Immigration policy tearing families apart, report shows – The Guardian

Posted June 11th, 2013 in families, immigration, inquiries, news, regulations, reports, visas by tracey

“A cross-party group of MPs has called for an urgent review of new immigration rules, which they claim are tearing hundreds of British families apart. Their inquiry report shows that a new minimum earnings rule of £18,600 a year, which came into effect last July, has meant that thousands of British citizens, including people with full-time jobs, have been unable to bring a non-European husband, wife or partner to live with them in Britain.”

Full story

The Guardian, 10th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Helen Fenwick: Article 8 ECHR, the ‘Feminist Article’, Women and a Conservative Bill of Rights – UK Constitutional Law Group

Posted June 6th, 2013 in bills, courts, families, human rights, news, reports, women by sally

“There has been a lot of commentary on the Report of the Bill of Rights’ Commission, and the ‘damp squib’ analysis of the Report (see Mark Elliott) as a whole is one most commentators appear to assent to (see eg Joshua Rozenberg for the Guardian here). My view in general is that the squib could reignite post-2015 if a Conservative government is elected, not in relation to the very hesitant ideas as to the possible future content of a Bill of Rights that the Report put forward, but in relation to its majority recommendation that there should be one (see further my previous post on the Commission Report here). If a BoR was to emerge under a Conservative government post-2015 I suggest that it would reflect the ideas of the Conservative nominees on the Commission which assumed a far more concrete form in the Report than the majority recommendations did (eg see here at p 192). This blog post due to its length is not intended to examine the probable nature of such a BoR based on those ideas in general, but to focus only on two aspects: the idea of curtailing the effects of an equivalent to Article 8 ECHR (right to respect for private and family life), and of requiring domestic courts to disapply Strasbourg jurisprudence under a BoR in a wider range of situations than at present under s2HRA (see Roger Masterman’s post on s2 on this blog here). In respect of the latter issue the potential impact of so doing will only be linked to selected aspects of Article 8 jurisprudence of especial actual and potential benefit to women.”

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UK Constitutional Law Group, 5th June 2013

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Woman jailed by ‘secret court’ for taking father out of care home talks for first time of her ordeal – Daily Telegraph

“A woman jailed by a ‘secret court; for trying to take her dying father out of his care home and fly him to Turkey has spoken about her ordeal for the first time.”

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Daily Telegraph, 30th May 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

April Jones’s mother speaks of her anguish as Mark Bridger is jailed for life – The Guardian

Posted May 31st, 2013 in families, murder, news, sentencing, victims by sally

“A former abattoir worker and lifeguard who was found to have abducted and murdered April Jones began a whole-life prison term on Thursday, still refusing to say what he did with her body.”

Full story

The Guardian, 31st May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

SS (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

Posted May 24th, 2013 in appeals, deportation, families, human rights, immigration, law reports by tracey

SS (Nigeria) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: [2013] EWCA Civ 550;   [2013] WLR (D)  192

“A claim under article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms made in reliance on the interests of a child with British citizenship by a foreign criminal seeking to resist deportation under section 32 of the UK Borders Act 2007 needed to be very strong to prevail given the pressing public interest in removal and the great weight to be attached to the policy of deporting foreign criminals by virtue of its origin in primary legislation. Only in extremely rare circumstances should a tribunal exercise an inquisitorial function on its own initiative in evaluating the interests of such a child.”

WLR Daily, 22nd May 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Benefits cap will have catastrophic effect on families, court will hear – The Guardian

Posted May 24th, 2013 in benefits, domestic violence, families, judicial review, news by tracey

“Families will suffer catastrophic effects and victims of domestic violence may be forced to return to their abusers, it will be argued in the first test cases challenging the government’s imposition of a £500-a-week cap on benefits. A judge has already given permission for a full judicial review of claims that involve four vulnerable families relying on welfare payments. One household is facing imminent eviction, according to documents filed at the high court.”

Full story

The Guardian, 23rd May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Norwich child sex abuser sentence ‘not unduly lenient’ – BBC News

“A child sex abuser who was spared jail due to the impact on his family was not given an ‘unduly lenient’ sentence, the solicitor general has decided.”

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BBC News, 22nd May 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Son jailed for 18 years at least for murdering mother after she threatened to disinherit him – The Independent

Posted May 16th, 2013 in families, mental health, murder, news, sentencing by sally

“A carpet fitter who smothered his frail mother to death after she threatened to write him out of her will has been jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 18 years.”

Full story

The Independent, 15th May 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Taking responsibility – New Law Journal

Posted May 14th, 2013 in families, guardianship, local government, news, supervision orders by sally

“Special guardianship orders have become an increasingly popular means of resolving family proceedings. They have found favour with local authorities as a means of securing kinship care placements and have been described as a half-way house between a residence order and an adoption order.”

Full story

New Law Journal, 10th May 2013

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Alarape and another v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

Posted May 10th, 2013 in EC law, education, families, immigration, law reports by sally

Alarape and another v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Case C-529/11); [2013] WLR (D) 168

“The parent of a child who had attained the age of majority and who had obtained access to education on the basis of article 12 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 (as amended by Parliament and Council Directive 2004/38/EC) could continue to have a derived right of residence under that article if the child remained in need of the presence and care of that parent in order to be able to continue and to complete his or her education, which was for the referring court to assess, taking into account all the circumstances of the case before it. Periods of residence in a host member state which were completed by family members of a Union citizen who were not nationals of a member state solely on the basis of article 12 of Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 could not be taken into consideration for the purposes of acquisition by those family members of a right of permanent residence.”

WLR Daily, 8th May 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Taking responsibility – New Law Journal

Posted May 10th, 2013 in families, guardianship, local government, news, supervision orders by sally

“Special guardianship orders have become an increasingly popular means of resolving family proceedings. They have found favour with local authorities as a means of securing kinship care placements and have been described as a half-way house between a residence order and an adoption order.”

Full story

New Law Journal, 10th May 2013

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Grieving drivers who kill loved ones could escape prosecution – Daily Telegraph

“Dangerous drivers who kill a loved one could for the first time avoid prosecution because of their emotional trauma, the country’s top prosecutor said today.”

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Daily Telegraph, 9th May 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Annual Report of the Office of the Head of International Family Justice for England and Wales: 2012 – Judiciary of England and Wales

Posted May 3rd, 2013 in children, families, family courts, international law, reports, treaties by tracey

“Annual Report of the Office of the Head of International Family Justice for England and Wales: 2012.”

Full report

Judiciary of England and Wales, 1st May 2013

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Judge: parents were too besotted to hurt children – Daily Telegraph

Posted April 29th, 2013 in child abuse, children, evidence, families, news, social services by tracey

“A judge has refused to allow social workers to take three children with serious
and apparently unexplained injuries into care after seeing that their parents
were ‘simply dotty about them’.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 27th April 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Home Office fury as drug dealer immigrant wins right to stay in UK – Daily Telegraph

Posted April 29th, 2013 in appeals, deportation, drug offences, families, human rights, immigration, news by tracey

“A judge’s decision to allow a convicted drug dealer who abandoned his children
the right to stay in Britain over his ‘human rights’ is at the centre of
mounting political protest.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 27th April 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Local authority ordered to pay substantial costs in family human rights case – UK Human Rights Blog

“This was a costs application arising from an extremely important decision by Peter Jackson J in June 2012 (see Alasdair Henderson’s post here and read judgment).”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 19th April 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Regina (Bibi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department; Regina (Ali) v Same(Liberty and Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants intervening) – WLR Daily

Regina (Bibi) v Secretary of State for the Home Department; Regina (Ali) v Same(Liberty and Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants intervening) [2013] EWCA Civ 322; [2013] WLR (D) 139

“The requirement that a foreign spouse or partner of a British citizen or person settled in the United Kingdom produce a test certificate of knowledge of the English language to a prescribed standard prior to entering the United Kingdom was proportionate.”

WLR Daily, 12th April 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Sharia courts putting women at risk, CPS warns – Daily Telegraph

Posted April 8th, 2013 in courts, domestic violence, families, islamic law, news, women by sally

“Sharia courts are putting women at risk of violence from abusive husbands, the Crown Prosecution Service has warned.”

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Daily Telegraph, 7th April 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Lakanal House fire victims’ families seek compensation – BBC News

Posted April 5th, 2013 in compensation, families, fire, fire services, housing, local government, news, victims by sally

“The families of the six people who died in the Lakanal House fire are taking legal action for compensation, BBC London has learned.”

Full story

BBC News, 4th April 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Enforcement of custody in the face of children’s dissent: should law prevail? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 5th, 2013 in children, custody, EC law, enforcement, families, news by sally

“This complicated inter-jurisdictional battle between estranged parents is a stark illustration of how difficult it can be in these sorts of cases to apply the law in the fog of family warfare.”

Full story

UK Human Rights Blog, 4th April 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com