Home Office misled court about treatment of child refugees from Calais, judges find – The Guardian

‘The government “materially misled” the high court about its treatment of child refugees who applied for safe passage to the UK from Calais, giving incomplete evidence that was “a serious breach of the duty of candour and cooperation”, the court of appeal ruled on Tuesday.’

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The Guardian, 31st July 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Concurrent delay risk can be allocated by contract, confirms Court of Appeal – OUT-LAW.com

Posted August 1st, 2018 in construction industry, contracts, delay, news by sally

‘Parties to building contracts are free to agree on how to allocate the risk of concurrent delay to works, the Court of Appeal ruled on Monday.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 30th July 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Circuit judge was wrong to apply QOCS to ‘mixed’ claim automatically, High Court rules – Litigation Futures

‘A circuit judge was wrong to order that qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) automatically applied to a claim about misuse of data because it also included a personal injury (PI) element, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 1st August 2018

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Funeral ads banned by TfL over ‘widespread offence’ – BBC News

Posted August 1st, 2018 in advertising, bereavement, London, news, transport by sally

‘The company behind a set of funeral comparison adverts banned by Transport for London has said it was trying to break the “taboo” around death.’

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BBC News, 31st July 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Time to play by the rules? – New Law Journal

‘John Gould offers some advice on how to strike a balance between clarity & flexibility in recent changes to the solicitors’ rule book.’

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New Law Journal, 27th July 2018

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Financial consent orders can now be filed online – Family Law

‘On Monday 6 August 2018 the family courts will take another step towards becoming digital. From that date applications for consent orders in family court financial proceedings can be filed online rather than delivery to a physical court office. For many law firms increasingly geared towards the digital rather than the paper, this is yet further welcome progress.’

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Family Law, 30th July 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

One year on: 80% of tribunal refunds unpaid – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 1st, 2018 in delay, employment tribunals, fees, news, repayment by sally

‘Thousands of claimants who paid fees to bring an employment tribunal claim continue to be out of pocket one year on from a damning Supreme Court ruling that rendered fees unlawful.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 30th July 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Man freed on first day of acid attack trial in Liverpool – The Guardian

‘A judge has called on the Crown Prosecution Service to expand its review of disclosure failures after a man spent six months in prison accused of carrying out an acid attack only to be freed on the first day of his trial.’

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The Guardian, 21st July 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

First terrorism charges against ex-soldier who fought Islamic State fail as prosecutors offer no evidence – Daily Telegraph

Posted August 1st, 2018 in Crown Prosecution Service, evidence, news, prosecutions, terrorism by sally

‘A British ex-soldier accused of attending terrorist training camps run by militia fighting against Islamic State has had terrorism charges against him dropped.’

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Daily Telegraph, 31st July 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Modern slavery law review as gangs ‘evolve’ – BBC News

‘The UK’s modern slavery legislation is to be reviewed as criminal gangs find new ways to exploit victims, the Home Office has announced.’

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BBC News, 30th July 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Brexit white paper – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 1st, 2018 in brexit, EC law, employment, immigration, news, parliamentary papers, visas by sally

‘on 12 July, the government published its much-anticipated Brexit white paper on the future relationship between the UK and the EU. Secured in cabinet sessions at Chequers, the proposals broadly cover post-Brexit economic and security partnerships, cross-cutting cooperation, and institutional arrangements under the familiar but increasingly threadbare banner of ‘taking back control’. To the surprise of few, the plan was immediately criticised by Brexit hardliners as defeatist, diluted and dispirited. To the surprise of many, including the prime minister herself, it prompted the resignations of foreign secretary Boris Johnson and secretary of state for exiting the EU David Davis.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 30th July 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

UK teenager jailed for 17 years over fatal acid attack – The Guardian

Posted August 1st, 2018 in hazardous substances, homicide, news, sentencing by sally

‘A teenager has been jailed for 17 years after what is believed to be the first conviction for an acid attack killing in the UK.’

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The Guardian, 1st August 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

High Court rejects MRO’s bid for summary judgment over £1.6m “owed” by law firm – Litigation Futures

Posted July 31st, 2018 in contracts, fees, law firms, news, summary judgments by sally

‘The High Court has rejected an application for summary judgment by a medical reporting agency seeking to reclaim almost £1.6m in fees from a law firm.’

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Litigation Futures. 30th July 2018

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Judge criticises ‘generally unhelpful’ firm over application in VW case – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted July 31st, 2018 in class actions, costs, law firms, news, professional conduct by sally

‘A Derbyshire firm involved in the group action case against car maker Volkswagen (VW) has been criticised for its ‘inconsistent, non-engaging and generally unhelpful’ conduct in an application to extend the timeframe for a service of claim.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 31st July 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Against their will? – New Law Journal

Posted July 31st, 2018 in forced marriages, mental health, news, wills by sally

‘Constance McDonnell uncovers a surprising scenario in the area of probate law.’

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New Law Journal, 20th July 2018

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Judge takes over father’s cross-examination in case involving rape allegations – and it ends up being unfair on everyone involved – Transparency Project

Posted July 31st, 2018 in appeals, cross-examination, judges, litigants in person, news, rape, witnesses by sally

‘Mr Justice Hayden is a High Court Judge who has been very outspoken about the potential for the court process to be abusive of those who are already victims of domestic abuse. In a case called Re A (a minor) (fact finding; unrepresented party) [2017] EWHC 1195 (Fam), having permitted the unrepresented father to directly question the mother (albeit with special measures in place so they didn’t have to confront each other by line of sight) he memorably said ‘Never again’. Hayden J said it was ‘a stain on the reputation of our Family Justice system that a Judge can still not prevent a victim being cross examined by an alleged perpetrator’. Today he has published an appeal judgment overturning a fact-finding decision in a case where another judge tried to cross examine the mother on behalf of the father accused of rape because (Hayden J said) the process was unfair and the decision unsound. The full judgment can be read here : PS v BP [2018] EWHC 1987 (Fam) (27 July 2018), but this blog post explains it.’

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Transparency Project, 30th July 2018

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Court allows police to reveal acquittals during record checks – The Guardian

Posted July 31st, 2018 in appeals, criminal records, employment, news, police, Supreme Court by sally

‘Police forces can reveal whether individuals have been acquitted of criminal charges when issuing information for enhanced record checks, the supreme court has ruled.’

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The Guardian, 30th July 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

The rise of private FDRs – Family Law

Posted July 31st, 2018 in arbitration, dispute resolution, families, financial provision, judges, news by sally

‘In his last interview for the Family Law Bar Association’s Family Affairs magazine, Sir James Munby ruminated that ‘I should have liked to do more on the money front’. In the same interview, when pondering his next steps, he makes clear, ‘I’m not – and I tempt the fates by saying this – I am not going off to become a private family mediator. I am not going to do private FDRs’.’

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Family Law, 30th July 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

999 calls: When do assurances of help give rise to a duty of care? – UK Police Law Blog

Posted July 31st, 2018 in duty of care, emergency services, news, police by sally

‘The working assumption of most police lawyers is that a common law duty of care will not arise where call handlers tell 999 callers that the police will attend and assist. The judgment in Sherratt v Chief Constable of GMP [2018] EWHC 1746 (QB) demonstrates that a more careful analysis is required. In this case, some fairly common and non-specific assurances were sufficient to give rise to a duty of care.’

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UK Police Law Blog, 27th July 2018

Source: ukpolicelawblog.com

Video hearings “will not supplant” face-to-face, says HMCTS – Legal Futures

Posted July 31st, 2018 in courts, dispute resolution, news, tribunals, video recordings by sally

‘Video hearings will not supplant face-to-face hearings in the majority of cases before the courts, even after their use is expanded, the deputy director of HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has predicted.’

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Legal Futures, 31st July 2018

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk