Court of Protection declares lawfulness of care plan setting out arrangements for termination of woman’s pregnancy – Local Government Lawyer

‘A judge sitting in the Court of Protection has declared that a care plan setting out the arrangements for the termination of a woman’s pregnancy was lawful.’

Full Story

Local Government Lawyer, 14th March 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Top Cases of 2023: the good, the bad and the legally complicated – UK Human Rights Blog

‘As the dust settles on another year, it is (just about still) time to look back over the year gone to review some of the most dramatic, legally interesting or impactful cases of the year gone by. As ever, this is only a selection of the top cases of the year, but as a whole they reveal yet another year in which the courts have been drawn into the centre of the most important social and political debates of the society in which they find themselves.’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 29th January 2024

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

UK medics told not to report illegal abortions to police – The Guardian

‘Medical staff in the UK should not report women to the police if they believe their patients may have illegally ended their own pregnancy, a professional body has said. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has said it is never in the public interest to report women who have abortions to law enforcement agencies, according to the BBC.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 22nd January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Ministers accused of watering down rules around abortion clinic buffer zones – The Guardian

Posted January 18th, 2024 in abortion, government departments, human rights, news, public order by sally

‘Ministers have been accused of watering down guidance around new buffer zones outside abortion clinics in England and Wales, after it emerged campaigners could still be allowed to conduct silent prayers and approach women attending clinics to discuss the issue.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 17th January 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Eaglescliffe woman found not guilty of ‘home abortion’ – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2024 in abortion, Crown Prosecution Service, news, pregnancy, prosecutions by sally

‘A woman charged with carrying out an illegal abortion on herself has been found not guilty on the eve of her trial after the prosecution dropped the case due to “evidential difficulties”.’

Full Story

BBC News, 9th January 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Termination, will and preferences – another difficult dilemma for the Court of Protection – Mental Capacity Law and Policy

Posted October 26th, 2023 in abortion, consent, Court of Protection, news, pregnancy by sally

‘The very difficult case of Re H (An Adult; Termination) [2023] EWCOP 183[1] stands out for the careful attempt by the judge – John McKendrick KC (sitting as a Tier 3 judge) to comply with (in CRPD language) the will and preferences of a woman with a mental disorder undergoing a profound crisis. The questions he had to answer were whether the woman, H, had capacity to make the decision to consent to terminate her pregnancy,[2] and, if she lacked that capacity, whether a termination was in her best interests; and, if a termination were to be in her best interests, whether this should be carried out by a medical procedure (i.e. the administration of drugs) or a surgical procedure.’

Full Story

Mental Capacity Law and Policy, 25th October 2023

Source: www.mentalcapacitylawandpolicy.org.uk

Women still being harassed at abortion clinics despite buffer zone law – The Guardain

Posted October 19th, 2023 in abortion, demonstrations, government departments, harassment, news by sally

‘Women using abortion clinics are still being harassed despite MPs voting a year ago to create buffer zones to stop protesters intimidating them, medical and abortion groups say.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 18th October 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

Jailing women for abortion ‘unlikely to be just’ – BBC News

Posted October 19th, 2023 in abortion, imprisonment, news, sentencing, suspended sentences by sally

‘A senior court has said jailing women for abortion-related crimes was “unlikely” to be a “just outcome” after a mother’s sentence was reduced.’

Full Story

BBC News, 18th October 2023

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Pregnant girl, 11, who was raped twice should have a termination, judge rules – The Independent

Posted October 12th, 2023 in abortion, children, forensic science, human tissue, news, pregnancy, rape by sally

‘A pregnant 11-year-old girl who has twice been raped by teenage boys should have a termination, a High Court judge has ruled.’

Full Story

The Independent, 11th October 2023

Source: www.independent.co.uk

The Disability Ground in Abortion Law, and the Negative ‘Message’ it is Sending: R (Crowter) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted September 21st, 2023 in abortion, disabled persons, human rights, news by sally

‘A recent decision of the Court of Appeal involved a very interesting legal challenge based on an alleged negative “message” in the law. It raises important questions about the law on disability-selective abortion, but also more broadly on the possibility of challenges to the law based on any allegedly negative message.’

Full Story

Oxford Human Rights Hub, 21st September 2023

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Woman in Teesside accused of carrying out own abortion to appear before judge – The Guardian

Posted August 14th, 2023 in abortion, news, pregnancy by tracey

‘A 22-year-old woman accused of procuring a poison to abort her child shortly after the first Covid lockdown is due to appear before a judge this week. Bethany Cox is the fourth woman to be prosecuted in the last eight months for allegedly carrying out her own abortion, with only three trials in the 160 years before that, according to campaigners.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 13th August 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

Woman jailed for taking abortion pills after time limit to be freed from prison – The Guardian

Posted July 19th, 2023 in abortion, appeals, families, imprisonment, news, sentencing, time limits, women by tracey

‘A woman who was jailed for terminating her pregnancy after the legal time limit during lockdown will be released from prison and reunited with her children, after winning a court of appeal effort to reduce her sentence.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 18th July 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

Is it time to decriminalise abortion in the UK? – The Guardian

Posted June 15th, 2023 in abortion, news, podcasts, time limits by sally

‘After a distressing and controversial case in which a woman was jailed after taking abortion pills after the UK time limit, is it time to change the law?’

Full Story

The Guardian, 15th June 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

Call to overhaul ‘out of date’ UK abortion laws after woman jailed – The Guardian

‘Abortion legislation is “very much out of date” and should be overhauled, the chair of the Commons women and equalities committee has said, after a woman was jailed for procuring drugs to induce an abortion after the legal limit.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 13th June 2023

Source: www.theguardian.com

The Public Order Bill Set To Become Law: Know Your Rights – Each Other

Posted March 9th, 2023 in abortion, bills, media, news, public order, stop and search by sally

‘The controversial Public Order Bill is receiving final amendments from Parliament and will receive Royal Assent before becoming an official Act. Here is what those amendments mean for your rights.’

Full Story

Each Other, 8th March 2023

Source: eachother.org.uk

Protest and proportionality in the Supreme Court: The Safe Access Zones Bill Reference [2022] UKSC 32 – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted December 15th, 2022 in abortion, bills, devolution issues, harassment, news, Northern Ireland, Supreme Court by tracey

‘Abortion in Northern Ireland has had a fraught and frequently distressing history. Until 2019 when the UK Parliament reformed the law, the jurisdiction had the most restrictive approach to abortion in the UK. But even this reform has not reformed the reality, either for those seeking abortion services or information and counselling on such services or for those who work at providers of such services lawfully. I have previously written about the situation as it stood in March 2021, and the reality has changed little since then, with two notable exceptions. In March 2022, the Northern Ireland Assembly passed the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill (Northern Ireland) (“SAZ Bill”) to create buffer zones around lawful abortion providers, in an attempt to criminalise the harassment and intimidation of people who seek or work in such places. On 2 December 2022, tired of the glacial pace and political controversy in commissioning abortion services, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland moved to commission such services himself. In the interim, the Attorney General for Northern Ireland (“AGNI”) referred the SAZ Bill to the UK Supreme Court to determine whether it was lawful.’

Full Story

UK Human Rights Blog, 14th December 2022

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Woman with Down’s syndrome loses abortion law appeal – BBC News

‘A woman with Down’s syndrome has lost her appeal over a law that allows abortion up until birth for a foetus with the condition.’

Full Story

BBC News, 25th November 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Huge victory for reproductive rights’: MPs approve ‘buffer zones’ outside abortion clinics – The Independent

Posted October 19th, 2022 in abortion, bills, demonstrations, hospitals, news, women by sally

‘MPs have voted in favour of nationwide “buffer zones” outside abortion clinics in England and Wales in a major win for abortion providers.’

Full Story

The Independent, 18th October 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Fears for vulnerable women amid rise in Britons investigated over illegal abortions by police – The Independent

Posted August 19th, 2022 in abortion, criminal justice, news, pregnancy, statistics, women by tracey

‘Increasing numbers of Britons are being investigated by police over suspected illegal abortions, new figures show.’

Full Story

The Independent, 18th August 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Brenda Hale: ‘There’s absolutely no need to scrap the Human Rights Act’ – The Guardian

‘renda Hale is a British judge who served as president of the supreme court of the United Kingdom from 2017 until her retirement in 2020. Lady Hale studied law at Cambridge, was called to the bar and then worked as an academic for many years. In 1984, she became the youngest person to be appointed to the Law Commission. In 1999, she was only the second woman to be appointed to the court of appeal. It fell to Hale, in September 2019, to deliver the judgment of the supreme court in the matter of the Queen’s prorogation of parliament on the advice of Boris Johnson. The court ruled that the prorogation was unlawful and the spider brooch Hale wore on that fateful day became one of the most famous fashion accessories in history. Her memoir, Spider Woman: A Life, is now out in paperback.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 24th July 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com