‘Doctors at the British Medical Association (BMA) have condemned the Supreme Court’s ruling on biological sex, dubbing it “biologically nonsensical” and “scientifically illiterate”.’
The Independent, 29th April 2025
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Regulators – for all their faults – appreciate the need to particularise allegations adequately. The same cannot always be said of the DBS. Whilst its decisions can ruin a professional’s life as effectively as any FTP process, it operates with about half the procedural rigour.’
2 Hare Court, 15th April 2025
Source: www.2harecourt.com
‘Foreign nationals convicted of sex offences will be banned from claiming asylum in the UK, Yvette Cooper has said, as Labour attempts to fight off the threat from the Reform party before Thursday’s local elections.’
The Guardian, 28th April 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Those with long memories will remember the two reports published under the tenure of Richard Thomas, the then Information Commissioner, “What price privacy?” in May 2006 and “What price privacy now?” in December 2006. The Commissioner had a particularly keen interest in halting the trade in unlawfully obtained personal data, regarding it as a high watermark of privacy invasion. Criminal prosecutions followed (see in particular the case of R v Daniel Summers and others in 2012 here), albeit not always brought by the Information Commissioner’s Office (“the ICO”) and not always successfully.’
25 Bedford Row, 16th April 2025
Source: www.25bedfordrow.com
‘To recap the obvious and most widely-reported aspect of the judgment: the Supreme Court determined that, whenever the Equality Act 2010 (EqA2010) refers to the protected characteristic of sex (or to men or to women), those terms are to take the biological meaning of sex, and that only.’
12 King's Bench Walk, 22nd April 2025
Source: 12kbw.co.uk
‘The Family Court has dismissed a man’s application for a declaration of non-parentage of a young boy, on whose birth certificate he appears as the father, finding it would not be in the child’s best interests for the application to proceed.’
Local Government Lawyer, 28th April 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘A schoolgirl has been detained for 15 years for attempting to murder two teachers and a pupil by stabbing them with a blade at a school in south Wales.’
The Guardian, 28th April 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Mr Adebayo was a nurse who, whilst working at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, received payment for shifts he had not worked. He was investigated for this and ultimately fired from the Trust. He was also interviewed under caution by the NHS Counter Fraud Authority and ultimately charged with offences under the Theft Act 1968.’
2 Hare Court, 15th April 2025
Source: www.2harecourt.com
‘An investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found West Sussex County Council at fault for failing to provide a boy with complex needs with an education in school or through an alternative provision placement over an 18-month period.’
Local Government Lawyer, 28th April 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘The structure of the Bar impedes the adoption of technology and innovation, but barristers need to do so to drive “a better and more efficient service for clients”, a Bar Standards Board (BSB) report has argued.’
Legal Futures, 29th April 2025
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
‘In Re McCarron [2025] NIKB 23 (10 April 2025), the High Court in Northern Ireland rejected the applicant’s argument that legislation prohibiting her from receiving certain cost of living payments unjustifiably discriminated against her. Scoffield J’s proportionality analysis includes four interesting elements which are of application to ECHR cases, including those raising issues under Article 14 and beyond.’
Administrative Court Blog, April 2025
‘A young driver who killed three teens in a crash on their way home from school had a history of “showing off” at the wheel, a court heard before issuing a two-year custodial sentence.’
BBC News, 28th April 2025
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary has issued a practice direction to ensure consistency in the preparation of hearing bundles in Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) appeals and disability discrimination in schools’ claims.’
Local Government Lawyer, 29th April 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘A teaching union has agreed to pay £78,000 in legal costs after being forced to withdraw its controversial appointment of Matt Wrack as general secretary.’
The Guardian, 28th April 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘In this case, the Registrant had examined two female patients who were unknown to each other at different A & E Departments nine months apart. Both patients complained of a degree of mental disorder. Each described the Registrant chanting in a “hypnotic” fashion or speaking in a “soothing” voice with a “weird” tone. Patient A’s evidence was that the Registrant had said that when she woke up she would “lust for me” and “love me and kiss me.” He asked her to remove her top before touching her breast and squeezing her nipple. Patient B’s evidence was that the Registrant had said that her boyfriend was the source of her problems and that she should wait at a bus stop for him so he could pick her up to take her home. He also repeatedly asked her to remove her clothes including her vest and sports bra.’
2 Hare Court, 15th April 2025
Source: www.2harecourt.com
‘As readers may be aware, on 16 April 2025 the UK Supreme Court in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] UKSC 16, ruled that the legal definition of “woman” under the Equality Act 2010 is based on biological sex assigned at birth. This judgment, arising from a dispute over gender balance quotas on public sector boards, determined that “sex” within the Act is a binary concept rooted in biology, and that a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) does not alter this biological sex for the purposes of sex-based legal protections. This decision, while not directly legislating for the sporting world, may carry weight for how sporting bodies in the UK may interpret their own regulations concerning single-sex competition, particularly when considering the core tenets of inclusion and the maintenance of a level and competitive playing field – both central to sporting integrity.’
4-5 Gray's Inn Square, 24th April 2025
Source: www.4-5.co.uk
‘Collective actions in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (the “CAT”) have been beset by challenges to funding agreements on the grounds that: (i) it is impermissible for funders (and lawyers) to be paid from aggregate damages before distribution to the class; and (ii) by agreeing to funding agreements (“LFAs”) that provide for payment to funders before the class, the Proposed Class Representative is not acting in the interests of the class.’
4 New Square, 17th April 2025
Source: www.4newsquare.com
‘Last week, the UK Supreme Court held that the terms “man,” “woman,” and “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 (EA) refer only to birth-assigned sex (‘biological’ sex) and not acquired or certificated sex on a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). It rejected the Scottish Ministers’ position that trans women with GRCs should be recognised as women under the EA. While the ruling has been criticised on multiple fronts, it raises particularly pressing questions about the adequacy of anti-discrimination protections for trans persons and the continued relevance of the Gender Recognition Act 2004 (GRA).’
Oxford Human Rights Hub, 25th April 2025
Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
‘This was an appeal of a possession order made by HHJ Luba KC. Ms Thiam was the assured tenant of Richmond Housing. A possession order had been sought on grounds 8 (rent arrears), ground 14 (anti social behaviour by the tenant’s son), ground 12 (breach of tenancy in failure to allow access for inspection and repairs), and ground 13 – the condition of the premises had deteriorate by acts of waste, neglect and default.’
Nearly Legal, 27th April 2025
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
‘Shabana Mahmood risks putting more pregnant women behind bars through her bill to prevent new guidelines which highlighted the need for pre-sentencing reports based on “different personal characteristics” including age, sex and ethnicity, charities have warned.’
The Guardian, 27th April 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
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