Recent Statutory Instruments – legislation.gov.uk

Posted May 10th, 2024 in legislation by michael

 

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Case Law Update: Savage V Savage [2024] EWCA Civ 49 – St Philips Barristers

‘In Savage v Savage [2024] EWCA Civ 49 (“Savage”), the Court of Appeal reached a much required decision on the statutory interpretation of Section 15 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (“TOLATA 1996”) and held that, when considering an application under Section 14 TOLATA 1996 and a dispute between beneficiaries of a trust of land, the Court was permitted to consider the circumstances and wishes of the minority beneficiaries under Section 15 (3) TOLATA 1996.’

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St Philips Barristers, 16th April 2024

Source: st-philips.com

Man convicted of jealousy-fuelled prom night murder – BBC News

Posted May 10th, 2024 in imprisonment, murder, news, sentencing, young offenders, young persons by sally

‘A man has been found guilty of murdering a teenager in an “unprovoked” attack on the night of the victim’s school prom.’

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BBC News, 9th May 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

End majority jury verdicts to prevent more justice ‘horror’, says Malkinson – The Guardian

‘Andrew Malkinson says he could have been spared “20 years of darkness and despair” if the jury system had not been changed to allow majority verdicts.’

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The Guardian, 9th May 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Single online entry point for legal disputes “should be hosted by HMCTS” – Legal Futures

Posted May 10th, 2024 in consultations, HM Courts Service, internet, Law Society, legal advice, news by sally

‘HM Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) should host a proposed single online entry point for legal disputes, whether or not they end up in court, respondents to a Law Society consultation have agreed.’

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Legal Futures, 10th May 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Data, disclosure and duties: balancing privacy and safeguarding in the context of UK university student sexual misconduct complaints – Legal Studies

‘The past decade has seen a marked shift in the regulatory landscape of UK higher education. Institutions are increasingly assuming responsibility for preventing campus sexual misconduct, and are responding to its occurrence through – amongst other things – codes of (mis)conduct, consent and/or active bystander training, and improved safety and security measures. They are also required to support victim-survivors in continuing with their education, and to implement fair and robust procedures through which complaints of sexual misconduct are investigated, with sanctions available that respond proportionately to the seriousness of the behaviour and its harms. This paper examines the challenges and prospects for the success of university disciplinary processes for sexual misconduct. It focuses in particular on how to balance the potentially conflicting rights to privacy held by reporting and responding parties within proceedings, while respecting parties’ rights to equality of access to education, protection from degrading treatment, due process, and the interests of the wider campus community. More specifically, we explore three key moments where private data is engaged: (1) in the fact and details of the complaint itself; (2) in information about the parties or circumstances of the complaint that arise during the process of an investigation and/or resultant university disciplinary process; and (3) in the retention and disclosure (to reporting parties or the university community) of information regarding the outcomes of, and sanctions applied as part of, a disciplinary process. We consider whether current data protection processes – and their interpretation – are compatible with trauma-informed practice and a wider commitment to safety, equality and dignity, and reflect on the ramifications for all parties where that balance between rights or interests is not struck.’

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Legal Studies, 3rd May 2024

Source: www.cambridge.org

Man known as ‘eunuch maker’ who streamed mutilations is jailed for life – The Guardian

Posted May 10th, 2024 in conspiracy, grievous bodily harm, imprisonment, internet, news, sentencing by sally

‘The leader of a “grisly and gruesome” extreme body modification network who streamed mutilations on his “eunuch maker” website has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years.’

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The Guardian, 9th May 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Pipe Organs – repair, removal and replacement – Law & Religion UK

Posted May 10th, 2024 in Church of England, faculties, news by sally

‘Church pipe organs have featured in fewer than 2% of the total number of consistory court judgments reviewed in L&RUK. Nevertheless, the following links provide an indication of the range of issues that have been considered by the courts.’

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Law & Religion UK, 10th May 2024

Source: lawandreligionuk.com

Bringing the Right to Strike Home: Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Mercer – Part 2 – Oxford Human Rights Hub

‘The first part of this blog outlined the facts and decision in the Supreme Court case, Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Mercer, as well as the approach the Court took in distinguishing between private sector and public sector employment. The second part of this blog considers the approach of the Supreme Court in distinguishing between the “core” and “essential” in respect of trade union rights. While the reasoning of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is sometimes a little opaque, these two terms are not interchangeable in RMT. The right to strike is not yet designated as an “essential” trade union freedom, though it is an integral prop to other “essential” rights such as the right to make representations and the right to bargain collectively. In RMT, the distinction between “core” and “accessory” is being used in a different sense, to emphasise gradations of importance within a specific right (“essential” or otherwise). In RMT, for example, the Court was drawing a distinction between primary strike action, which was “core” and deserving of stronger protection, and “secondary” strike action which was “accessory” and therefore amenable to a wider margin of appreciation. The situation in Mercer involved a primary strike, and hence applying RMT it was at the “core” of the right to strike. This conceptual distinction is therefore internal to the right to strike. It is very likely that the right to bargain collectively, essential in Article 11 terms, also has “core” and “accessory” elements to it.’

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Oxford Human Right Hub, 10th May 2024

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Bringing the Right to Strike Home: Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Mercer – Part 1 – Oxford Human Rights Hub

‘Individual strikers are protected from dismissal where they are dismissed for participating in “protected” (i.e lawful and official) industrial action, under s. 238A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA). However, there are many ways in which employers can penalise individual strikers other than through dismissal, such as through demotion, suspension, fines, disciplinary warnings, and disproportionate pay deductions. In Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Mercer, the Supreme Court considered if a worker proposing to strike was protected from “detriment” under TULRCA 1992, s. 146. This was because it concerned her participation in the “activities of an independent trade union”. The Supreme Court concluded that strike action was excluded from s.146, principally because it was not “at an appropriate time” [44]-[45]. This meant that there was no statutory protection for the claimant, Ms Mercer, who (on the assumed facts) had been suspended for activities connected to a lawful and official strike. The effect of this was to create a zone of impunity for employers engaged in the selective victimisation of individual strikers.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 10th May 2024

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

It’s official: fixed costs for clinical negligence set for October – Legal Futures

‘The government has finally confirmed that fixed recoverable costs (FRC) for low-value clinical negligence claims that settle pre-issue will come into force in October 2024, six months later than planned.’

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Legal Futures, 10th May 2024

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Premier League club boss wins anonymity in child sex abuse civil case – BBC News

Posted May 10th, 2024 in anonymity, child abuse, children, civil justice, damages, news, sexual offences, sport by sally

‘A Premier League boss has been granted a High Court anonymity order in a civil case against him for allegedly sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl.’

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BBC News, 9th May 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Time for Parliament to act? The PACCAR decision of the UK Supreme Court – Legal Studies

Posted May 10th, 2024 in appeals, competition, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘Litigation funding has become an essential ingredient in collective actions for breaches of competition law brought in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). In the recent PACCAR proceedings, the Supreme Court was asked to rule on the nature and enforceability of litigation funding agreements (LFAs) between third-party litigation funders and group representatives where the success fee is determined as a percentage of the damages award. The Court held with a 4:1 majority (Lady Rose dissenting) that the LFAs in question are damages-based fee agreements (DBAs) and, as such, unenforceable. This judgment has wide-ranging consequences, as the CAT is unlikely to allow collective actions to proceed if the funding agreements cannot be relied on. The decision has caused uncertainty and upheaval in the funding market as a considerable number of funding agreements in collective proceedings contain DBAs. It also triggered legal challenges in collective proceedings where funders are seeking to amend the funding agreements to deal with the Supreme Court ruling. The fall-out from the decision suggests that funding rules for collective actions may need more legislative attention – litigation funding was given some thought during the drafting of the opt-out action regime, but the legal framework for litigation funding remains fragmented and open to interpretation.’

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Legal Studies, 6th May 2024

Source: www.cambridge.org

Government triggers crisis measure to ease prison overcrowding – The Guardian

Posted May 10th, 2024 in early release, Ministry of Justice, news, prisons by sally

‘The government has formally triggered a crisis measure to ease prison overcrowding by using police cells to house inmates.’

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The Guardian, 9th May 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

What is the infected blood scandal? Everything you need to know ahead of milestone report – The Independent

Posted May 10th, 2024 in blood products, government departments, HIV, inquiries, news by sally

‘A public inquiry into the long-running infected blood scandal is due to publish its findings later this month, with a compensation scheme running into the billions thought to be amongst recommendations.’

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The Independent, 9th May 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Court of Appeal rejects challenge over enforcement notice and application of Murfitt principle – Local Government Lawyer

Posted May 10th, 2024 in appeals, enforcement notices, housing, local government, news, planning by sally

‘A planning inspector misdirected himself in a dispute over the construction of a house in Beaconsfield and misunderstood case law, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 9th May 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk