Council loses High Court battle over level of support for disabled young woman – Local Government Lawyer

‘The London Borough of Southwark has lost a High Court case over a disabled young woman’s care plan after a judge found aspects of the council’s case to be materially flawed or erroneous.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 30th July 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Religious fostering service given permission on one ground to appeal rejection of judicial review challenge over Ofsted report – Local Government Lawyer

‘A High Court judge has given a Christian fostering service permission to appeal on one ground following his dismissal earlier this month of its judicial review challenge to a report by Ofsted.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 29th July 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Re T (A Child: Refusal of Adoption Order) [2020] (EWCA Civ 797) – Transparency Project

Posted July 31st, 2020 in adoption, appeals, care orders, children, families, grandparents, guardianship, news by sally

‘In the recent case of Re T (A Child: Refusal of Adoption Order) [2020] (EWCA Civ 797), the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal by grandparents against a decision of the trial judge not to grant them an adoption order in respect of their grandchild, who had lived with them since birth. The Court of Appeal made an adoption order in their favour without remitting for retrial, dispensing with the mother’s consent. Although special guardianship is the legal framework more typically used to secure a long term placement of a child with extended family, the unusual facts of the case merited the making of an adoption order rather than leaving the existing special guardianship order in place. This post discusses the “unusual” circumstances that led to the Court of Appeal’s decision.’

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Transparency Project, 31st July 202

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Manchester Arena Inquiry challenge dismissed – UK Human Rights Blog

‘The High Court has today handed down judgment in R (EA and Anor) v Chairman of the Manchester Arena Inquiry [2020] EWHC 2053 (Admin) refusing permission for judicial review to a group of survivors who unsuccessfully sought core participant status in the forthcoming inquiry into the Manchester Arena bombing attacks. A full legal analysis of the decision will follow. This article provides a summary of the judgment and its context.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 30th July 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Government consults on extending the Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 – Family Law

‘Government consults on extending the Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020.’

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Family Law, 28th July 2020

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

Parental Alienation: the enigma of family law – Family Law Week

Posted July 29th, 2020 in children, families, family courts, news, parental rights by tracey

‘Ian McArdle, barrister of Atlantic Chambers, Liverpool, calls for an agreed definition of “parental alienation”.’

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Family Law Week, 24th July 2020

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Non-molestation orders: Valid Service in the time of Coronavirus (Part 2) – Family Law Week

‘Rachel Cooper and Michael Horton from Coram Chambers further consider the service of non-molestation orders in the time of Covid-19.’

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Family Law Week, 27th July 2020

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

The Spotlight Review on domestic abuse – where does it fit in with other court reforms? – Transparency Project

‘The work undertaken by the “spotlight panel” appointed by the Ministry of Justice, reported in what is being referred to as the “harm report”, has already been commented on here and here. Its full title is “Assessing Risk of Harm to Children and Parents in Private Law Cases”. The purpose of this blog post is to try to see how the harm report fits in with the wider reforms discussed by the President’s Private Law Working Party (the PrLWG) in its two reports.’

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Transparency Project, 24th July 2020

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Only 19 bereaved families approved for NHS staff coronavirus compensation scheme – The Guardian

‘Only 19 families of NHS and social care workers who died after contracting coronavirus have so far been approved for the £60,000 compensation payment from the government.’

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The Guardian, 26th July 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Novichok inquest quashed – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted July 27th, 2020 in coroners, families, human rights, inquests, inquiries, news, Russia, unlawful killing by sally

‘The High Court has today [24 July] handed down a judgment quashing a coroner’s decision on the scope of the inquest into the death of Dawn Sturgess: R (GS) v HM Senior Coroner for Wiltshire and Swindon [2020] EWHC 2007 (Admin).’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 24th July 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Harry Dunn death: Family drop legal action against Northamptonshire Police – BBC News

‘The parents of a young man whose death in a crash sparked an international diplomatic row have dropped their legal action against Northamptonshire Police.’

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BBC News, 26th July 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

High Court rejects CFA-style ban on third-party funding in family cases – Litigation Futures

Posted July 22nd, 2020 in champerty, families, family courts, fees, news, third parties by sally

‘The ban on conditional fee agreements (CFAs) in family cases should not be read across to third-party litigation funding, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 22nd July 2020

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Christopher Kapessa river death: No prosecution decision upheld – BBC News

‘A 14-year-old boy who pushed a boy, 13, into a river before he died will not be prosecuted, a review has concluded.’

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BBC News, 20th July 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Treatment of pensions on divorce – Law Society’s Gazette

‘In July 2019, the Pensions Advisory Group (PAG) published its essential guide to the treatment of pensions on divorce. The report is available on the Nuffield Foundation website. The impact of the report can be seen in the weight attached to it in three recent decisions concerning the treatment of pensions on divorce.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 20th July 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Immunity rule changed in wake of Harry Dunn death – BBC News

‘The UK and the US have agreed to amend an “anomaly” that allowed Harry Dunn death suspect Anne Sacoolas to claim diplomatic immunity.’

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BBC News, 22nd July 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Novichok victim Dawn Sturgess’ daughter challenges coroner – BBC News

Posted July 15th, 2020 in bereavement, coroners, families, inquests, news, Russia, unlawful killing by tracey

‘The daughter of a woman killed by a nerve agent wants her mother’s inquest to consider whether senior members of the Russian state were responsible.’

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BBC News, 14th July 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The family court and vulnerable people – Transparency Project

Posted July 13th, 2020 in children, disabled persons, equality, families, family courts, news by sally

‘Judges and magistrates of the family court deal with some of the most vulnerable people in our society. Quite often, people will find it difficult to participate because of their vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities could cover a wide spectrum of barriers to participation: some litigants may have cognitive or mental health problems; some may have an intellectual disability; some may have a physical disability; and some may be particularly vulnerable as a result of the experiences they have suffered.’

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Transparency Project, 11th July 2020

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Ombudsman criticises council for mother of 6 left in bed and breakfast accommodation – Local Government Lawyer

‘A recently housed Haringey mother that had been living in a bed and breakfast since February 2020 was failed by her local council because it did not do enough to prevent her from becoming homeless, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has said.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 10th July 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Man found guilty of killing pregnant ex-girlfriend and baby in London – The Guardian

‘A man has been found guilty of stabbing his pregnant ex-girlfriend in a jealous rage, killing her and their baby.’

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The Guardian, 10th July 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Pilot Scheme launched for domestic abuse cases in family courts – Becket Chambers

‘The Domestic Abuse bill which is making its way through the legislative process and which was delayed as a result of the calling of the general election (and the prorogation of Parliament) has reached the report stage in the commons this week. It is expected to be amended to incorporate the reforms to the legislation recommended by an expert panel and which will implement those recommendations and commence a pilot scheme to trial them.’

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Becket Chambers, 1st July 2020

Source: becket-chambers.co.uk