Mackie Motors has been awarded £117,500 in legal costs after Renault, Nissan and RCI Financial Services were refused permission to appeal a ruling allowing the former dealer group’s £18 million claim to continue towards trial.
The Courier reports that deputy High Court judge Lance Ashworth KC rejected the defendants’ attempt to appeal his August decision refusing to strike out the claim or grant summary judgment in their favour.
The latest ruling represents another procedural victory for Mackie Motors, but it does not decide the underlying allegations, establish liability or determine whether the business is entitled to compensation.
Renault UK, Nissan Motor (GB) and RCI Financial Services can still apply directly to the Court of Appeal for permission to challenge the decision. The application must be made within 21 days of the September 10 ruling.
Appeal had no realistic prospect
Ashworth said the proposed appeal had “no realistic prospect of success” and that the defendants had not established that he had made an error in reaching his original decision.
“They (the defendants) do not like the conclusions I reached, but that is not a ground for an appeal,” he said.
The three defendants were ordered to pay Mackie Motors £117,500 towards the legal costs of the failed application. Mackie Motors had sought around £194,000.
The August judgment, Mackie Motors (Brechin) Ltd v Renault UK Ltd and others, rejected arguments that the claim repeated matters considered in earlier proceedings and amounted to an abuse of the court process.
Kevin Mackie, managing director of Mackie Motors, said: “This has never been solely about Mackie Motors. It is about accountability. Life is short, yet almost five years of mine have been taken from me by people who knew from an early stage that I had done nothing wrong.
“Rather than admit their mistakes, they doubled down and attempted to defend and conceal what had happened. The parallels with the treatment of the sub-postmasters are hugely troubling. They may have delayed justice, but they have not defeated it. The truth is coming out and accountability is coming with it.”
The case has wider significance for franchised dealers because it concerns the potential consequences when access to captive finance, vehicles and manufacturer systems is withdrawn at short notice.
However, Mackie Motors must still prove its allegations and establish its claimed losses at trial. No date for the full hearing has been announced. AM reached out to Renault, Nissan and RCI Financial Services for comment.
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