Appeal judges reject attempts to blame lawyers for convictions – Legal Futures

‘The Court of Appeal has rejected two separate attempts by convicted criminals to blame poor performance by lawyers for their convictions.’

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Legal Futures, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Widow sues AstraZeneca after husband’s Covid-19 vaccine death – BBC News

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in bereavement, coronavirus, married persons, news, personal injuries, vaccination by sally

‘A woman is suing AstraZeneca after her husband died from a “rare reaction” to the company’s Covid-19 vaccine.’

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BBC News, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

UK quits treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over climate policies – The Guardian

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in climate change, energy, news, treaties by sally

‘The UK is pulling out of a treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over their climate policies.’

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The Guardian, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Stolen treasures – Counsel

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in artistic works, news, theft by sally

‘In August 2023, the British Museum issued a press release that set hares running in the art world. Two thousand assets from its permanent collection had been stolen or damaged. Some, it transpired, had gone missing in plain sight. This prompted a fast-moving review into the Museum’s security apparatus, resulting in the resignation of its director and the dismissal of members of staff implicated in a programme of digital heists. But most notable, perhaps, was the ire of public scrutiny that was raised in the wake of the scandal: how did the Museum drop the ball so critically that the security and integrity of its entire collection came to be compromised? The seriousness of the matter was compounded, no doubt, by the fact that the provenance of scores of the stolen pieces derived from other civilisations. As such, a decades-old debate has now reignited concerning the moral basis for the acquisition and continued custodianship over foreign cultural treasures.’

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Counsel, 19th February 2024

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Employers must make ‘reasonable adjustments’ for women going through menopause – The Guardian

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in employment, equality, health, menopause, news, women by sally

‘Employers could be sued for disability discrimination if they fail to make “reasonable adjustments” for women going through menopause under new guidance issued by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on Thursday, amid concern over the number of women leaving their jobs due to symptoms.’

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The Guardian, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Avon calling again with the latest word … on compromises! – Pensions Barrister

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in amendments, civil procedure rules, compromise, news, pensions by sally

‘Paul Newman KC has written a casenote on the judge’s second judgment, delivered on 19 February, in the Avon case in relation to the compromise of the Courage issue that arose in that case.’

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Pensions Barrister, February 2024

Source: www.pensionsbarrister.com

Baby loss certificates introduced in England – BBC News

Posted February 22nd, 2024 in bereavement, birth certificates, families, news by sally

‘Bereaved parents who lose a baby before 24 weeks of pregnancy in England can now receive a certificate in recognition of their loss.’

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BBC News, 22nd February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Removing UK climate protesters’ defence ‘could erode right to trial by jury’ – The Guardian

‘A UK government attempt to remove one of the last remaining defences for climate protesters would be a slippery slope to the erosion of the constitutional right to trial by jury, the court of appeal was told on Wednesday.’

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The Guardian, 21st February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Black women at the Bar: challenges faced and a fairer future – Counsel

‘Bibi Badejo reports from a packed Inns of Court Women’s Alliance event examining the experiences of Black women barristers and imparting crucial advice for Black women navigating the legal profession.’

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Counsel, 19th February 2024

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

New guide to help evidence the role of racism in state-custody deaths – JUSTICE

Posted February 21st, 2024 in bereavement, death in custody, families, inquests, news, racism by sally

‘A new guide released today (21/2/24) provides lawyers representing families bereaved by deaths in police custody, prisons, immigration detention, and mental health settings with the legal expertise to raise the potential role of race and racism at inquests. It also provides foundational knowledge and strategy to coroners to ensure they satisfy their duty in fully investigating the circumstances in state custody deaths.’

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JUSTICE, 21st February 2024

Source: justice.org.uk

Supreme Court to hear appeal by Welsh council next week in Japanese knotweed case – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 21st, 2024 in appeals, damages, housing, local government, news, nuisance, Supreme Court, Wales by sally

‘The Supreme Court will next week hear a council’s appeal of a Court of Appeal judgment which overturned lower court rulings that found diminution in value in Japanese knotweed cases was irrecoverable economic loss and ordered the council to pay damages to a property owner.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 20th February 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

£1.2bn Is Spent Convicting People By Association, Including Innocent Bystanders – Each Other

Posted February 21st, 2024 in bills, budgets, criminal justice, homicide, joint enterprise, news, prosecutions, statistics by sally

‘A recent report by Manchester Metropolitan University, ‘The Mounting Cost of Injustice: Calculating the Economic Cost of Joint Enterprise’, reveals that £1.2bn of taxpayer money is spent annually to convict an average of 1,088 individuals under joint enterprise.’

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Each Other, 19th February 2024

Source: eachother.org.uk

Negligence case by schizophrenic man who killed three OAPs gets go-ahead – The Independent

‘A paranoid schizophrenic who killed three pensioners will be allowed to continue his legal challenge over his treatment from authorities before the deaths, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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The Independent, 20th February 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Teachers in England could face ban for failing to report evidence of sexual abuse of children – The Guardian

‘Teachers in England face being banned if they fail to report evidence of children being subjected to sexual abuse under plans for new legislation announced by the home secretary, James Cleverly.’

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The Guardian, 21st February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

SDT rules that solicitor posted antisemitic tweets – Legal Futures

‘The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) yesterday upheld allegations that a solicitor published antisemitic and offensive posts on social media and also abused Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) staff.’

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Legal Futures, 21st February 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

High court rejects legal challenge over UK arms sales to Israel – The Guardian

Posted February 21st, 2024 in government departments, human rights, international law, Israel, news, war, weapons by sally

‘The high court has dismissed a case urging the suspension of UK arms sales to Israel.’

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The Guardian, 20th February 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Bronson Battersby: Independent review confirmed – BBC News

Posted February 21st, 2024 in children, families, inquests, negligence, news, social services by sally

‘An in-depth, independent review into the death of a two-year-old boy and his dad will be held by the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Partnership.’

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BBC News, 20th February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

SSHD’s appeal on Bouchereau exception dismissed by Court of Appeal – EIN Blog

Posted February 20th, 2024 in criminal records, disclosure, drug offences, immigration, news by tracey

‘Secretary of State for the Home Department v Okafor [2024] EWCA Civ 23 (23 January 2024). The Court of Appeal has held that UT Judge Grubb’s decision to allow the appeal of Mr Okafor, a Nigerian citizen against the refusal of his leave to enter the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme, notwithstanding his previous conviction for serious drug offences and subsequent related disclosure failures when applying for leave to enter, disclosed no error of law that justified or permitted interference. The judge had considered the cumulative effect of all relevant matters and had not erred in concluding that the individual’s overall conduct did not fall within the exception in R v Bouchereau (Case 30-77) [1978] QB 732 such as to justify his exclusion on the basis that it represented a “genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat affecting one of the fundamental interests of society” under regulation 27(5)(c) of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2016. Moylan, Stuart-Smith and Snowden LJJ dismissed the SSHD’s appeal and upheld UT Judge Grubb’s decision to allow Mr Okafor’s appeal against the cancellation and refusal of his leave to enter the UK. Mr Okafor was married to a Swedish national who had been granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK in 2019. He was granted entry clearance under the EUSS in July 2020. On his arrival in the UK in September 2020 with an EUSS family permit, he was refused admission on public policy grounds. His permit was revoked and his leave to enter cancelled under paragraph 321B of the Immigration Rules.’

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EIN Blog, 19th February 2024

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Raffael N. Fasel: Ouster Clauses and the Silent Constitutional Crisis – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted February 20th, 2024 in constitutional law, judicial review, judiciary, news, parliament, Supreme Court by tracey

‘In a recent comment on the Government’s Rwanda Bill and on speculations about an unprecedented strike down by the Supreme Court, Professor Mark Elliott asked a question that has been on many UK public lawyers’ minds lately: “Are we headed for a constitutional crisis?” This question, to be sure, is not new. However, with a Government and Parliament increasingly willing to act with disregard for cardinal constitutional principles such as the rule of law and with certain judges’ growing outspokenness about their intention to resist further attacks on the country’s constitutional fundamentals, determining whether we are indeed in a constitutional crisis has gained great urgency. For if we are already in a crisis, then it may be necessary to take action to prevent the situation from spiralling out of control.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 20th February 2024

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Ofcom rejects Brewdog complaint over BBC documentary – BBC News

Posted February 20th, 2024 in BBC, complaints, freedom of expression, media, news, privacy, public interest by tracey

‘A complaint by Brewdog about a BBC documentary that highlighted allegations of inappropriate behaviour against the beer giant’s chief executive has been rejected by Ofcom.’

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BBC News, 19th February 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk