Police ‘should be neutral’ in sex abuse inquiries, says Met head – BBC News

Posted February 11th, 2016 in delay, news, police, sexual offences, victims by sally

‘Police should change their approach to allegations of sex abuse and not automatically believe the complainant, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe has suggested.’

Full story

BBC News, 11th February 2016

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Torture victims face two-year delays in UK asylum claims – The Guardian

Posted February 5th, 2016 in asylum, delay, news, torture by tracey

‘Torture victims who claim asylum in Britain are facing delays of more than two years before their cases are resolved, according to a report by the official immigration and borders watchdog.’

Full story

The Guardian, 4th February 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Lord Bramall’s reputation trashed because of the Met’s ‘inept’ investigation – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 5th, 2016 in child abuse, delay, news, police, police interviews, sexual offences, witnesses by tracey

‘Operation Midland is dismissed as “inept” after it emerges that the Metropolitan police took almost a year to interview key witnesses.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 4th February 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Met Police chief admits delay in giving officers covert body cameras is ‘frustrating’ following fatal shooting – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 17th, 2015 in closed circuit television, delay, firearms, London, news, police by tracey

‘Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has admitted it was “frustrating” that the undercover officer who fatally shot a suspected gangster was not wearing a covert camera. He acknowledged that it would have been “really useful” in this case, to show exactly what had happened, but claimed there had been difficulties in finding technology that would be suitable for covert operations.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 17th December 2015

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Legal Aid Agency delays “no longer” a good reason to miss deadlines, CA warns – Litigation Futures

Posted December 16th, 2015 in appeals, delay, legal aid, news, solicitors by sally

‘Solicitors who miss deadlines because they are waiting for a Legal Aid Agency funding decision can no longer rely on this alone as grounds to apply for an extension of time, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 15th December 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

The dark face of our imperial past – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted November 30th, 2015 in armed forces, colonies, delay, human rights, inquests, inquiries, jurisdiction, news by sally

‘The Supreme Court has ruled that the United Kingdom was not obliged to hold a public inquiry into the shooting in December 1948 during the Malayan Emergency by British troops of 24 unarmed civilians at Batang Kali. The Court held that (1) the lapse of time meant that there was no Article 2 requirement to hold an inquiry; (2) a duty to hold an inquiry could not be implied into common law under the principles of customary international law; and (3) the decision not to hold an inquiry under the Inquiries Act 2005 was not open to challenge on ordinary judicial review principles. However, the Supreme Court did hold that the deaths were within the United Kingdom’s jurisdiction for the purposes of the application of the ECHR.’

Full story

UK Human Rights Blog, 30th November 2015

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Family ADR boosted by new guidance – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Sir James Munby, president of the Family Division, has issued guidance on arbitration in the family court in a move which could encourage more lawyers to view alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a viable option.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 24th November 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government delays clinical negligence fixed costs consultation – Litigation Futures

Posted November 19th, 2015 in consultations, costs, delay, fees, negligence, news by tracey

‘The government has delayed launch of its consultation on introducing fixed recoverable costs in low-value clinical negligence claims.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 19th November 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Humber Prison report: Wolds and Everthorpe merger ‘traumatic’ – BBC News

Posted November 18th, 2015 in assault, delay, health & safety, news, prison officers, prisons, reports, standards by tracey

‘The merger of two prisons in East Yorkshire has been “traumatic and prolonged”, inspectors have found.’

Full story

BBC News, 18th November 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Two-tier contracts delayed – Bar Council response – The Bar Council

Posted November 17th, 2015 in barristers, contracts, delay, press releases by tracey

‘Chairman of the Bar Alistair MacDonald QC said:”The Bar Council has always opposed the two-tier scheme and has consistently asked the Ministry of Justice and the Legal Aid Agency to re-consider these plans. We therefore welcome today’s decision to postpone the implementation of the scheme in the light of the legal challenges which have been brought.”‘

Full press release

The Bar Council. 13th November 2015

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

Home Office criticised over delays in immigration cases – BBC News

Posted November 10th, 2015 in complaints, delay, government departments, immigration, news, ombudsmen, reports by sally

‘The Home Office has been accused of delays and poor decision making in its handling of immigration cases.’

Full story

BBC News, 10th November 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judge calls for fast-track civil contempt procedure after application is stymied by criminal trial – Litigation Futures

‘A claimant found to have brought a bogus personal injury claim – but then cleared of fraud in the Crown Court – can only face civil contempt proceedings if there is new evidence, the High Court has ruled.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 4th November 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Crown courts in England and Wales ‘chaotic and archaic’ – BBC News

Posted November 4th, 2015 in barristers, criminal justice, Crown Court, delay, news, reports, solicitors, victims, witnesses by sally

‘Victims and witnesses are often left marginalised in a court system that is “archaic” and “chaotic”, a report by the Criminal Justice Alliance has said.’

Full story

BBC News, 4th November 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Chilcot report on Iraq war to be published next June or July – The Guardian

Posted October 29th, 2015 in delay, inquiries, Iraq, news, publishing, reports, war by sally

‘Sir John Chilcot has announced that he is to publish his report into the Iraq war next June or July following intense pressure from David Cameron to speed up his timetable.’

Full story

The Guardian, 29th October 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Iraq Inquiry: Timetable ‘might be published by November’ – BBC News

Posted October 26th, 2015 in armed forces, delay, inquiries, Iraq, news, reports by sally

‘Sources close to the Iraq Inquiry have indicated chairman Sir John Chilcot may write to David Cameron with a timetable for his report before 3 November.’

Full story

BBC News, 22nd October 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Courts charge leaves victims waiting for justice, says former Solicitor General – The Independent

Posted October 22nd, 2015 in courts, criminal courts charge, criminal justice, delay, fees, news, recidivists, victims by sally

‘The Government’s controversial courts charge is causing major delays and leaving victims waiting for justice, a former Solicitor General has said.’

Full story

The Independent, 21st October 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

CA rejects law firm’s bid to reverse relief granted over funding notice failure – Litigation Futures

‘Mishcon de Reya has failed in its bid to overturn the grant of relief from sanctions made in favour of claimants who are suing the London law firm for professional negligence but failed to serve their funding notice in time.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 13th October 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court estate consolidation plans based on flawed data – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 12th, 2015 in consultations, courts, delay, Law Society, local government, news, solicitors, statistics by tracey

‘Lawyers and justice campaigners have raised fresh concerns about the government’s court closure programme, alleging that the proposals are based on out-of-date travel times and other dubious data.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 12th October 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Woman who fled sexual abuse deported to Jamaica ‘because Home Office fax machine broken’ – The Independent

‘A woman who fled sexual abuse in Jamaica was deported back to the country because the Home Office’s fax machine was broken, lawyers have claimed.’

Full story

The Independent, 4th October 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Tightening the payout rules for business insurance – Law Commission

Posted September 18th, 2015 in bills, damages, delay, insurance, Law Commission, press releases by tracey

‘Businesses can suffer serious loss if insurance companies delay paying claims. But under Law Commission reforms introduced into Parliament today, insurers would be obliged to make prompt payment or face a claim for damages.’

Full press release

Law Commission, 16th September 2015

Source: www.justice.gov.uk/lawcommission