Bill sets five-year limit to prosecute UK armed forces who served abroad – The Guardian

‘A five-year time limit on bringing prosecutions against soldiers and veterans who have served abroad – except in “exceptional circumstances” – is to be imposed under legislation introduced by the government.’

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The Guardian, 18th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Rights in a time of quarantine – an extended look by Niall Coghlan – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 18th, 2020 in coronavirus, freedom of movement, health, human rights, news by sally

‘Quarantines and lockdowns are sweeping Europe: Italy, France, Spain. Through them, states seek to contain Covid-19 and so save lives. It is difficult to imagine higher stakes from a human rights perspective: mass interferences with whole populations’ liberties on one side; the very weighty public interest in protecting lives on the other; and all this under the shadow of uncertainty and disorder. What, if anything, do human rights have to say?’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 17th March 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Fearn & Ors v Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery [2020] EWCA Civ 104 – Tanfield Chambers

Posted March 17th, 2020 in human rights, news, nuisance, privacy by sally

‘There was no cause of action that existed in respect of a private nuisance for overlooking. The instant case was more akin to an invasion of privacy rather than nuisance, and Parliament should be the body to legislate that area rather than the Courts.’

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Tanfield Chambers, 25th February 2020

Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk

Equality watchdog demands suspension of use of automated facial recognition and predictive algorithms in policing – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has called for the suspension of the use of automated facial recognition (AFR) and predictive algorithms in policing in England and Wales, “until their impact has been independently scrutinised and laws are improved”.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 13th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Amendment of LA Plan, post final orders – what can parents do? – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 13th, 2020 in appeals, care orders, children, families, fostering, human rights, local government, news by sally

‘Natalie Cross looks at what needs to happen where parents seek to challenge a change to a care plan where the earlier plan (i.e. remaining at home) has already been approved by the court when the final order was made.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 13th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Question of Incompatibility – Deprivation of Children’s Liberty Without Court Order? – Family Law Week

Posted March 13th, 2020 in care homes, care orders, children, families, human rights, news, privacy by sally

‘Helen Crowell, Pupil Barrister and Shaun Spencer, Barrister, of St Johns Buildings discuss Deprivation of Liberty and the Children’s Home Regulations 2015.’

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Family Law Week, 12th March 2020

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

False imprisonment not synonymous with breach of right to liberty – UK Human Rights Blog

‘R (on the application of Jalloh (formerly Jollah)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 4.In a pithy parting shot to the Home Secretary, Lady Hale has given the unanimous judgment of the Supreme Court on the question of whether a person subject to a home curfew under immigration powers had been falsely imprisoned at common law and whether that concept should now be aligned with the concept of deprivation of liberty in article 5 of the ECHR. The Court decided the case against the defendant, as did every court below (the Blog covered the Court of Appeal’s decision here). The defendant had been required to pay the claimant £4,000.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 10th March 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Forced Marriage Protection Orders – the approach to take – UK Police Law Blog

Posted March 5th, 2020 in family courts, forced marriages, human rights, jurisdiction, news, passports by sally

‘Applications for forced marriage protection orders (“FMPO”s) made pursuant to s.63A of the Family Law Act 1996 are on the rise: in 2018, the government’s Forced Marriage Unit provided advice or support in 1,764 possible forced marriage cases; a significant increase from the following 1200-1400 cases in 2017. Also in 2018, Family Court statistics indicate that 322 applications were made and 324 orders granted. Despite applications being made by police, who must seek leave to make such an application under s.63C(3) of the Family Law Act 1996, and local authorities, the legislation itself does not provide clear guidance as to how the court should deal with such applications. The President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, has now done so in Re K (Forced Marriage: Passport Order) [2020] EWCA Civ 190.’

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UK Police Law Blog, 5th March 2020

Source: ukpolicelawblog.com

Unmarried partners still missing bereavement payments – BBC News

‘Means-tested payments of up to £10,000 are made to parents whose husband, wife or civil partner has died.’

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BBC News, 3rd March 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Strasbourg Court rules against UK on police retention of data – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 27th, 2020 in criminal records, data protection, DNA, human rights, news by sally

‘Can the police indefinitely retain an individual’s DNA profile, fingerprints and photograph after they have been convicted? That was the question before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Gaughran v UK (no. 45245/15, ECHR 2020). This judgment — which was given for the applicant — is of interest both on the merits and as an example of the way the Court continues to approach issues of this kind.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 26th February 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Egg freezing laws not fit for purpose and force women into ‘heartbreaking’ scenario of destroying eggs – The Independent

Posted February 27th, 2020 in assisted reproduction, embryology, human rights, news, time limits by sally

‘The UK law on egg freezing is not fit for purpose and can force women into the “heartbreaking” scenario of having their frozen eggs destroyed, leading medical organisations have warned.’

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The Independent, 27th February 2020

Source: www.independent.co.uk

“The Magnitsky Act – What Now for the Future in the UK” An Article by Lesley Manley – Church Court Chambers

Posted February 26th, 2020 in chambers articles, human rights, money laundering, news by sally

‘The “Magnitsky Act” is a trailblazing piece of legislation enacted by the United States. Lesley Manley looks at developments thus far in the UK and considers how the UK jurisdictions will proceed following the withdrawal from the European Union.’

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Church Court Chambers, 26th February 2020

Source: churchcourtchambers.co.uk

A “Cardinal Democratic Freedom”: High Court rules police’s action “Orwellian” in a victory for freedom of expression – Monckton Chambers

‘On 14 February 2020, the High Court (Mr Justice Julian Knowles) held that Humberside Police had disproportionately interfered with the rights of free speech of the Claimant, Harry Miller, under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (“ECHR”).’

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Monckton Chambers, 21st February 2020

Source: www.monckton.com

Let’s face it: use of automated facial recognition technology by the police – UK Police Law Blog

‘The case of R (Bridges) v Chief Constable of South Wales Police & Information Commissioner [2019] EWHC 2341 (Admin); [2020] 1 WLR 672 is said to have been the first claim brought before a court anywhere on planet earth concerning the use by police of automated facial recognition (“AFR”) technology. There could be nothing wrong with posting scores of police officers with eidetic memories to look out for up to a 800 wanted persons at public gatherings. So why not use a powerful computer, capable of matching 50 faces a second with a database of (under) 800 suspects, to do this job much more cheaply and instantaneously, flagging any matches to a human operator for final assessment? According to the Divisional Court in Bridges, this may, depending on the facts of each particular deployment, be lawful.’

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UK Police Law Blog, 21st February 2020

Source: ukpolicelawblog.com

‘Misconceived’: ECtHR chief hits back at Sumption over rights – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 24th, 2020 in families, human rights, judiciary, news, parliament, privacy, rule of law by sally

‘Now is a dangerous time to roll back judicial power, the vice president of the European Court of Human Rights has said in a public rebuff to Lord Sumption’s high profile criticism of ‘law’s expanding empire’.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 22nd February 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Twitter, trans rights and the role of the police — an extended look – – UK Human Rights Blog

‘The case of R (Miller) v The College of Policing & The Chief Constable of Humberside [2020] EWHC 225 (Admin) is yet another decision arising out of an individual’s use of Twitter to share transphobic, or as they see it “gender critical”, views.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 21st February 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Lawyers and women’s rights charities call for family court judge’s cases to be reviewed – Local Government Lawyer

‘Over 130 family lawyers and women’s rights groups have called for Judge Tolson’s continuing cases to be reviewed, following Justice Russell’s condemnation of the family court judge’s treatment of an allegation of sexual assault in a child protection fact-finding trial last month.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 20th February 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

What are the rules on workplace surveillance? – BBC News

Posted February 21st, 2020 in computer programs, data protection, employment, human rights, news, privacy, spying by sally

‘Barclays has faced a backlash after it piloted a system that tracked the time employees spent at their desks. The company has since scrapped the system – but how common is workplace surveillance and what lengths are employers allowed to go to monitor their staff?‘

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BBC News, 20th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

When are Article 8 rights engaged in the context of an unfair dismissal claim and how should the engagement of such rights be approached by the tribunal? – 3PB

‘The claimant was employed by the respondent from 1994 until November 2014 as a Probation Service Officer (“PSO”). In 2014 there was an incident at the claimant’s home involving the claimant, her then partner, and her daughter, who was then a teenager. It was alleged that the claimant had been violent towards her daughter, something she had always vehemently denied. Social Services became involved and her daughter was placed on the Child Protection Register (“CPR”).’

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3PB, 7th February 2020

Source: www.3pb.co.uk

Court of Appeal provides guidance on “borough-wide” injunctions – No. 5 Chambers

‘Bromley LBC had secured a without notice interim injunction in the High Court which prohibited encampment and entry/occupation in relation to all accessible public spaces in the Borough except cemeteries and highways. These amounted to 139 parks, recreation grounds or open spaces, and 32 public car parks. Although the injunction was against “persons unknown”, it was widely understood that the injunction was aimed at the Gypsy and Traveller community.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 12th February 2020

Source: www.no5.com