West Yorkshire Police v Reading Festival

Robert Englehart QC successfully acted as lead counsel for Reading Festival in this Court of Appeal case concerning the funding of a large police operation during a music festival in Leeds. The appellant, Reading Festival Ltd, is part of the Mean Fiddler group which puts on a number of different pop festivals, including Glastonbury. The case concerned the Leeds music festival which takes place over the August bank holiday weekend. The police sued to recover the costs of mounting a large police operation in the surrounding villages. Mean Fiddler said that it should not have to pay because it had not asked for this operation and it was part of the police's public duty to keep law and order. The Judge in Leeds found for the police, but the Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Reading Festival. Blackstone Chambers' Robert Englehart QC, with Max Mallin of 11 Stone Buildings as junior counsel, were instructed by Freeth Cartwright of Nottingham.