Another Distinction Between Professional Disciplinary Proceedings and Internal Employment Disciplinary Hearings: Christou v London Borough of Haringey – Littleton Chambers

“If an individual has already been charged and given a warning for misconduct in a disciplinary process, can that process later be reopened, re-run and the individual dismissed for the same charge on the same evidence?”

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Littleton Chambers, 14th March 2013

Source: www.littletonchambers.com

QASA: part of a sustained attack on legal aid? – LegalVoice

Posted March 21st, 2013 in advocacy, barristers, legal aid, legal profession, news, quality assurance by sally

“Amongst criminal lawyers, the issues surrounding QASA – the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates – that have been rumbling on for a few years, is coming to a head, writes Dan Bunting. The Criminal Bar Association have come out very strongly against it which prompted a strong response from Baroness Ruth Deech, the Chair of the Bar Standards Board. It has also managed to achieve the impossible – uniting barristers and solicitors.”

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LegalVoice, 21st March 2013

Source: www.legalvoice.org.uk

Secret commissions and proprietary claims – where are we now? – 11 Stone Buildings

Posted March 21st, 2013 in agency, appeals, bribery, constructive trusts, news by sally

“Practitioners were trained to believe that an agent would hold a bribe on trust for his principal. Then came Sinclair v Versailles which appeared to have decided that the principal’s remedy would be merely personal. Now everything seems to have changed again. In this ‘Insider’ note Peter Head examines the Court of Appeal’s recent decision in FHR European Ventures LLP v Mankarious and considers where we are now.”

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11 Stone Buildings, March 2013

Source: www.11sb.com

Is rights replication undermining the international human rights system? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 21st, 2013 in human rights, international law, news, treaties by sally

“Rapid expansion of human rights obligations at the European and international levels arguably undermines the system of International Human Rights Law. Countries like the UK, which place strong emphasis on the need to protect individuals from abuses, are faced with ever more obligations stemming from rights inflation. One crucial way in which this occurs is through rights replication.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 20th March 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Family Law Week’s Budget Briefing 2013 – Family Law Week

Posted March 21st, 2013 in benefits, budgets, families, news, social security, taxation by sally

“Jan Ellis, chartered accountant, of Ellis Foster LLP, a firm which specialises in advising family lawyers on tax-related family law issues, explains the budget changes of most relevance to practitioners.”

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Family Law Week, 20th March 2013

Source: www.familylawweek.com

Are future criminal barristers out of touch with reality? – The Guardian

Posted March 21st, 2013 in barristers, crime, legal profession, news by sally

“The criminal bar may be facing its darkest moment but applications for bar school continue to rise.”

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The Guardian, 21st March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Jack Straw – Dilemmas of a Foreign Secretary – UCL Constitution Unit

Posted March 21st, 2013 in ministers' powers and duties, news, speeches by sally

“Jack Straw served continuously on the Labour front-bench for 30 years- from November 1980 until October 2010.

He was a senior member of the Labour Cabinet for the whole period of the 1997-2000 Labour Government. He served successively as Home Secretary (1997-2001), Foreign Secretary (2001-2006), Leader of the Commons (2006-7), and then Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary (2007-2010).”

Video

UCL Constitution Unit, 7th March 2013

Source: www.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit

Call for research into effects on children of giving evidence in abuse cases – The Guardian

Posted March 21st, 2013 in child abuse, children, evidence, news, speeches, witnesses by sally

“Research should be carried out into the long-term affects on those who give evidence about sexual abuse when they are a child, the lord chief justice, Lord Judge, has urged.”

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The Guardian, 20th March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Trouble for personal injury law firms means trouble for claimants – The Guardian

Posted March 21st, 2013 in costs, fees, law firms, news, personal injuries by sally

“While there is little public sympathy for solicitors the truth is that people will soon find it harder to claim compensation.”

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The Guardian, 21st March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

The Supreme Court on harassment: purpose and rationality – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 21st, 2013 in crime, defences, harassment, news, Supreme Court by sally

“Harassment is both a civil wrong and a crime. It is a statutory defence to both that the conduct #was pursued for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime’ s.1(3) Protection of Harassment Act 1997. This decision grappled with the problem of the apparently honest but irrational harasser. Was he guilty or did this defence help him? In answering this, the Supreme Court looked at some basic concepts running through great swathes of the law, ‘purpose’, ‘subjective’, ‘objective’, ‘reasonableness’ and, critically, ‘rationality’ – so the case is one not simply for harassment lawyers to look at.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 20th March 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Public inquiries should avoid mock trial image, says study – The Guardian

Posted March 21st, 2013 in inquiries, news, reports, trials by sally

“Public inquiries should avoid the atmosphere of a ‘mock trial’ in order to improve dialogue among participants, according to a study.”

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The Guardian, 21st March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Two men found responsible for Omagh bombing after landmark civil action – The Independent

Posted March 21st, 2013 in civil justice, explosives, news, retrials, terrorism by sally

“Two men connected to the republican movement in Northern Ireland have been ruled responsible for the Omagh bombing after a landmark civil action.”

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The Independent, 20th March 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

The “noisy minority” of barristers opposed to QASA hit back at BSB claims – Legal Futures

Posted March 21st, 2013 in advocacy, barristers, legal profession, news, quality assurance by sally

“The Bar Standards Board (BSB) chair’s description of opponents of the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA) as ‘a noisy minority of dissenters’ received an immediate high-powered response from criminal law barristers.”

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Legal Futures, 21st March 2013

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Disability hate crime victims being let down, official report says – The Guardian

Posted March 21st, 2013 in crime, disabled persons, hate crime, news, reports, victims by sally

“Victims of disability hate crime are being let down by the criminal justice system and attacks are not being properly recorded, according to a report by three official inspectorates.”

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The Guardian, 21st March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Doctors put lower value on lives of the disabled, study finds – Daily Telegraph

“NHS doctors are more likely to allow patients to die if they suffer from a mental disability, a damning Government-backed report suggests.”

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Daily Telegraph, 19th March 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

What will happen to human rights after the next election? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 20th, 2013 in elections, human rights, immigration, news, prisons, speeches by sally

“Human rights will be a politically live issue at the next election. Leading on the issue will by the Conservative Party, urged on by elements in the media such as the Daily Mail with a commercial interest in resistance to any law on privacy deriving from human rights. So, the Working Men’s College has done well to identify this topic for exploration. This evening is a celebration of the college’s stated aim to ‘engage positively with the past, while finding new ways to pursue its founders’ aims into the 21st century.’ ”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 20th March 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Privacy, Protests and Policing – Panopticon

“In Catt v ACPO and others; T v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis and another [2013] EWCA Civ 192, the Court of Appeal considered two appeals regarding the powers of the police to collect and retain personal information about members of the public. Both cases turned on the application of Article 8 of the Convention; in both, the Court held that there had been an interference with the Article 8(1) right to respect for private life, and that the interference was not justified under Article 8(2).”

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Panopticon, 20th March 2013

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Police community support officer guilty of sex charges – The Guardian

“A police community support officer was jailed for seven years on Tuesday for repeatedly targeting vulnerable women for sex while on duty.”

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The Guardian, 19th March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Supreme court rules it can examine secret judgements by lower courts – The Guardian

Posted March 20th, 2013 in closed material, evidence, news, private hearings, Supreme Court by sally

“The supreme court has ruled for the first time in its history that it can examine secret judgments given by lower courts.”

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The Guardian, 19th March 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Cold-calling firm fined £90,000 in first penalty of its kind – Daily Telegraph

Posted March 20th, 2013 in fines, harassment, news, telecommunications by sally

“A marketing firm has become the first to be fined £90,000 after plaguing members
of the public with thousands of unwanted calls.”

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Daily Telegraph, 20th March 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk