Dad guilty of 14-year-old daughter’s murder – BBC News
‘A man who claimed his daughter died in a “freak accident” during a play-fight with a knife has been found guilty of her murder.’
BBC News, 27th January 2024
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Author: sally
Sam Guy: The Government’s Plan to Reform Infrastructure Judicial Review – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘On 23 January, Sir Keir Starmer announced plans to “stop blockers getting in the way” of infrastructure development, by introducing restrictions on judicial review of infrastructure projects. Notwithstanding this government’s consistent commitment to reforming the planning system, so as to galvanise infrastructure and housing delivery, and its forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill, the announcement of these particular proposals may have come as something of a surprise to public lawyers. The proposals are, though, largely reflective of an Independent review into legal challenges against Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects led by Lord Banner KC (“the Banner Review”), which was commissioned by the previous Conservative government, and they follow on from the Ministry of Justice’s call for evidence on implementing some of Lord Banner’s proposals, which ran from 28 October 2024 to 30 December 2024.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 28th January 2025
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
SRA can keep disciplinary decisions online for longer – Legal Futures
‘The Legal Services Board (LSB) has approved plans by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to change its publication policy and keep details of misconduct on its website for longer.’
Legal Futures, 28th January 2025
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Journalists win appeal over naming of judges who decided historic care proceedings relating to Sara Sharif – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Court of Appeal has allowed an appeal brought by two journalists against a judge’s decision to order the anonymisation of the names of the circuit judges that had decided historic care proceedings relating to Sara Sharif, who was murdered by her father and step-mother in 2023.’
Local Government Lawyer, 17th January 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
New practice guidance on intermediaries in family courts – Transparency Project
‘New practice guidance ‘The use of Intermediaries, Lay Advocates and Cognitive Assessments in the Family Court’, was issued by the President of the Family Division on 23 January.’
Transparency Project, 27th January 2025
Source: transparencyproject.org.uk
XL bully owner jailed for man’s attack death – BBC News
‘The owner of an XL bully dog which chased and killed a man has been jailed for three years.’
BBC News, 27th January 2025
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Representative actions for mis-use of private information: “very difficult to bring” Prismall v Google [2024] EWCA Civ 1516 – Henderson Chambers
‘The Court of Appeal has upheld the striking out a representative action for misuse of private information. The judgment confirms the correct approach to identifying whether all claimants have the necessary ‘same interest’ in order to pursue a representative action. It highlights the risk that stripping back a claim to its lowest common denominator so as to satisfy the ‘same interest’ requirement may result in the pared down claim having no real prospect of success. Indeed, the Court of Appeal concluded that “a representative class claim for misuse of private information is always going to be very difficult to bring”.’
Henderson Chambers, 23rd December 2025
Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk
Parks and interpretation – Wyldecrest Parks Management Ltd [2024] UKUT 355 (LC) – Gatehouse Chambers
‘It’s time to unwrap Rule 7(6) of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rules 2013 (‘the Tribunal Rules’): the Upper Tribunal (‘UT’) has held in Wyldecrest Parks Management Ltd [2024] UKUT 355 (LC) that the First-tier Tribunal (‘FTT’) is not entitled under Rule 7(6) to require one party to serve the Tribunal’s directions on another, but must do so itself.’
Gatehouse Chambers, 11th December 2025
Source: gatehouselaw.co.uk
Administrative Law Principles in Context: Environmental Assessment Goes Up in Flames- Cambridge Law Journal
‘A massive reduction in the combustion of fossil fuels will be required if the UK is to meet its target of “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050. At a global scale, reliance on fossil fuels will need to be greatly reduced if irreversible impacts on the environment are to be avoided. It is against this background that the Supreme Court has had to answer the following question: in circumstances where there is an obligation to consider the environmental effects of a development proposal for the extraction of fossil fuels, must the climate impacts of the eventual combustion of those fossil fuels be assessed?’
Cambridge Law Journal, 7th January 2025
Source: www.cambridge.org
Frome residents win five-year battle for community-led housing project – The Guardian
‘Residents of a “renegade” Somerset market town have won their battle to create an innovative 5-hectare (12-acre) community-led development that includes homes, workspaces and a lido, after councillors agreed to sell a large brownfield site to the not-for-profit social enterprise behind the project.’
The Guardian, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
Menzies v Oakwood: requirement for specific agreement to transform retention of client monies into the payment of solicitors’ bills – Gatehouse Chambers
‘In Menzies v Oakwood Solicitors [2024] UKSC 34, the Supreme Court considered the meaning of payment for the purposes of section 70(4) of the Solicitors Act 1974 (SA 1974).’
Gatehouse Chambers, 20th December 2024
Source: gatehouselaw.co.uk
MPs to examine work of county court amid concerns over capacity and resources – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Justice Committee has launched a new inquiry to examine the work of the County Court amid “persistent” concerns over capacity and resources.’
Local Government Lawyer, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Southport attacker Axel Rudakubana jailed for 52 years for murder of three girls – The Guardian
‘The Southport killer Axel Rudakubana has been jailed for a minimum of 52 years for the “ferocious” and “sadistic” knife rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.’
The Guardian, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
HO v TL – Business Valuations, Trust Interests & Needs Plus Costs – Becket Chambers
‘In view of the name of this case HO v TL [2024] 2 FLR 175, and the fact that the family business was a hotel business, I really hope that it will become known as “The Hotel Case”. Anyway, it does deserve to become known, because it is another decision from Peel J of the type referred to by Edward Kenny in his article last month, i.e. a really useful authority that sets out fundamental points, and quite a lot of them in this case. What is more, the costs decision in this case is also reported HO v TL (Costs) [2024] 2 FLR 200 and fits into the same category.’
Becket Chambers, 18th December 2024
Source: becket-chambers.co.uk
Immigration Blog: A Guide to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) Practice Direction 2024 – Garden Court Chambers
‘On 1 November 2024, the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) (FTT IAC) ushered in a new era with the publication of its latest Practice Direction (PD). This comprehensive document replaces previous iterations and Practice Statement No. 1 of 2022, signifying a considerable shift in the landscape of immigration and asylum appeals.’
Garden Court Chambers, 19th December 2024
Source: gardencourtchambers.co.uk
Woman jailed over crash that killed baby outside hospital in Haverfordwest – The Guardian
‘A woman has been jailed for four years for causing the death of an eight-month-old baby girl in a crash outside a hospital after losing control of her car while reaching for a handbag.’
The Guardian, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
Council prosecution sees abortion clinic protestor hit with £7,500 costs order – Local Government Lawyer
‘A protester has been ordered to pay more than £7,500 after failing to comply with a public space protection order (PSPO), which created a designated safe zone outside a reproductive health clinic in Ealing.’
Local Government Lawyer, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
What qualifies a law degree: surveying elective module provision in undergraduate legal education across England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 2023–2024 – The Law Teacher
‘This paper explores the contemporary elective module provision in undergraduate English law degrees. The demise of the qualifying law degree as a requirement to pursue qualification as a solicitor in England and Wales means that providers of undergraduate English law degrees now have increasing flexibility over the structure and content of courses. This paper reviews elective modules offered at providers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in the academic year 2023–2024 and finds that while there is increasing diversity among elective provision when compared to historic provision, there is also a degree of standardisation among degree providers. It discusses the significance of this standardisation in the post-qualifying law degree world and develops seven themes based on current elective provision to highlight the broader trends in elective provision. It then concludes by arguing that the legacy of the qualifying law degree is clearly influencing the new normal and suggests several questions which this raises for undergraduate legal education going forward.’
The Law Teacher, 22nd January 2025
Source: www.tandfonline.com
R v Jones Case Comment: Running diminished responsibility without an expert – Pump Court Chambers
‘Diminished responsibility is one of the partial defences available to those charged with murder. If a defendant is found to have had diminished responsibility during the commission of the offence, they are not acquitted but rather found guilty of voluntary manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.’
Pump Court Chambers, 20th December 2025
Source: www.pumpcourtchambers.com
Legal challenges to UK infrastructure projects to be blocked in push for growth – The Guardian
‘Campaigners will be blocked from “excessive” legal challenges to planning decisions for major infrastructure projects including airports, railways and nuclear power stations as part of the government’s drive for economic growth.’
The Guardian, 23rd January 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
