‘SLAPPs – what are they? If you’ve asked yourself that question, it’s most likely a good thing. In this article we take a look at the impact of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs), which present an important issue within society, politics and the legal profession, particularly in a libel and privacy context.’
Mills & Reeve, 14th March 2023
Source: www.mills-reeve.com
‘A High Court judge has allowed an appeal brought by a mother over whether a judgment in long-running private law proceedings that made findings of domestic abuse against the father, who works as a social worker, should be sent to his regulator, Social Work England (SWE).’
Local Government Lawyer, 10th March 2023
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘The multimillionaire Brexit backer Arron Banks has lost a significant part of his appeal against the decision in his unsuccessful libel action against the Observer and Guardian journalist Carole Cadwalladr.’
The Guardian, 28th February 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The Public Interest Disclosure Act, which introduced Part IVA and S.103A into the Employment Rights Act 1996, was regarded as pioneering, world-leading, legislation when it was passed in 1998. The importance protecting whistleblowers has become generally accepted in the years since then, not only in the United Kingdom but in Europe and beyond.. It is a reasonable assumption that a great deal of “whistleblowing” takes place each and every day which, before 1998, would not have occurred and it does so without any adverse action being taken against the “whistleblowers”. That is a massive cultural change for the better. PIDA and those who framed it must take a great deal of credit for it. However there is no longer a consensus that the legislative framework and the way in which it operates in practice is fit for the purposes of, on the one hand, ensuring that responsible whistleblowers are protected from retribution and, on the other, seeing that those wrongs or hazards to which responsible whistleblowers have drawn attention are remedied or prevented. Indeed Georgina Halford-Hall CEO Whistleblowers UK, writing in the Introduction to All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) Report “Making Whistleblowing Work for Society” said, “In 2020, PIDA is the equivalent of having teeth extracted without anaesthetic.” It is difficult to disagree. And in 2022 the orthodontic experience she was referring to is likely to be even more painful.’
Littleton Chambers, 5th December 2022
Source: littletonchambers.com
‘The public interest in preventing prejudice to commercial interests trumps the public interest in publishing details of recipients of emergency Covid loans, the First Tier Tribunal has ruled. In Spotlight on Corrupton & Anor v The Information Commissioner & The British Business Bank, tribunal judge Sophie Buckley rejected two appeals against the information commissioner’s decision not to require the British Business Bank to identify all the businesses that had taken out loans under four government schemes during the pandemic.’
Law Society’s Gazette, 6th January 2023
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘A coalition of senior journalists and editors from across the political spectrum is calling on the justice secretary, Dominic Raab, to back a proposed law to tackle the global super-rich’s use of “abusive legal tactics to shut down investigations”.’
The Guardian, 29th November 2022
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Where an individual’s presence in the UK is non-conducive to the public good, Part 9 of the Immigration Rules sets out that this is a mandatory ground for refusal or cancellation under the suitability requirements. This applies to applications for entry clearance, permission to enter and permission to stay.
Presence in the UK being non-conducive to the public good can also constitute a reason to deprive an individual of their British citizenship. This is set out in further detail in our earlier post here. However, the deprivation of citizenship is provided for separately under section 40(4) of the British Nationality Act 1981.’
EIN Blog, 14th November 2022
Source: www.ein.org.uk
‘The High Court will interfere with a public authority’s decision only if there has been an error of law, a judge has stressed in a ruling explaining the requirements for judicial review.’
Law Society’s Gazette, 28th October 2022
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘Two members of a Rochdale grooming gang are to be deported to Pakistan after losing a seven-year legal fight to remain in Britain.’
The Guardian, 26th October 2022
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘In this second post, Godwin Busuttil explains how the proposed Bill of Rights would change how courts were required to interpret the scope of Convention rights in the freedom of expression context. The Bill if enacted would mean that UK courts no longer needed to take account of decisions of the European Court of Human Rights. UK courts would also be expected generally not to interpret Convention rights in a way that was more expansive than interpretations placed upon those rights by the European Court of Human Rights. However, they would be allowed to do so when this was to protect freedom of expression.’
Constitutional Law Matters, 24th August 2022
Source: constitutionallawmatters.org
‘In the first of two posts, Godwin Busuttil, a barrister at 5RB specialising in media and communications law, sets out how the Bill of Rights Bill may change the law relating to freedom of expression. Convention rights can be used to protect freedom of speech by protecting journalists from having to reveal their sources. This helps to promote freedom of expression as it means journalists can print stories without concerns that legal action may be taken against their source – e.g. if they have leaked a story that is in the public interest – which in turn would risk such sources ‘drying up’.’
Constitutional Law Matters, 23rd August 2022
Source: constitutionallawmatters.org
‘On 20 July 2022, the UK Supreme Court gave its judgment in the three joined appeals of HA (Iraq), RA (Iraq) and AA (Nigeria) [2022] UKSC 22. The full judgment can be found here. These were all deportation appeals decided by the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal found in favour of the three individuals and the Secretary of State, through the Home Office, appealed to the Supreme Court.’
EIN Blog, 3rd August 2022
Source: www.ein.org.uk
‘The case was a game of two other halves – Coleen Rooney, wife of Wayne, and Rebekah Vardy, wife of Jamie. Steyn J’s judgment left Rooney and her legal team punching the air and dousing themselves in champagne whilst Vardy cradled herself at the side of the pitch, reflecting on the moment she stepped up to take the stand, a moment that will give her nightmares for years. To be clear – I am speaking metaphorically, that didn’t actually happen. If there is one thing reading this judgment has taught me, it is not to make assumptions about whether you are going to be sued for libel, as some people have a really surprising take on the wisdom of doing that.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 1st August 2022
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
‘The Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has today (20 July 2022) set out a package of measures that take aim at so-called “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation” (SLAPPs).’
Ministry of Justice, 20th July 2022
Source: www.gov.uk
‘The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has suggested that people defending themselves from strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) could be protected by a £5,000 costs cap.’
Legal Futures, 22nd July 2022
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
‘On 13 June Arron Banks’ libel claim against Carol Cadwalladr was dismissed, in a significant victory for public interest journalism (Arron Banks v Carole Cadwalladr [2022] EWHC 1417 (QB)).’
Law Society's Gazette, 15th July 2022
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘Courts in England and Wales are to be granted new powers to dismiss lawsuits employed by wealthy claimants to stifle free speech, the government has said.’
The Guardian, 20th July 2022
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A woman was kept in police custody for 36 hours after having a stillbirth because of suspicions she had an abortion after the legal cut-off point, it has been claimed.’
The Independent, 5th July 2022
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Police forces in England and Wales are responding to reports of their own officers committing domestic abuse in a way that is “significantly harming the public interest”, with just 9% of such allegations leading to criminal charges, a joint watchdog investigation has found.’
The Guardian, 30th June 2022
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is set to make it easier for law firm staff to blow the whistle on their employers, as part of its work on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs).’
Legal Futures, 23rd June 2022
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
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