I think there is a real and important difference between the position of the solicitor before the unlawful event and the position afterwards. We cannot properly advise our clients to commit a tort but they are entitled to our advice once the tort has been committed. Marco Pierre White’s claim against his wife’s solicitors stands or falls on the question of the advice they gave her before she did anything which could amount to the alleged tort. In other words, did they tell her to take his documents?

In any event might the refusal to look at the boxed documents have raised problems later on in the case. If the client had read the documents and, from her knowledge of them had been able to identify non disclosure, how would her legal team have dealt with the evidential problem?