The Application of the Amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules – Speech by Master of the Rolls

Posted March 26th, 2013 in civil procedure rules, news, speeches by sally

The Application of the Amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules (PDF)

Speech by Master of the Rolls

District Judges’ Annual Seminar, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

In the teeth of it … – NearlyLegal

Posted March 26th, 2013 in appeals, evidence, housing, mental health, news by sally

“In El-Dinnaoui v Westminster CC [2013] EWCA Civ 231, the Court of Appeal found that the offer of a flat on the 16th floor of a block to a household which contained a person with fear of heights was perverse. The offer of accommodation was ‘in the teeth’ of the medical evidence. How could the case have got this far, one might well ask? At heart in this case, there is something interesting about the reception by homelessness officers about medical evidence (see comments at the end). The final point by way of introduction is a hat-tip to Debra Wilson at Anthony Gold who, I’m told, took Mr El-Dinnaoui’s appeal pro bono (and won).”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Should prison be reserved for dangerous criminals? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted March 26th, 2013 in dangerous offenders, detention, news, prisons, sentencing by sally

“This month we saw eight-month sentences handed out to Chris Huhne and his ex-wife Vicky Pryce for perverting the course of justice. Both had been warned to ‘be under no illusion as to the likely sentence’ – the judicial way of saying, ‘expect a custodial sentence’. Of course, the lawyers would tell you that this was inevitable as the courts treat such crimes severely.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Will the Public Sector Equality Duty survive the Red Tape Challenge? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 26th, 2013 in equality, government departments, local government, news by sally

“In May 2012, the Home Secretary announced a review of the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), which came into force a year earlier in April 2011, as an outcome of the Red Tape Challenge. The review is focusing in particular on levels of understanding of the PSED and guidance, the costs and benefits of the duty, how organisations are managing legal risk and ensuring compliance with the duty and what changes, if any, would secure better equality outcomes. It is being overseen by a steering group, appointed by Government Ministers, largely drawn from public authorities.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Law Commissions call for consumer protections to be extended to end user licence agreements – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 26th, 2013 in consumer protection, Law Commission, news, unfair contract terms by sally

“Legal protections preventing the inclusion of unfair contract terms in consumer contracts should be extended to apply to less formal notices, such as those included as part of software end user licence agreements (EULA), law reform bodies have said.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 25th March 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

The Justice Committee and the Information Commissioner – Panopticon

Posted March 26th, 2013 in data protection, freedom of information, news, reports, select committees by sally

“On 21st March 2013 the House of Commons Justice Committee published a report (HC 962) on the functions, powers and resources of the Information Commissioner. It is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the current role and future prospects of the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).”

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Panopticon, 25th March 2013

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Justice and Security Bill: The “Secret Courts” Endgame? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 26th, 2013 in bills, closed material, news, parliament, private hearings by sally

“Today we will see the beginning of the end of the passage of the Justice and Security Bill through Parliament: the process commonly known as parliamentary ‘ping-pong’.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 26th March 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Targeted support for women offenders – Ministry of Justice

Posted March 26th, 2013 in news, prisons, rehabilitation, reports, women by sally

“Female offenders should receive more targeted support to break the cycle of crime and abuse many of them face, Justice Minister Helen Grant said today.”

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Ministry of Justice, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.justice.gov.uk

Human Rights and Family Law Spring Update – Family Law Week

“Deirdre Fottrell, barrister of Coram Chambers, reviews recent cases involving human rights issues which are of significance to family lawyers.”

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Family Law Week, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Master of the Rolls hits out at “media-created perception” of a compensation culture – Litigation Futures

Posted March 26th, 2013 in compensation, judges, media, news, speeches by sally

“The courts are ‘very aware’ of the dangers of feeding media perceptions of a compensation culture, the Master of the Rolls has said.”

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Litigation Futures, 25th March 2013

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Wandsworth jail criticised over prisoner death – The Guardian

Posted March 26th, 2013 in death in custody, inquests, news, prisons by sally

“An inquest jury has criticised procedures and practice at the UK’s biggest jail following the death of a prisoner, jailed for stealing a gingerbread man in the 2011 riots.”

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The Guardian, 26th March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Taylor and another v A Novo (UK) Ltd – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in appeals, law reports, negligence, post-traumatic stress disorder by sally

Taylor and another v A Novo (UK) Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 194; [2013] WLR (D) 119

“A person who suffered psychiatric illness (post-traumatic stress disorder), after witnessing the sudden collapse and death of her mother who had been injured at work by the admitted negligence of the defendant employer some three weeks earlier, did not have a right of action as a secondary victim for damages against the defendant, since there was an insufficient relationship of proximity between the person suffering the psychiatric illness and the defendant.”

WLR Daily, 18th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Swift v Secretary of State for Justice – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in accidents, appeals, cohabitation, damages, families, human rights, law reports by sally

Swift v Secretary of State for Justice [2013] EWCA Civ 193; [2013] WLR (D) 118

“The exclusion of a person, cohabiting for less than two years with another who had subsequently died, from the classes of family members entitled to claim damages for loss of dependency under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, as amended, was a proportionate means of pursuing the legitimate legislative aim of confining the right to recovery to those who had relationships of some degree of permanence and dependence. Accordingly, section 1(3)(b) of the 1976 Act, as substituted by section 3(1) of the Administration of Justice Act 1982, was not incompatible with article 14, in conjunction with article 8, of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and the choice made by the legislature was not manifestly without foundation and was one Parliament was entitled to make. And even if the section amounted to an interference with the right to respect for family life in breach of article 8.1, the interference was justified under article 8.2.”

WLR Daily, 18th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Hampshire County Council – WLR Daily

Regina v Hampshire County Council [2013] WLR (D) 117

“There was no reason to stay confiscation proceedings where a trademark offence had been committed, because trademark offences were lifestyle, repeat offences, which did real damage to those entitled to the profits of a trademark and deprived the manufacturers of the legitimate fruits of the research and development of their product and it was proceeds which mattered rather than blame.”

WLR Daily, 20th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina v Mahmood – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in confiscation, conspiracy, crime, law reports, proceeds of crime, sentencing by sally

Regina v Mahmood [2013] EWCA Crim 325; [2013] WLR (D) 116

“When calculating the expenditure incurred during a conspiracy, the statutory assumption in section 10(4) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 did not mean that each conspirator was treated as having incurred all of the expenditure and evidence was required about the particular conspirator who had incurred it.”

WLR Daily, 22nd March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Salzburger Flughafen GmbH v Umweltsenat (Landesumweltanwaltschaft Salzburg and another intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in airports, appeals, EC law, environmental protection, law reports by sally

Salzburger Flughafen GmbH v Umweltsenat (Landesumweltanwaltschaft Salzburg and another intervening) (Case C-244/12); [2013] WLR (D) 115

“When a member state, pursuant to article 4(2)(b) of Council Directive 85/337/EEC, with regard to projects falling within the scope of the discretion under Annex II whether to carry out an environmental assessment (‘EA’), established a threshold which was incompatible with the obligations laid down in articles 2(1) and 4(3) of that directive, the provisions of articles 2(1) and 4(2)(a) and (3) of the directive had direct effect, which meant that the competent national authorities had to ensure that it was first examined whether the projects concerned were likely to have significant effects on the environment and, if so, that an assessment of those effects was then undertaken.”

WLR Daily, 21st March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Regina (Thames Water Utilities Ltd) v Bromley Magistrates’ Court (No 2) – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in environmental protection, law reports, sewerage, waste, water companies by sally

Regina (Thames Water Utilities Ltd) v Bromley Magistrates’ Court (No 2) [2013] EWHC 472 (Admin); [2013] WLR (D) 114

An unintended escape of sewage amounted to a “deposit” for the purpose of an offence under section 33(1)(a) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

WLR Daily, 20th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

In re P-S (Children) (Care Proceedings: Evidence) – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in appeals, children, evidence, law reports by sally

In re P-S (Children) (Care Proceedings: Evidence) [2013] EWCA Civ 223; [2013] WLR (D) 113

“Although a child in care proceedings concerning him had the right to be “heard” in the proceedings, there was no rule as to how that was to be achieved, and a young boy, who had been granted status as a party to care proceedings concerning him, did not have the right to insist that he be permitted to give evidence to the court.”

WLR Daily, 21st March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Day v Harris and others; Same v Royal College of Music and another (Arnold and another, interpleader claimants) – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in appeals, law reports, powers of attorney by sally

Day v Harris and others; Same v Royal College of Music and another (Arnold and another, interpleader claimants) [2013] EWCA Civ 191; [2013] WLR (D) 112

“Section 7(1)(c) of the Enduring Powers of Attorney Act 1985 did not have the effect of preventing a person who was the attorney under a registered enduring power of attorney from benefiting himself out of the donor’s money in a manner not authorised by the enduring power of attorney without the approval of the court, provided that he was acting in a different capacity (such as that of an authorised signatory to a bank account in the donor’s name), and the donor retained sufficient mental capacity to consent to such an act and gave full, free and informed consent to its being done.”

WLR Daily, 20th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Apex Global Management Ltd v FI Call Ltd and others – WLR Daily

Posted March 26th, 2013 in conflict of laws, immunity, law reports, royal family by sally

Apex Global Management Ltd v FI Call Ltd and others [2013] EWHC 587 (Ch); [2013] WLR (D) 111

On the proper construction of section 20(1)(b) of the State Immunity Act 1978, whilst an adult member of a sovereign’s or head of state’s family exercising royal or presidential, constitutional and representational functions could be regarded in some circumstances as a member of the sovereign’s or head of state’s household, even though he or she lived apart from the sovereign or head of state, such a situation would be rare, and would be likely to be restricted to the case of a regent, heir to the throne or a person broadly exercising the sovereign’s or head of state’s functions in a full time capacity on his behalf.

WLR Daily, 19th March 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk