High Court rejects challenge to BSB disciplinary tribunals – Legal Futures

Posted October 17th, 2013 in appeals, barristers, disciplinary procedures, inns of court, news, tribunals by sally

“A High Court judgment that refused three applications for judicial review of barristers’ disciplinary decisions is to be appealed, after the court found that anomalies in tribunal panel member appointments did not affect the validity of the findings.”

Full story

Legal Futures, 17th October 2013

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Foreign criminal awarded £25,000 damages – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 17th, 2013 in contempt of court, damages, detention, government departments, news by sally

“A foreign criminal jailed for robbery has been awarded £25,000 damages because of mistakes made by the Home Office during deportation proceedings.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 16th October 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Middle classes who pay for care could get more rights – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 17th, 2013 in care homes, elderly, human rights, news by sally

“Hundreds of thousands of middle class elderly people may be protected under human rights laws for the first time after a vote in the House of Lords last night.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 17th October 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Ex-EDL leaders will not face court over alleged obstruction of police – The Guardian

Posted October 17th, 2013 in demonstrations, evidence, news, police, political parties, prosecutions by sally

“Two former English Defence League leaders will not have to answer a charge of obstructing police after prosecutors deemed there was insufficient evidence against them.”

Full story

The Guardian, 16th October 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Leveson lawyer: Too many potential witness were scared off by threat of ‘monstering’ from certain newspapers – The Independent

Posted October 17th, 2013 in inquiries, media, news, witnesses by sally

“Potential witnesses holding relevant evidence that should have been heard by Lord Justice Leveson’s press probe were scared off by the perceived threat of being ‘monstered’ by certain newspapers, according to the QC who lead questioning at the inquiry.”

Full story

The Independent, 16th October 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Ofcom to monitor quality of TV subtitling – BBC News

Posted October 17th, 2013 in complaints, disabled persons, media, news by sally

“Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom will begin a regular audit of the quality of broadcasters’ subtitles from next year.”

Full story

BBC News, 16th October 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Pure evil’: 10-year-old deaf and mute girl trafficked to UK, kept in cellar and raped by pensioner – The Independent

Posted October 17th, 2013 in benefits, children, disabled persons, fraud, news, rape, trafficking in human beings by sally

“A pensioner who trafficked a 10-year-old deaf and mute girl into Britain, keeping her in his cellar to claim benefits, was convicted yesterday of repeatedly raping her.”

Full story

The Independent, 17th October 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

DPP issues tough new guidelines for child sex cases aimed at ensuring more convictions, reveals Keir Starmer – The Independent

“New guidelines for dealing with child sex abuse cases published today will mark ‘the most fundamental attitude shift’ in the criminal justice system in a generation, the Director of Public Prosecutions has claimed.”

Full story

The Independent, 17th October 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Extent of spies’ mass surveillance to be investigated by parliamentary body – The Guardian

Posted October 17th, 2013 in inquiries, intelligence services, news, select committees, spying by sally

“The extent and scale of mass surveillance undertaken by Britain’s spy agencies is to be scrutinised in a major inquiry to be formally launched on Thursday.”

Full story

The Guardian, 17th October 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

EVENT: Queen Mary – CLSGC: Authority in a Transnational Age

Posted October 16th, 2013 in Forthcoming events by sally

“Contemporary jurisprudence – and legal scholarship and legal education more generally – is currently under serious challenge from the emergence of arguably new legal phenomena at the non-state or transnational level. This challenge is both substantive and methodological. Substantively, legal scholars are being confronted with, and asked to explain, phenomena which cannot easily be explained by theories which put the sovereign state at the centre. Such phenomena include internet regulation and the new lex mercatoria. New jurisprudential problems are also raised by the growth of transnational communities, which bring with them a variety of different legal traditions and understandings. Methodologically, in this context, traditional conceptual analysis is arguably ever more in need of being informed by empirical analysis – for the old concepts, and their universalistic tendencies, are being criticised as inadequate.”

Date: 8th-9th November 2013, 9.00-5.00pm

Location: Arts Two Lecture Theatre, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London E1 4NS

Charge: See website for details.

More information can be found here.

EVENT: Inner Temple – Working with Vulnerable Witnesses Seminar: Advocacy Training for Barristers Working with Vulnerable Witnesses

Posted October 16th, 2013 in Forthcoming events by sally

“This year, the Inner Temple will be holding a CPD day for practitioners from the New Practitioner stage and beyond, providing Advocacy Training for Barristers working with Vulnerable Witnesses. The keynote address will be given by The Rt Hon Lady Justice Hallett DBE.

This full day of practical training will be taught by the Inner Temple’s experienced advocacy trainers and will provide attendees with an opportunity to cross-examine witnesses played by professional actors.

This course is open to barristers of all four Inns who are new practitioner level or above. The skills which will be taught, whilst of particular interest to criminal practitioners, will also be useful to barristers in other practice areas working with vulnerable witnesses and those requiring interpretation.”

6 CPD Hours

Date: Saturday 23 November 2013

Location: Inner Temple, London EC4Y 7HL

Charge: £125 (including lunch)

More information can be found here.

Modernising wildlife law – Law Commission

Posted October 16th, 2013 in animals, bills, birds, EC law, environmental protection, Law Commission, news, penalties by sally

“The Law Commission has today [15 October] set out its proposed principles for a new regulatory regime for wildlife.”

Full story

Law Commission, 15th October 2013

Source: www.lawcommission.justice.gov.uk

The value of the rule of law to international trade and finance – Attorney General’s Office

“Speech at City of London Guildhall on the central importance to the British economy of the rule of law.”

Full story

Attorney General’s Office, 14th October 2013

Source: www.gov.uk/ago

BSB statement on Leathley, Mehey, Hayes v Visitors to the Inns of Court – Bar Standards Board

Posted October 16th, 2013 in Administrative Court, barristers, inns of court, judicial review, news, reports by sally

“A Bar Standards Board spokesperson said:

‘The administrative court has today handed down judgment in Leathley, Mehey, Hayes v Visitors to the Inns of Court: three judicial review applications which raised issues arising from the various anomalies revealed in 2011 in relation to the Council of the Inns of Courts’ panel member appointment processes. We are pleased that the court found all but two of the specific challenges made by the Claimants to be totally without merit and refused the applications on the two issues it considered were arguable. The judgment confirms the Bar Standard’s Board’s original view: that most of the historic anomalies, while a matter of great concern to us, did not affect the validity of the findings made in the cases that were potentially affected.'”

Full story

Bar Standards Board, 16th October 2013

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Interview with the Attorney General – BBC Law in Action

Posted October 16th, 2013 in appeals, attorney general, human rights, international law, news, sentencing by sally

“In this week’s programme, the Attorney General for England and Wales Dominic Grieve speaks to Joshua Rozenberg in an extended interview.”

Listen

BBC Law in Action, 15th October 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Recent Statutory Instruments – legislation.gov.uk

Posted October 16th, 2013 in legislation by sally

The National Insurance Contributions (Application of Part 7 of the Finance Act 2004) (Amendment) Regulations 2013

The Welfare Reform Act 2012 (Commencement No. 13 and Transitional and Transitory Provisions) Order 2013

The Armed Forces Act (Continuation) Order 2013

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

In re W (A Child) (Care Proceedings: Court’s Function) – WLR Daily

In re W (A Child) (Care Proceedings: Court’s Function) [2013] EWCA Civ 1227; [2013] WLR (D) 382

“Once a decision to institute care proceedings had been taken the court became the decision-maker until a full order was made. The local authority was required to provide the evidence to enable the judge to undertake the welfare and proportionality evaluations. That included a description of the services that were available and practicable for each placement option and each order being considered by the court. There should be no question of a local authority declining to file its evidence or proposed plans in response to the court’s evaluations. If a local authority made it clear that it would not implement a care plan option about which evidence had been given and which the judge preferred on welfare and proportionality grounds, then in a rare case it could be subjected to challenge in the High Court within the proceedings. In the unlikely event that a local authority declined to abide by a judge’s orders and directions in the future, the judge should inform the local authority’s monitoring officer to make a report to the authority with the intention that the authority was brought back into compliance.”

WLR Daily, 11th October 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Abercrombie and others v Aga Rangemaster Ltd – WLR Daily

Posted October 16th, 2013 in appeals, employment, guarantees, law reports, remuneration, working time by sally

Abercrombie and others v Aga Rangemaster Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 1148; [2013] WLR (D) 381

“The question governing liability to make guarantee payments under section 28 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 was whether the employee ‘would normally be required to work [on the day in question] in accordance with his contract of employment’. The fact that an agreement introducing changes to an employee’s working hours was temporary did not prevent the day in question remaining ‘normally’ a working day.”

WLR Daily, 11th October 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

MF (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

MF (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2013] EWCA Civ 1192; [2013] WLR (D) 380

“The new immigration rules, introduced by Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules (2012) (HC 194) into Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules (1994) (HC 395), which concerned the deportation of foreign criminals and the evaluation of their article 8 rights under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, were a complete code. Where a foreign criminal came within the provisions of paragraph 399 or 399A of HC395, as amended,, he could be entitled to leave to remain on a limited or indefinite basis on article 8 grounds, but where those paragraphs did not apply very compelling reasons, described as ‘exceptional circumstances’, would be required to outweigh the public interest in deportation.”

WLR Daily, 8th October 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

BAILII: Recent Decisions

Posted October 16th, 2013 in law reports by sally

Court of Appeal (Civil Division)

Skrytek v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government & Ors [2013] EWCA Civ 1231 (15 October 2013)

Plantation Holdings (FZ) LLC v Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC [2013] EWCA Civ 1229 (15 October 2013)

High Court (Administrative Court)

ML (A Child), R (on the application of) v Youth Justice Board [2013] EWHC 3083 (Admin) (15 October 2013)

Antoniou, R (on the application of) v Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust & Ors [2013] EWHC 3055 (Admin) (10 October 2013)

High Court (Technology and Construction Court)

National Museums and Galleries On Merseyside (Trustees of) v AEW Architects and Designers Ltd [2013] EWHC 3025 (TCC) (11 October 2013)

Source: www.bailii.org