10th June 2019 when expert evidence of the IT system was heard. Closings for this trial were heard on 1st and 2nd July 2019 and the Judgment was handed down at 2pm on Monday 16 December 2019 in the Rolls Building, London. Read it here.
On 28th June 2019, Post Office Limited made an application for permission to appeal the Common Issues Judgment to the Court of Appeal. This application was heard by Lord Justice Coulson at the Royal Courts of Justice on 12 November 2019 and on 22 November 2019 the Application was refused on all of its 26 grounds. This now means that the Common Issues Judgment stands, which not only has major implications for the Post Office with regard to the legal action, but should have significant impact on all other serving Subpostmasters.
The Judgment follows on from the 5 week Common Issues trial held in the High Court’s Technology and Construction Court at the Rolls Building in London during November 2018, the Judgment for that trial, the first major victory for the group, was handed down on March 15th 2019.
Friday 10th May 2019, The Court of Appeal dismissed Post Office Limited’s application for permission to appeal Mr Justice Fraser’s recusal judgment. The Horizon trial continued from 4th June 2019 under the same Managing Judge.
Thursday 23rd May 2019, at a hearing under the direction of the Managing Judge, HH Justice Fraser, Post Office Limited was refused permission to appeal the Common Issue Judgment on all of the 48 grounds it had sought permission to. Post Office Limited was also ordered by the court to pay £5.5 million towards the Claimants' legal costs of the Common Issues Trial and a further £300,000 towards the legal costs of Post Office Limited's failed recusal application.
The second part of the delayed Horizon trial took place during weeks of the 3rd and 10th June 2019 when expert evidence of the IT system was heard. Closings for this trial were heard on 1st and 2nd July 2019 and the Judgment was handed down at 2pm on Monday 16 December 2019 in the Rolls Building, London. Read it here.
On 28th June 2019, Post Office Limited made an application for permission to appeal the Common Issues Judgment to the Court of Appeal. This application was heard by Lord Justice Coulson at the Royal Courts of Justice on 12 November 2019 and on 22 November 2019 the Application was refused on all of its 26 grounds. This now means that the Common Issues Judgment stands, which not only has major implications for the Post Office with regard to the legal action, but should have significant impact on all other serving Subpostmasters.