‘The family of Harry Dunn will shortly issue a letter of claim to begin legal action against the Foreign Office and Northamptonshire Police, spokesman Radd Seiger said.’
Daily Telegraph, 24th October 2019
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, has commissioned a review into immunity arrangements for US personnel and their families at an RAF base following the death of Harry Dunn.’
The Guardian, 21st October 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Diplomats will no longer be able to conceal their “vile conduct” with immunity, legal experts claim, after a Qatari attaché who allegedly called his driver a “black slave” scrapped his defence. ‘
Daily Telegraph, 13th March 2019
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘The former world No 1 tennis player Boris Becker has dropped his claim to have diplomatic immunity from bankruptcy. The three-time Wimbledon champion had argued his appointment by the Central African Republic as a sporting, cultural and humanitarian attache to the European Union meant he could not be subjected to legal proceedings.’
The Guardian, 3rd December 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Professor Catherine Barnard has this exclusive interview with Sir Ivan Rogers, the former UK Ambassador to the EU, following his speech to Trinity College Cambridge last week. They discuss the themes of this speech which can be found in full on the Trinity College website.’
‘Former world tennis number one Boris Becker has claimed diplomatic immunity from bankruptcy proceedings – citing his role as a sports attache to the Central African Republic.’
The Independent, 15th June 2018
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘The Foreign Office turned down a request from the Ecuadorian government to grant Julian Assange diplomatic status, amid reports the WikiLeaks founder may have received citizenship from the Andean country.’
Daily Telegraph, 11th January 2018
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘The Supreme Court has unanimously found that a former diplomat would not be entitled to diplomatic immunity in relation a claim of human trafficking brought by a domestic worker because the worker’s employment and alleged treatment would not constitute acts performed in the course of the diplomat’s official functions (within the meaning of Articles 31(1)(c) and 39(2) of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations).’
Blackstone Chambers, 18th October 2017
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘If you work for an embassy in London and are not a UK national, you cannot sue your employing state when you get unfairly dismissed. But if you enter a commercial contract with the same embassy, you can sue them.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 20th October 2017
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
‘Two domestic workers who say they were exploited by a Saudi diplomat in London have won a major victory in the supreme court after judges ruled that their employer was no longer protected by diplomatic immunity.’
The Guardian, 18th October 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘In the 21st century commercial practitioners often approach the question of whether the court will hear evidence by video link as one of practicality. Questions they will commonly ask themselves include the following: will the witness be in London during the trial timetable? Will the witness be able to find time (and obtain consent from a current employer) to fly to London? Where physically could the video evidence be given and is that a suitable location? How sure can the court be that the witness is not receiving clandestine assistance “off-camera”? How secure is the video link and what is the sound and picture quality? Indeed in preparing a case that involves a number of witnesses who live and work overseas the possibility of live video evidence may well feature in trial preparation as a necessity rather than an option.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 27th March 2017
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘The EU fears millions of its nationals living in the UK will be left stranded in a legal no man’s land after the country leaves the EU because of the weaknesses of the British immigration system, a document obtained by the Observer reveals.’
The Guardian, 18th February 2017
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘EU diplomats have warned the Foreign Office that the UK will not be able to leave the jurisdiction of the European court of justice (ECJ) if there is to be a transition period while details of Brexit are negotiated.’
The Guardian, 3rd February 2017
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Diplomatic officials working in Britain have allegedly used their immunity to avoid prosecution for serious criminal offences including child pornography and human trafficking, Boris Johnson has told parliament.’
The Guardian, 21st July 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘A former model has been awarded a £53m cash settlement in a high court divorce battle with her Saudi billionaire ex-husband.’
The Guardian, 8th July 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘The parties were married in September 2001 and had one daughter born in October 2002. The husband, a Saudi national, was a businessman of substantial means who married again in 2012 when the parties’ marriage broke down. On their divorce the wife applied for financial relief under Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984. The husband applied to strike out the wife’s application , claiming immunity from suit as the permanent representative of St Lucia to the International Maritime Organisation (“IMO”), a post to which he had been appointed on 1 April 2014. The United Kingdom was required, as a matter of international law, to grant privileges and immunities to personal representatives of member states to the IMO in accordance with the Specialised Agencies Convention and the Headquarters Agreement. A permanent representative was entitled to the same immunity from suit and legal process as the head of a diplomatic mission, except that, by article 15 of the International Maritime Organisation (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2002), a permanent representative who was permanently resident in the United Kingdom was only entitled to immunities and privileges in respect of his official acts. The Foreign Secretary certified that the Foreign Office had been informed by the IMO of the husband’s appointment as permanent representative of St Lucia, of his arrival date and had not been notified that his diplomatic functions had terminated. Although on the face of it that certificate was conclusive evidence of the husband’s appointment by virtue of section 8 of the International Organisations Act 1968, the judge balanced the husband’s claim to immunity against the wife’s rights to access to the courts under article 6 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. He concluded that the husband had not undertaken any duties or performed any functions as permanent representative, that the appointment was an artificial construct to defeat the wife’s claims on the breakdown of the marriage and that, since the husband was permanently resident in the United Kingdom, he was entitled to immunity only in respect of official acts performed in the exercise of his functions. In consequence the judge refused to strike out the wife’s claim.’
WLR Daily, 22nd March 2016
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
‘Phillip Hammond, the foreign secretary, has taken the highly unusual step of criticising a high court judge’s decision to strip diplomatic immunity from a Saudi billionaire facing divorce proceedings from his estranged wife.’
The Guardian, 22nd March 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘An argument over an extension plan next door to the French embassy in London has gone global as an unlikely alliance of diplomats has formed, citing the 1961 Vienna Convention, in a bid to kill it off.’
Daily Telegraph, 9th January 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
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