Withdrawing admission

White v Greensand Homes Ltd and another CA TLR 19 July

CPR rule 17.1.2(b) requires that where a party has served a defence, he might amend it only with the permission of the court. In deciding whether or not to grant permission, the court should, where the effect of the amendment would withdraw an admission made in an earlier statement of case, have regard to CPR rule 14.1, which provides that a party may admit the truth of the whole or any part of another party’s case and that the court may allow a party to amend or withdraw an admission. The court should do so in order to give effect to the overriding objective of dealing with the case justly, having regard to the relative prejudice, which would be suffered by each party if the admission was or was not withdrawn. Accordingly, the court was able to apply the overriding objective to allow the defendant to amend his defence and withdraw his admission made by mistake.