Supreme Court rewrites law on multipliers in fatal accident cases – Legal Futures

‘The Supreme Court has overturned two House of Lords judgments in ruling that the multiplier in assessing damages for fatal accident claims should be calculated from the date of the trial, not the date of death.’

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Litigation Futures, 24th February 2016

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Sharing the Spoils – Tanfield Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in covenants, insurance, interpretation, landlord & tenant, leases, news by sally

‘It is not uncommon for a lease to impose an obligation on one party or another to insure the subject property against the usual insured risks. But difficult questions can arise when the party placing the insurance is not the party in occupation. When and to what extent can the proceeds be shared? And what impact does such an arrangement have on damage caused by the occupier’s negligence?’

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Tanfield Chambers, 9th February 2016

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Burns v Burns – elderly testators, mental impairment and the ‘golden rule’ – Tanfield Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in elderly, mental health, news, wills by sally

‘What if an elderly client, whose state of mental health is uncertain, approaches you and asks you to prepare her will?’

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Tanfield Chambers, 8th February 2016

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Offers & CRU – Crooks v Hendricks Lovell Ltd [2016] – Park Square Barristers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in benefits, compensation, news, part 36 offers, personal injuries by sally

‘On the 15th January 2016 the Court of Appeal gave judgment in the case of Crooks v Hendricks Lovell Limited [2016] EWCA Civ 8, which concerned the interpretation of an offer made by a Defendant to settle a claim for personal injury and associated losses.’

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Park Square Barristers, 9th February 2016

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Catalogue of errors around protection of Jayden Parkinson before murder, review finds – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 24th, 2016 in domestic violence, homicide, news, police, reports by sally

‘Police and care services criticised over handling of Jayden Parkinson, 17, who was strangled by her violent ex-partner Ben Blakeley after she told him she was pregnant.’

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Daily Telegraph, 24th February 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Fraudulent credit hire claim leads to successful tort of deceit claim for costs of investigating such credit hire & exemplary damages – Park Square Barristers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in damages, deceit, fraud, insurance, news, personal injuries, road traffic by sally

‘Judy Dawson discusses how a combination of a quick witted insurer claims handler, a tenacious solicitor, and the expertise of the Park Square Barristers Civil Fraud Team led to a successful result against a fraudulent Claimant.’

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Park Square Barristers, 2nd February 2016

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Pension offsetting: a question for the Family Court, or for an actuary? – Tanfield Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in divorce, financial provision, news, pensions by sally

‘In ancillary relief litigation, whose responsibility is it to quantify the value of future pension benefits and their non-pension substitutes if offsetting is being considered? What method should be applied to any comparison of pension and non-pension assets?’

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Tanfield Chambers, 16th February 2016

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

CMA relaunches merger inquiry into acquisition of three supermarkets- six months after clearance – Zenith Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in competition, EC law, inquiries, mergers, news by sally

‘The CMA is investigating grocer Netto’s completed acquisition of three stores from Co-Operative Group. The announcement of a fresh UK merger control investigation comes in the wake of the CMA’s July 2015 clearance of the transaction and after learning that it should have been notified to the European Commission under the EU Merger Regulation.’

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Zenith Chambers, 5th February 2016

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Court of Appeal Guidance on Injunctions – Littleton Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in confidentiality, fees, injunctions, news, private hearings by sally

‘First, the Court of Appeal affirmed that it can be (and on the facts was) appropriate to hold hearings in private where a party asserts confidentiality both in the information itself, and also in the “very existence of [the] information”. The Court approved the principle that, where the effect of publicity would be to destroy the subject matter of litigation as to a secret process, it may well be that justice could not be done at all if it had to be done in public. In those circumstances, the general rule as to publicity of Court proceedings must yield to the interests of justice. It is well worth advisors bearing this in mind when dealing with confidential information cases, and making the appropriate applications at the earliest opportunity.’

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Littleton Chambers, 23rd February 2016

Source: www.littletonchambers.com

What is an easement and how are they created and used? – Tanfield Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in easements, news by sally

‘Imagine a farmhouse landlocked on all sides by fields, half a mile from the nearest road. The farmhouse and the fields are in separate ownership. How does the owner of the farmhouse get to the road? The answer to be found in the law of easements.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 16th February 2016

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Real Estate Developer Challenges Tesco in Competition Appeal Tribunal – Zenith Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in competition, news, restrictive covenants by sally

‘A property developer has brought proceedings in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) alleging that a 1997 land agreement with Tesco is in breach of competition law.’

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Zenith Chambers, 23rd February 2016

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Court lets mother appeal against ban on using dead daughter’s frozen eggs – The Guardian

Posted February 24th, 2016 in appeals, grandparents, human tissue, news, surrogacy by sally

‘A mother has been granted permission to appeal against a legal ban on her using her dead daughter’s frozen eggs in order to give birth to a grandchild.’

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The Guardian, 24th February 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Wrong turnings and joint enterprise – the new law restates the old – Park Square Barristers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in joint enterprise, murder, news by sally

‘Abdul Iqbal QC looks at the judgment delivered today in two important appeals relating to principal and secondary liability joint enterprise criminal law.’

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Park Square Barristers, 19th February 2016

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Challenging Government Decisions a Pain in the Neck – Henderson Chambers

‘On 11 December 2015, Cranston J gave Judgment in Speed Medical Examination Services Limited v Secretary of State for Justice [2015] EWHC 3585 (Admin). Cranston J held that the Defendant’s reforms in respect of the system for obtaining medical reports in whiplash cases was not open to challenge on grounds of irrationality or its purported anticompetitive effects.’

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Henderson Chambers, 3rd February 2016

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

High Court Confirms that the Insolvency Rules Can Waive Defects in Service of a Bankruptcy Petition – Littleton Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in bankruptcy, news, regulations, service by sally

‘The detailed procedural requirements of the Insolvency Rules 1986 make inadvertent breach a perpetual possibility. Debtors often try to take steps to frustrate the process, and may rely on such breaches to do so. A common tactic is to evade personal service. The Court is therefore faced with a need to balance the protections these procedural requirements establish against the possibility of their exploitation by unscrupulous debtors.’

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Littleton Chambers, 5th February 2016

Source: www.littletonchambers.com

Value of the thresholds under the directives on Public Procurement applicable from 1 st January 2016 – Henderson Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in contracts, EC law, news, public procurement by sally

‘On 15 December 2015, the Commission adopted new Regulations, Regulation (EU) Nos 2015/2340, 2015/2341 and 2015/23421, amending respectively Directives 2004/17/EC, 2004/18/EC and 2009/81/EC in respect of the relevant thresholds for the application of the procedures for the award of public contracts. The reason for this was to set the new procurement thresholds for the two year period beginning 1 January 2016 and to align the thresholds in the Directives with the thresholds applicable under the Agreement on Government Procurement.’

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Henderson Chambers, 10th February 2016

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

A “Legally Binding and Irreversible” Agreement on the Reform of the EU – Henderson Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in benefits, EC law, freedom of movement, news, treaties by sally

‘This Note addresses the question whether the agreement representing the outcome of the negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union on the reform of the EU can appropriately be characterised, in the Prime Minister’s phrase, as “legally binding and irreversible”. The original version of the Note was submitted as written evidence to the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee (“the Scrutiny Committee”), following on from oral evidence that I gave, together with Sir Francis Jacobs QC and Martin Howe QC, on 18 November 2015. That version was prepared in relation to the draft texts accompanying the letter dated 2 February 2016 from Mr Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, to the Prime Minister. As presented here, the Note relates to the agreement finally reached on 19 February 2016, which differs in some respects from the texts circulated on 2 February, but not so as to cause me to take a different view of the matters discussed.’

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Henderson Chambers, 20th February 2016

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Junior doctors launch legal challenge to Jeremy Hunt’s decision to impose new contract – The Independent

‘Junior doctors have a launched a legal challenge to Jeremy Hunt’s decision to impose a new contract, and announced that three fresh strikes will hit the NHS in the spring.’

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The Independent, 23rd February 2016

Source: www.independent.co.uk

The pints of justice? Could courts cases be heard in pubs? – Daily Telegraph

‘Lord Chief Justice appears to agree with calls to have cases heard in hotels and pubs as one in five courts are closed.’

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Daily Telegraph, 23rd February 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

No “big bang” on fixed costs, Lord Chief Justice predicts – Legal Futures

Posted February 24th, 2016 in costs, electronic filing, news by sally

‘The Lord Chief Justice has predicted that the use of fixed costs will be extended gradually and not in “one big bang”, which people would find “uncomfortable”.’

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Legal Futures, 23rd February 2016

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk