Month: September 2012
Abu Hamza launches last-minute high court challenge to extradition – The Guardian
“Abu Hamza al-Masri has launched a last-minute appeal to the high court to block his imminent extradition to the US to stand trial on terrorism charges.”
The Guardian, 26th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Minefield around traveller site’ jibe broke equality law – BBC News
“A councillor breached equality laws when he suggested putting a minefield around a travellers’ site in Cambridgeshire, a report has said.”
BBC News, 26th September 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
The extradition that changes the game – The Independent
“The court ruling that settled Abu Hamza’s fate has raised concerns for the rights of others fighting to be tried in Britain.”
The Independent, 26th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Government plan for courts to sit in private is rejected – The Independent
“The Liberal Democrat leadership suffered an embarrassing defeat last night as activists rejected Government plans to allow some courts to sit in private to hear evidence relating to national security.”
The Independent, 26th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Phone hacking: judge reveals relative is among claimants – The Guardian
“The high court judge presiding over 155 civil damages claims for alleged phone hacking being brought against News of the World’s publisher has disclosed that one of his relatives is among the fresh cases.”
The Guardian, 25th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
A Salutary Lesson on Bad Character – The Devil Is In The Detail – Zenith Chambers
“In a recent Crown Court trial the Prosecution made a Bad Character application alleging that the factual basis of a previous conviction was so similar to the alleged facts of the instant case, that the previous conviction should be admitted. This was propensity with a heavy dollop of similar fact.”
Full story (PDF)
Zenith Chambers, 17th September 2012
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Pay To Stay: A potential can of worms in social housing reform – Hardwicke Chambers
“‘For far too long, millions of people on waiting lists have watched helplessly as high-earning social tenants continue to occupy homes designed to help the most vulnerable…if they want to continue using this precious national resource, they will pay for the privilege.’
When the then Housing and Local Government Minister, Grant Shapps MP, launched a consultation on giving social landlords the power to charge market rents to high income tenants on 13 June 2012, he did so using deliberately strong language.”
Harwicke Chambers, 13th September 2012
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
A closed door – Article 8 defences in mandatory possession cases – Hardwicke Chambers
“The Supreme Court in Manchester City Council v Pinnock [2010] UKSC 45; [2011] 2 AC 104 and The Mayor & Burgesses of the London Borough of Hounslow v Powell [2011] UKSC 8; [2011] 2 WLR 287 severely restricted the likelihood of an occupier facing (mandatory) possession of their home successfully defending such a claim in reliance upon Article 8 of the Convention Rights – the right to respect for private and family life.”
Hardwicke Chambers, 13th September 2012
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
Divorce – needs and non-matrimonial assets: formula or flexibility? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange
“The Law Commission recently published a supplemental consultation paper (Matrimonial Property, Needs and Agreements – Law Com 2012/208) following its earlier consultation on marital property agreements in 2011. The focus of the supplemental consultation is two particularly problematic aspects of financial provision on divorce or civil partnership dissolution: needs and non-matrimonial assets.”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 24th September 2012
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
Time to untangle the debate over secret courts – UK Human Rights Blog
“Tomorrow (25 September), Liberal Democrats will debate the Justice and Security Bill and will vote on saying no to the Government’s controversial secret courts proposals. Played in the press as a good opportunity to put clear blue water between the coalition partners, the motion will give a party members a chance to speak out on a Bill which many see as an anathema to the traditional liberal commitment to open, fair and equal access to justice.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 24th September 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Chagos Refugees Group in the First-Tier Tribunal: some key points – Panopticon
“The Chagos Archipelago forms part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (‘BIOT’). In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the inhabitants of the Chagos Islands were required to leave those islands. At or around that time, a US military base was established on Diego Garcia, the largest of the Chagos Islands. The removal of the ‘Chagossians’ has been a matter of considerable political and media debate, as well as complex legal proceedings. Two legal challenges are ongoing: Chagos Islanders v UK before the European Court of Human Rights, and Bancoult (No 3) before the domestic courts.”
Panopticon, 24th September 2012
Source: www.panopticonblog.com
Cocaine plot mastermind jailed for 28 years – The Independent
“A 61-year-old man has been jailed for 28 years after masterminding a plot to smuggle 1.5 tonnes of cocaine into the UK.”
The Independent, 24th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Ministry of Justice abandons £10m raid on medical negligence damages – Daily Telegraph
“Attempts to claw back almost £10 million a year from compensation awarded to disabled children and their families have been abandoned.”
Daily Telegraph, 24th September 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Bye bye Abu Hamza – but why did it take so long? – UK Human Rights Blog
“The European Court of Human Rights has refused the request of Mustafa Kamal Mustafa (Abu Hamza) and four others to refer their extradition appeal to its Grand Chamber for another hearing. This means that their case, which was decided in the Government’s favour in April (see our post) is now final. There are therefore no remaining barriers to their extradition to the United States to face terrorism charges.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 25th September 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Tony Nicklinson and the right-to-die debate: the questions that still need answering – Halsbury’s Law Exchange
“The ruling in the recent case brought by the late Tony Nicklinson and another man, known only as ‘Martin’, who both had ‘locked-in’ syndrome, before the High Court ([2012] EWHC 2381 (Admin)), has raised many complicated questions about death in our society. The most difficult of these questions has been to what extent it is for an individual to decide that they wish their life to be ended. The particular complexity in this specific case was that, as both men had ‘locked-in’ syndrome, they were physically incapable of committing suicide, even with the assistance of another person (a situation which no longer carries automatic prosecution under guidelines issued recently by the DPP; Policy for Prosecutors in Respect of Cases of Encouraging or Assisting Suicide, February 2010,).”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 24th September 2012
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
Government admits secret courts would protect it from bad publicity – The Guardian
“The government has admitted that a key motive for its plan to expand secret courts is to shield itself politically from charges that Britain has been complicit in the abuse of detainees abroad.”
The Guardian, 24th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
