Category: human rights

Tom Hickman: Eight ways to reinforce and revise the lockdown law – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted April 16th, 2020 in constitutional law, coronavirus, emergency powers, enforcement, freedom of movement, government departments, human rights, limitations, news, parliament, proportionality, time limits by sally

‘The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 and the counterpart regulations in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, impose the most drastic restrictions on liberty ever seen in the United Kingdom. On 16 April 2020 they reach their first review point and it is a clear that they will be continued, probably initially for a further period of three weeks and thereafter quite likely for a much longer period either in their current form or in modified form.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 16th April 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

El Gizouli: Mutual Legal Assistance Meets Data Protection – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted April 15th, 2020 in data protection, death penalty, disclosure, execution, foreign jurisdictions, government departments, human rights, judicial review, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘On 25 March 2020, the UK Supreme Court issued R (El Gizouli) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 10. Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, this was the court’s first judgment to be handed down remotely. It confirmed the importance of data protection laws to international transfers of personal information for law enforcement purposes and may have even broader ramifications.’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 13th April 2020

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Articles 3 and 8 in the Time of Coronavirus: A New Case With Implications for Local Authorities Using the Care Act ‘Easements’ – Coronavirus: Guidance for Lawyers and Businesses

Posted April 14th, 2020 in chambers articles, coronavirus, duty of care, easements, hospitals, human rights, local government, mental health, news by sally

‘The Care Act ‘easements’ were brought into force on 31 March 2020. Per the statutory guidance, local authorities may take a decision to apply the new and much higher threshold for receiving care. That threshold states that a person is not entitled to receive care and support from a local authority as a matter of right unless it is necessary to prevent a breach of the person’s human rights – most likely to be Articles 2, 3 or 8 of the European Convention. Arianne Kelly looks at the first case on the subject.’

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Coronavirus: Guidance for Lawyers and Businesses, 14th April 2020

Source: lawinthetimeofcorona.wordpress.com

The Coronavirus Act 2020: When Legislation Goes Viral (Part Two) – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 14th, 2020 in coronavirus, emergency powers, health, human rights, news by sally

‘In Part One, I considered the background to the Coronavirus Act 2020 and some general aspects of the legislation. Here, I focus on some of the substantive provisions of the legislation and briefly explore the role that human rights law has to play in the management of the COVID-19 crisis.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 10th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Leviathan unshackled? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 14th, 2020 in coronavirus, emergency powers, enforcement, freedom of movement, government departments, health, human rights, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘The response to the Covid-19 pandemic by governments across the world has thrown into sharp relief the fact that at a time of crisis the institutions and functions of Nation States are still the key structures responsible for the most basic duty of protecting their citizens’ lives. In the United Kingdom, the recent weeks have seen interventions by the Government in the economy and in the freedom of movement that are commonly seen as unparalleled in the post 1945 era.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 10th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Supreme Court Rejects Appeal in Serco Lock Change Evictions Case – But What Effect Has the Human Rights Challenge Already Had? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 9th, 2020 in appeals, asylum, homelessness, housing, human rights, immigration, landlord & tenant, news, repossession, Supreme Court by sally

‘Serco is a private company that was contracted by the UK Home Office between 2012 and 2019 to provide accommodation to asylum seekers living in Glasgow. In July 2018, Serco began to implement the “move on protocol” – a new policy of changing locks and evicting asylum seekers without a court order if they were no longer eligible for asylum support. This put around 300 asylum seekers – who had no right to work or who had no right to homeless assistance – at risk of eviction and homelessness in Glasgow without any court process.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 8th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Disabled man stuck in bedroom on eighth-floor flat for 20 months loses judicial review challenge – Local Government Lawyer

Posted April 9th, 2020 in compensation, disability discrimination, disabled persons, housing, human rights, judicial review, landlord & tenant, local government, news by sally

‘A man in his early sixties with a complex medical history and disabilities who spent almost 20 months without being able to leave his bedroom in an eighth-floor council flat has failed in a judicial review claim against a council for compensation and declaratory relief.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 8th April 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Another skirmish on the boundaries of vicarious liability: data protection this time – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 9th, 2020 in appeals, data protection, employment, human rights, news, Supreme Court, vicarious liability by sally

‘This appeal concerned the circumstances in which an employer can be held to be vicariously liable for wrongs committed by its employees, and also whether vicarious liability may arise for breaches by an employee of duties imposed by the Data Protection Act 1998 (“DPA”).’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 7th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Sharing or Caring? The Delineation of UK Parental Rights – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted April 9th, 2020 in appeals, children, employment, equality, families, human rights, maternity leave, news, parental rights, remuneration, Supreme Court by sally

‘Following the Supreme Court’s refusal to permit an appeal in Chief Constable of Leicestershire v Hextall, the Court of Appeal’s earlier judgment remains binding. In a case which brings the paradoxes inherent in the UK’s system of workplace parental rights into sharp focus, the Court held that it is not discriminatory to pay a man on shared parental leave (SPL) less than an enhanced rate of maternity pay paid to a woman on maternity leave (ML).’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 7th April 2020

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Proposed amendments to the Human Rights Act to disadvantage UK war crimes victims – Oxford Human Rights Hub

Posted April 8th, 2020 in armed forces, bills, compensation, human rights, news, time limits, war crimes by sally

‘On 18 March 2020, the UK Minister for Defence introduced into the UK Parliament his promised package of new legislation designed to ‘protect veterans’. Entitled the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill, the proposed laws would amend the UK’s Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) in ways that impact on its human rights obligations, including under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).’

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Oxford Human Rights Hub, 6th April 2020

Source: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk

Inquests into deaths in custody during the COVID-19 pandemic – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 8th, 2020 in coronavirus, death in custody, duty of care, health, health & safety, human rights, inquests, news, prisons by sally

‘Following the sad news of the first death in custody from COVID-19, a question arises: what are likely to be the issues at inquests into the deaths in custody from COVID-19?’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 6th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Lockdown: A Response to Professor King — Robert Craig – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 7th, 2020 in coronavirus, emergency powers, enforcement, freedom of movement, health, human rights, news, statutory interpretation by sally

‘This post analyses the legal provisions that accompany some of the restrictions on movement of individuals announced by the Government. The movement restrictions themselves are vital to the protection of life in the current crisis and must be adhered to by all persons. The current Government guidance setting out these and other restrictions can be found here. Legal scrutiny of the associated regulations is warranted but should not be taken to question the undeniable imperative to follow that guidance.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 6th April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Vicarious liability — the new boundary dispute – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 7th, 2020 in appeals, banking, class actions, damages, doctors, employment, human rights, news, professional conduct, sexual offences, Supreme Court, vicarious liability by sally

‘In the Christian Brothers case Lord Phillips of famously declared that “the law of vicarious liability is on the move”. The recent decision of the Supreme Court in Barclays Bank v. Various Claimants [2020] UKSC 13 has brought that movement to a juddering halt. The question posed by the appeal was a simple one. Is it possible to be vicariously liable for the acts of a self-employed ‘independent contractor’? The answer the Court gave in this case was ‘no’.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 3rd April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Corporate failure to prevent abuses – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 7th, 2020 in civil justice, company law, financial regulation, fraud, human rights, money laundering, news by sally

‘While debate rumbles on over the extension of ‘failure to prevent’ offences into the broad spectrum of financial crime, including fraud and money laundering, some have called for their introduction into an altogether different sphere: human rights.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 6th April 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Supreme Court holds hospital liable for commercial surrogacy — William Edis QC – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 7th, 2020 in appeals, cancer, damages, hospitals, human rights, negligence, news, pregnancy, Supreme Court, surrogacy by sally

‘The Supreme Court has held that a defendant hospital trust must pay for the cost of a commercial surrogacy arrangement abroad despite such arrangements being unlawful in the UK.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 3rd April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

How Does Keir Starmer’s Shadow Cabinet Stack Up On Human Rights? – Each Other

Posted April 7th, 2020 in human rights, news, political parties by sally

‘Sir Keir Starmer has been elected leader of the Labour Party and has assembled his shadow cabinet.’

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Each Other, 6th April 2020

Source: eachother.org.uk

The Coronavirus Act 2020: When Legislation Goes Viral (Part One) – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted April 6th, 2020 in bills, coronavirus, emergency powers, freedom of movement, human rights, news, statutory interpretation by sally

‘At this point, it is almost trite to say that we are living through unprecedented events. The global spread of the Coronavirus pandemic poses serious challenges to society. So far, the global death-toll has exceeded 21,000 and life as we know it in the UK has changed dramatically. In response to this crisis the Government has announced drastic measures in order to curb the spread of the virus and to support those who may be affected. Indeed, it seems that Cicero’s famous injunction to let the welfare of the people be the highest law has gained a new relevance in the age of COVID-19.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 2nd April 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Lewis Graham: Life Sentences under the Convention: Law or Politics? – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted April 6th, 2020 in constitutional law, drug offences, drug trafficking, extradition, government departments, human rights, news by sally

‘Sometimes cases stand for far more than their strict ratio decidendi. The High Court’s recent ruling in Hafeez v Secretary of State for the Home Department is a prime example of such a case. The facts are simple. The US sought from the UK the extradition of Mr Hafeez, the alleged leader of an international crime syndicate and so-called “Sultan of drugs”. Unsurprisingly, Mr Hafeez resisted that motion, claiming that were he to be extradited, he would in all likelihood be sentenced to life without parole in the US, which would breach his rights under the ECHR. The UK, he argued, would be complicit in breaching his rights were it to proceed with the extradition. The High Court was to determine whether this was in fact the case.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 3rd April 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Arron Banks fails in effort to use human rights laws to avoid £162,000 tax bill – The Guardian

Posted April 3rd, 2020 in appeals, freedom of expression, HM Revenue & Customs, human rights, inheritance tax, news, political parties, taxation by sally

‘Arron Banks, the businessman and Ukip party donor, has failed in his attempt to use human rights laws to dismiss a £162,000 tax bill.’

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The Guardian, 2nd April 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Families of disabled children threaten legal challenge over government limit on outdoor exercise – Local Government Lawyer

Posted April 2nd, 2020 in autism, children, coronavirus, disability discrimination, disabled persons, emergency powers, families, freedom of movement, government departments, human rights, news, proportionality by sally

‘A pre-action protocol letter has been sent to the Government calling on it to reconsider the policy that all citizens are only permitted to leave the house for exercise once per day.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 1st April 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk