New Judgment: R (on the application of A) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] UKSC 37 – UKSC Blog

‘The Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed this appeal concerning the standards to be applied by a court on judicial review of the contents of a policy document or statement of practice issued by a public authority. It is one of two appeals heard by the same panel of five Justices examining similar issues. It should be read together with the Court’s judgment in R (on the application of BF (Eritrea)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] UKSC 38.’

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UKSC Blog, 30th July 2021

Source: ukscblog.com

High Court warns uncooperative parties against “litigation warfare” – Legal Futures

‘A High Court judge has warned against “litigation warfare” as he pleaded with the parties in a construction dispute to co-operate in the face of spiralling costs.’

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Legal Futures, 30th July 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Transparency 1 – 0 Confidentiality?: Manchester City v The Premier League in the Court of Appeal – Littleton Chambers

‘The Court of Appeal this week handed down its decision in Manchester City Football Club Ltd v The Football Association Premier League & Ors [2021] EWCA Civ 1110, the latest judgment to consider the difficult tension that exists between the generally confidential nature of sports arbitration and the desirability of transparency where matters of public interest arise.’

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Littleton Chambers, 22nd July 2021

Source: littletonchambers.com

Not so full and frank disclosure – Nearly Legal

Posted July 29th, 2021 in disclosure, housing, injunctions, landlord & tenant, mental health, news, nuisance by sally

‘The facts of the case followed an all too familiar format. There was a neighbour dispute between Mr Berry and two of his neighbours. Serious allegations were being made on both sides. Complaints had been made to Southern Housing Group Ltd and to the police. The police were investigating both Mr Berry and his neighbours in relation to threatening behaviour. There was evidence that both Mr Berry and his neighbour had mental health difficulties, which were being seriously exacerbated by the ongoing dispute.’

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Nearly Legal, 27th July 2021

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Harry Dunn: US tries to prevent disclosure of alleged killer’s work record – The Guardian

‘The US government has requested that the country’s civil courts prevent the disclosure of the employment details of Harry Dunn’s alleged killer in the interests of “national security”.’

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The Guardian, 25th July 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

CA rejects privilege challenge to file access in lawyer negligence claim – Legal Futures

‘The solicitors to claimants who acquired a cause of action to sue the insolvent defendant’s lawyers for professional negligence cannot be prevented from accessing privileged material, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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Legal Futures, 2nd July 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Public inquiry into Covid must begin now, says senior judge – The Guardian

‘A public inquiry into Covid should be launched immediately, a senior retired judge has said with a warning that if it does not report back for four or five years “it ceases to form a useful function”.’

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The Guardian, 24th June 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Mason v Laing: Wrongly decided? – No. 5 Chambers

‘Those involved in soft tissue injury cases proceeding under the Pre-Action Protocol for Low Value Personal Injury Claims in Road Traffic Accidents (“the RTA Protocol”) may be familiar with paragraph 7.8B of the Protocol.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 11th June 2021

Source: www.no5.com

Whistleblowing: causation, guidance for complex cases and judicial proceedings immunity – 3PB

‘In GMP v Aston we receive a helpful reminder of the approach to be applied in cases where there are multiple protected disclosures spanning a significant period and allegations of multiple detriments involving multiple perpetrators and multiple victims. The case also involves an alleged detriment consisting of evidence given in other tribunal proceedings which was subject to judicial proceedings immunity (JPI) and deals with the issue of whether evidence which is covered by JPI can amount to a detriment. Finally, where the issue of JPI had not been raised before the first instance Tribunal, the Appeal Tribunal considered whether it had to deal with this newly argued point (i.e. whether it was mandatory) or whether it had a discretion to consider the newly argued point (i.e. whether it was discretionary). The considerations when deciding whether or not to exercise the discretion are also set out.’

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3PB, 10th June 2021

Source: www.3pb.co.uk

A Guide to Immigration Subject Access Requests – Richmond Chambers

‘Subject Access Requests (SARs) are an essential tool for individuals and their lawyers, especially when it comes to immigration and nationality law. This post looks at what they are, why they are important, and how to make an Immigration Subject Access Request.’

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Richmond Chambers, 9th June 2021

Source: immigrationbarrister.co.uk

Greenpeace launch legal action against UK government over secrecy on deep sea mining – The Independent

‘Greenpeace has launched legal action against the UK government over ministers’ failure to disclose information over the first deep sea mining exploration licences to be made public.’

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The Independent, 13th June 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Documents privileged despite ‘element of deception’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted June 10th, 2021 in disclosure, documents, misrepresentation, negligence, news, privilege by sally

‘The High Court has ruled that a litigant’s legal documents must remain privileged despite it being accepted they were part of an information-gathering deception.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 9th June 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Much Ado About Nothing: Technical Breaches of Directors’ Disclosure Duties in Fairford Water Ski Club v Cohoon & Anor [2021] EWCA Civ 143 – Hardwicke Chambers

‘In Fairford Water Ski Club Ltd v Cohoon & Anor [2021] EWCA Civ 143, the Court of Appeal considered a highly technical breach of the duty imposed on company directors to disclose any interest in a contract or proposed contract entered into by their company. The decision considers several practical issues surrounding the duty to disclose, such as whether disclosure is effective only if given after the terms have been agreed and the board has considered whether these represent fair value; and whether disclosure at a first board meeting is effective for subsequent meetings. The case also highlights differences in the statutory frameworks applicable to the duty under the Companies Act 1985 and 2006.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 11th May 2021

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

Disclosure pilot scheme still unfit for purpose, most lawyers say – Litigation Futures

Posted May 19th, 2021 in disclosure, news, pilot schemes, solicitors, statistics by sally

‘Seven in 10 lawyers consider the disclosure pilot scheme unfit for purpose, with many believing it has exacerbated the adversarial environment, new research has found.’

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Litigation Futures, 19th May 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Lawyer found guilty of criminal contempt of court, fined £7k for disclosing result of Supreme Court appeal prior to judgment being handed down – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Supreme Court has fined an environmental lawyer £5,000 after finding him in criminal contempt of court for deliberately disclosing the result of an appeal prior to hand down of the judgment.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 11th May 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judge criticises solicitors for sending him letter during trial – Litigation Futures

‘A High Court judge has criticised solicitors who sent him a letter during a trial trying to explain points that had arisen during cross-examination.’

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Litigation Futures, 6th May 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Former subpostmasters expected to have names cleared after court appeal – The Guardian

‘Dozens of former subpostmasters who were convicted of theft, fraud and false accounting because of the Post Office’s defective Horizon accounting system are expected to finally have their names cleared.’

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The Guardian, 23rd April 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Freshfields report into bank rape allegations not covered by privilege – Law Society’s Gazette

‘A report prepared by magic circle firm Freshfields into the alleged rape of a bank employee was not covered by legal privilege, according to an employment tribunal ruling that has now been made public.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 21st April 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Clergy speak out over ‘racism in Church of England’ Published8 hours ago – BBC News

Posted April 19th, 2021 in Church of England, complaints, disclosure, employment, news, racism by tracey

‘Some ethnic minority staff who made complaints of racism within the Church of England have been paid off to “buy their silence”, BBC Panorama has been told.’

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BBC News, 19th April 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

What is the true value of a companion animal? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 7th, 2021 in animals, appeals, consumer protection, damages, disclosure, dogs, news, sale of goods by sally

‘As we all know, the acquisition of puppies during lockdown has gone through the roof with the inevitable sad consequences of remorse followed by neglect and even abandonment. Dog theft has spiralled as the market responds by escalating the price of pedigree puppies.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 7th April 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com