Woman jailed for 15 years for shaking her four-month-old baby to death – The Guardian
‘A woman has been jailed for 15 years for killing her four-month-old daughter by violently shaking her.’
The Guardian, 21st July 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
Author: sally
Evidence in sexual offences prosecutions: a final report – Law Commission
‘The purpose of this project is to review the law, practice, guidance and procedure in sexual offences cases and to make recommendations for reform to improve the understanding of consent and sexual harm, improve treatment of complainants, and ensure that defendants receive a fair trial.’
Law Commission, 22nd July 2025
Source: lawcom.gov.uk
Chancel Repair Liability – Law Commission Consultation – Law & Religion UK
‘On 15 July 2025, the Law Commission published its Consultation on Chancel repair liability and registration. The Law Commission is consulting on reforms to the law governing land registration and chancel repair liability. This project aims to close a historic loophole and save homeowners millions in insurance costs. Those with an interest in this area of law, or are affected by or have the benefit of a chancel repair liability, are requested to complete the questionnaire.’
Law & Religion UK, 21st July 2025
Source: lawandreligionuk.com
The Afghan super-injunction case: Some constitutional implications – Public Law for Everyone
‘Following a catastrophic administrative error placing the lives of thousands of Afghans at risk, the UK government obtained a super-injunction, enabling it to attempt to clear up the mess it had created behind a veil of impenetrable secrecy. The courts’ willingness to keep the super-injunction in place for nearly two years raises some important constitutional questions.’
Public Law for Everyone, 17th July 2025
Source: publiclawforeveryone.com
Upper Tribunal upholds civil penalty against landlord for failure to comply with improvement notice – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has dismissed an appeal by a landlord against a £3,000 civil penalty imposed by Swale Borough Council for failing to comply with an improvement notice, finding that the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) was entitled to conclude that no reasonable excuse had been established.’
Local Government Lawyer, 21st July 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
An inquest after a murder: Coroner’s decision not to resume is upheld despite Article 2 challenge – UK Human Rights Blog
‘At the heart of the case of R (Bailey) v HM Senior Coroner for East London [2025] EWHC 1637 (Admin), a tragedy: the murder of a 14-year-old boy, Jaden Bailey, and the profound grief of his mother. Jaden had been drawn into criminal activity, first in Nottinghamshire, then London. In October 2018 he had been found at a “cuckoo house” in Bournemouth, in possession of cocaine, a mobile phone and £325 in cash. He was brought back to London by the Metropolitan Police, following which an action plan was prepared by the Children’s Social Care Department of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. In November 2018 Jaden was permanently excluded from school after a Snapchat video showed him in possession of an imitation firearm, for which he was arrested and charged, pleading guilty. On 8 January 2019 Jaden was riding a moped in Leyton when he was hit by a car; the occupants of the car got out and stabbed Jaden. He died at the scene.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 21st July 2025
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
Addressing unsuitability and mandatory orders- Nearly Legal
‘R (ex parte AIN) v London Borough of Tower Hamlets. High Court (Admin) 29 April 2025 (Unreported elsewhere. We have a full note of judgment (unapproved) from the claimant’s solicitors, Osbornes Law, for which we are grateful). It is interesting in its treatment of the ‘five factors’ for consideration in making a mandatory order set out in Imam, R (on the application of) v London Borough of Croydon (2023) UKSC 45.
Nearly Legal, 20th July 2025
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
New independent watchdog signed into law in watershed moment for English football – The Independent
‘An independent football regulator has been signed into UK law after the Football Governance Act received royal assent, giving fans a greater say in how their clubs are run.’
The Independent, 21st July 2025
Source: www.independent.co.uk
A failed reunification plan – Transparency Project
‘A 13 year old boy was refusing to obey High Court orders that he spend time with his mother following his parents’ separation. After three years of failed attempts to persuade him to see her, the court asked the Tipstaff’s office to enforce an order that he be collected from his home with his father and taken to spend four weeks with his mother in a ‘protective placement’. (The Tipstaff is an officer of the High Court, based at the Royal Courts of Justice, who can be called on by the court to enforce orders and warrants in England and Wales.) The boy refused to go with them and claimed he was physically assaulted by the court-appointed officers.’
Transparency Project, 20th July 2025
Source: transparencyproject.org.uk
Government launches Orgreave inquiry, 40 years after clashes at miners’ strike – The Guardian
‘More than four decades after the violent policing at Orgreave during the miners’ strike and a failed prosecution criticised as a police “frame up”, the government has established a statutory inquiry into the scandal.’
The Guardian, 20th July 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
LSB: Regulatory action needed to tackle law’s diversity problems – Legal Futures
‘The profession has failed to make “significant progress in tackling the structural and cultural barriers to encouraging equality and diversity”, the Legal Services Board (LSB) has declared.’
Legal Futures, 21st July 2025
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Water ombudsman to be created amid sweeping changes in England and Wales – The Guardian
‘A new water ombudsman will be announced on Monday by the environment secretary, Steve Reed, as part of government plans to overhaul the embattled sector.’
The Guardian, 20th July 2025
Source: www.theguardian.com
Inquiry launched after identities of SAS soldiers leaked in fresh data breach – The Independent
‘Army leaders have launched an inquiry after the identities of soldiers in the SAS were revealed in a fresh data breach.’
The Independnet, 20th July 2025
Source: www.independent.co.uk
New criminal offence to target violence-obsessed suspects earlier – BBC News
‘A powerful new criminal offence to target suspects who are found to be preparing mass killings will ensure their plotting is taken as seriously as terrorism, the home secretary says.’
BBC News, 20th July 2025
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Accessibility and the Limits of the Equality Act 2010: Time for a UK Accessibility Act? – Current Legal Problems
‘This article makes a case for the introduction of a new UK Accessibility Act to supplement existing equality law and outlines key ingredients to be included in such legislation. Such a reform would fulfil commitments under international human rights law, align with purported cross-government prioritization of accessibility, establish a more joined-up and effective regulatory structure and, most importantly, hasten progress toward a barrier-free society in which disabled people and others are enabled to learn, work, move and live as equals. The article has three main sections. The first elaborates on the accessibility obligations set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It also discusses recent legislative responses to these international human rights requirements in the European Union (the European Accessibility Act) and Canada (the Accessible Canada Act). The second section maps out the various accessibility interventions of the Equality Act 2010 and exposes the limits of the current approach, which is patchy, splintered and heavily dependent on expensive and high-risk litigation by individuals. The third section draws on the examples of Canadian and EU legislation to consider what should be included in a new UK Accessibility Act.’
Current Legal Problems, 7th July 2025
Source: doi.org
Rectification, Employment Contracts, and Collective Agreements – Industrial Law Journal
‘One of the oddities of British labour law, especially when compared with its continental and common law cousins, is that collective agreements concluded as a result of the collective bargaining process between an employer and a trade union have no necessary legal effect whether vis-à-vis the employer and the union or vis-à-vis the employer and an individual employee. On the former relationship—which is sometimes referred to the ‘contractual dimension’ of collective agreements—the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, s 179, conclusively presumes that such agreements were not intended by the parties to take effect as legally enforceable contracts unless the agreement is in writing and contains a provision which states that the parties intend that the agreement shall be a legally enforceable contract. As for the latter—which can be referred to as the ‘normative dimension’ of collective agreements, whereby the ‘norms’ in the collective agreement ‘are applied to the individual employment relationship’—ordinarily, for a collective agreement to have any legal effect, it must be incorporated into an individual’s contract of employment and there is no automatic rule to this effect.’
Industrial Law Journal, 9th July 2025
Source: doi.org
Anonymity for Criminal Suspects – 2 Hare Court
‘Criminal lawyers are always aware of our clients’ concerns about adverse publicity during a criminal investigation, prior to charge. Investigations can last many months, even years, only to result in no charges being brought. Maintaining anonymity during that period is often a priority, second only to defending the allegations. In Bloomberg v ZXC [2022] UKSC 5, the Supreme Court confirmed that as a “legitimate starting point” a person under criminal investigation has, prior to charge, a reasonable expectation of privacy in respect of the investigation. However in any given case it is not certain as a matter of law that the ‘starting point’ is the ‘end point’.’
2 Hare Court, 11th June 2025
Source: www.2harecourt.com
High Court issues ruling on costs charged by borough at summons stage of council tax dispute – Local Government Lawyer
‘Surrey Heath Borough Council issued an unlawful council tax summons but this should not be quashed because the complainant failed to exhaust other options before launching a judicial review, the High Court has found.’
Local Government Lawyer, 10th July 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Judge finds family had “no lawful authority” to move elderly man to care home in Wales from Spain – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Court of Protection has found – following an application by a local authority – that an elderly man’s wife and son had “no lawful authority” to move him to a care home in Wales from Spain, where he was habitually resident.’
Local Government Lawyer, 11th July 2025
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Kneecap advert ‘banned’ on London Tube network – BBC News
‘Belfast rap trio Kneecap have said they are “banned” from advertising one of their posters on the London Underground.’
BBC News, 10th July 2025
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
