Court intermediary numbers to double – BBC News
‘The government has pledged to double the number of experts who help vulnerable witnesses and victims in courts in England and Wales.’
BBC News, 22nd February 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Category: courts
Online courts: type “J” for “Judge” – Halsbury’s Law Exchange
‘Whenever I read stories about IT and the courts system I often get a funny sense of déjà vu (or perhaps copy and paste) but this week I read something that was more genuinely radical.’
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 18th February 2015
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
Profession unites in opposition to “disastrous” court fee rises – Litigation Futures
‘The Law Society has pledged to challenge the government’s decision to introduce enhanced court fees from April and said it will strenuously oppose more planned hikes.’
Litigation Futures, 27th January 2015
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Proposals for further reforms to court fees – Ministry of Justice
‘In Part 1 of the Government response to the consultation ‘Court fees: proposals for reform’, we set out our decision to consider alternatives to the proposed fee increase for divorce.’
Ministry of Justice, 16th January 2015
Source: https://consult.justice.gov.uk
Enhanced court fees: the government response to part 2 of the consultation on reform of court fees – Ministry of Justice
‘The government response to part 2 of the consultation on reform of court fees and further proposals for consultation.’
Ministry of Justice, 16th January 2015
Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
Government set to hike general civil application fees – Litigation Futures
‘The government has dropped plans for “enhanced” court fees specifically for commercial cases, but is now targeting increased fees for the hundreds of thousands of general civil applications made each year.’
Litigation Futures, 19th January 2015
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Court fees: Proposals for reform – Judicial responses – Judiciary of England and Wales
‘Responses of the Lord Chief Justice, senior judiciary and the Civil Justice Council to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Consultation on Court fees – enhanced charging.’
Judiciary of England and Wales, 16th January 2015
Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk
Access To Justice Effective Remedy And Rule Of Law: The Adequacy Of Judicial Review – No. 5 Chambers
‘The ideal judge is a supremely intelligent woman. She is especially empathetic. She has limitless expertise in every field and infinite patience. We can trust her to do right. She is perfect justice. Lets place her on a pedestal.’
Full story (PDF)
No. 5 Chambers, 16th December 2014
Source: www.no5.com
ECHR cases won by UK government show flexibility of human rights system – The Guardian
‘Strasbourg human rights court is ready to admit it gets things wrong when presented with good arguments.’
The Guardian, 17th December 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
The Lord Chief Justice’s Report 2014 – Judiciary of England and Wales
‘The Lord Chief Justice has today laid his annual report before Parliament. His report looks back at the past 12 months and explains how the judiciary have administered justice across all jurisdictions by focusing on key priorities.’
Judiciary of England and Wales, 15th December 2014
Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk
Crown court fees – Law Society’s Gazette
‘The first change relates to cases when the defendant elected trial and solicitors had been restricted to the fixed fee, even though the Crown did not proceed at all, and the defendant is acquitted on the order of a judge. In these cases, provided the case goes beyond the plea and case management hearing, a cracked trial fee will be paid.’
Full story
Law Society’s Gazette, 1st December 2014
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Speech by Lord Chief Justice: Cardiff Business Club – Judiciary of England and Wales
‘Speech by The Right Hon. The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales at the Cardiff Business Club on 3 November 2014.’
Judiciary of England and Wales, 27th November 2014
Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk
Terror law watchdog calls for court role in temporary exclusion orders – The Guardian
‘The lack of any effective check or court oversight of the home secretary’s new powers to impose temporary exclusion orders for up to two years on British citizens returning from Iraq or Syria has been strongly criticised by the official counter-terror law watchdog.’
The Guardian, 26th November 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Supreme Court stresses importance of compliance with court orders – Litigation Futures
‘The Supreme Court yesterday emphasised the importance of compliance with court orders as it dismissed an appeal by a Saudi prince who failed to personally sign a witness statement in breach of an unless order.’
Litigation Futures, 27th November 2014
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Merris Amos: The UK and the European Court of Human Rights – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘Now that the furore of the Scottish independence referendum has passed, the attention of politicians and media has once again turned to the dangers of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). In his speech to the Conservative Party Conference in late September, Prime Minister David Cameron stated that the ECtHR needed “sorting out”. Three examples of its judgments were used to support this point: the prisoner voting litigation; the limits on deporting suspected terrorists, including Abu Qatada; and the extension of the HRA to the “battle-fields of Helmand”, an issue which the ECtHR has not directly adjudicated upon although it has given judgments concerning events in Iraq. Shortly after, the Conservative Party released its proposals for changing Britain’s human rights laws. Central to this is altering the relationship between the UK and the ECtHR so that its judgments are no longer binding over the UK Supreme Court and that it is no longer able to order a change in UK law. As any law student will know, this would be a waste of time as neither is currently possible in our dualist legal system. The judgments of the ECtHR are only binding in international law. To support these proposals, five examples of ECtHR judgments are given: prisoner voting; artificial insemination rights for some prisoners; limits on the deportation of foreign nationals who have committed crimes; and limits on the deportation of foreign nationals generally. The fifth example is the recent judgment on whole life tariffs which was misleadingly and erroneously portrayed as a decision that murderers cannot be sentenced to life imprisonment. It is clear that the Conservative Party is not expecting to receive votes from prisoners (who have no vote anyway), foreign nationals or members of the armed forces who also enjoy the protection of human rights law on the “battle-fields of Helmand”.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th November 2014
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
A prisoner’s right to vote: straining European relations – Cloisters
‘In this article, I argue that there is an urgent need for a more rational approach to the debate about prisoners’ rights to vote – which has become an emotive issue in the United Kingdom. This is particularly so in light of the recent response from the United Kingdom government to ECtHR rulings, demonstrating an unparalleled defiance towards Strasbourg rulings. Due to this, the implications of the debate over prisoners’ voting rights extend beyond individuals, bringing into sharp focus a matter of broader significance to us all, namely the United Kingdom’s approach to democracy and human rights and its relationship with the European Court and the EU itself.’
Cloisters, 13th November 2014
Source: www.cloisters.com
‘Wholly antiquated’: lord chief justice on court technology – LegalVoice
‘Our “antiquated” courts faced “severe crisis” without significant investment, the lord chief justice said yesterday. Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd offered journalists a judicial perspective on the financial pressures being imposed upon the courts at his annual press conference.’
LegalVoice, 13th November 2014
Source: www.legalvoice.org.uk
Mirfin v Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change: Manchester County Court’s application of the Mesothelioma Claims Practice Direction to “non-mesothelioma” cases – Zenith PI Blog
‘The Manchester County Court’s designated District Judges for Cancer Asbestos and Terminal Illness (“CAT”) cases apply from the outset the Mesothelioma Claims Practice Direction to all asbestos-related claims, irrespective of whether they involve mesothelioma: and this appeal judgment supports this practice.’
Zenith PI Blog, 5th November 2014
Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com
Family Drug and Alcohol Court: A Practitioners’ and Judge’s Perspectives – Family Law Week
‘Sarah Jennings & Esther Lieu, 3PB, with District Judge Julie Exton look at the Family Drug and Alcohol Court.’
Family Law Week, 31st October 2014
Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk
