‘In this blog, Rachel Crasnow QC considers the recent proposals to reform the Equality Act 2010 outlined by the Women and Equalities Committee in its report concerning Older People and Employment which was published on 17 July 2018. Their proposals were formulated after hearing expert evidence from a range of people including Cloisters’ Dee Masters.’
Cloisters, 17th July 2018
Source: www.cloisters.com
‘What is the proper procedure when submitting an application for permission to appeal? Phillip Patterson, a barrister at Hardwicke Chambers, considers the Court of Appeal’s judgment in Lisle-Mainwaring v Associated Newspapers Ltd and explains why any informal attempt to seek permission to appeal from the lower court is invalid.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 30th July 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘In the wake of the Carillion insolvency, many sub-contractors are likely to be investigating their rights to terminate their contracts with a now defunct main contractor. Looking for a clean break, they may be tempted by the explicit termination rights that standard form building contracts often contain, and that may be deployed in the event of main contractor insolvency.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 5th July 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘A Divisional Court comprising Lord Justice Leggatt And Mrs Justice Carr DBE has allowed a judicial review challenge brought by the Law Society to a decision made by the Lord Chancellor to introduce a 40% cut to the maximum number of pages of prosecution evidence (‘PPE’) that count for payment of criminal defence solicitors. The regulations that introduced the cut will be quashed (p.143 of the judgment).’
Blackstone Chambers, 3rd August 2018
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘Anna Beale represented the claimant, Ms Ajayi, a migrant domestic worker, in this unusual High Court claim brought against her former employers, Mr and Mrs Abu, for payment of the minimum wage, harassment, breach of contract and personal injury. In August 2017, the court found that the “family worker” exemption to the requirement to pay the minimum wage did not apply in this case. The quantification of that claim, together with Ms Ajayi’s other claims, was dealt with in a further hearing, the final judgment from which has recently been released.’
Cloisters, 11th July 2018
Source: www.cloisters.com
‘The Investigatory Powers Tribunal has given its third judgment in this case concerning the collection and use of bulk communications data (‘BCD’) and bulk personal datasets (‘BPD’) by the Security and Intelligence Agencies (MI5, MI6 and GCHQ – the ‘SIAs’).’
Blackstone Chambers, 21st July 2018
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘Given the frequency with which sophisticated fraudsters arrange for the sale of properties which they do not own, it is perhaps surprising that the question of who, amongst the professionals involved, bears the risk when it happens has not been considered sooner and more definitively. In 2010 the question came before the Court in Excel Securities PLC v Masood [2010] Lloyds Rep PN 165, but only on a summary judgment application. HHJ Hegarty QC (sitting as a High Court Judge) held that the question of whether a solicitor purporting to act for the owner of a property warranted the identity of his client could not be answered in the abstract, and was not a suitable matter for summary judgment. A warranty of authority is an implied obligation arising as a matter of contract in particular circumstances, so it is not possible to determine the scope of any such warranty without a detailed consideration of the facts. Generally, however, a solicitor’s warranty extends to the fact that he has the authority of the person who has instructed him, but not as to the identity of that person.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 31st July 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘This is the second article from Cloisters’ Robin Allen QC and Dee Masters examining discriminatory technology.’
Cloisters, 5th July 2018
Source: www.cloisters.com
‘On 26 June 2018, after nearly a year of deliberation by Parliament, the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (the “Act”) received royal assent. It is a statute of profound importance to the legal systems of the UK. It will become familiar in just the same way as did the European Communities Act 1972 (“ECA 1972”) before it (which the Act will repeal). This article seeks briefly to summarise the purpose and architecture of the Act; to identify some key themes of change; and to outline ten key implications for UK law and lawyers. It then concludes with a brief observation about transitional arrangements and thereafter.’
Blackstone Chambers, 19th July 2018
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘The SRA has issued warning notices[1] to solicitors regarding whether they should act and how they should act towards their clients in relation to purported transactions concerning investment schemes. However, for many the warning will have come too late since many investors have previously parted with deposits (in some cases amounting to the client’s life savings) in return for worthless insurance bonds and unsecured interests in land or property which are also found to be worthless when the developer defaults on the development and becomes insolvent.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 12th July 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘Companies can invest significant sums in the creation and maintenance of their client lists. Unsurprising, their client lists are often closely guarded. But what if protections fail? Under the Copyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997, firms can bring actions against those that access and download their client list (for instance, a former employee). The wronged party can demand the return or destruction of the confidential information, an injunction to prevent its use and damages for any losses.’
Henderson Chambers, July 2018
‘The Court of Appeal has given judgment in this case concerning (i) the proper approach to applications for permission to service out of the jurisdiction and (ii) the implication of terms as to interest.’
Blackstone Chambers, 18th July 2018
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘According to the Crop Protection Association one in ten cases of Knotweed infestation cost property owners more than £4,000, one in five cases see the value of the affected property fall and three in five cause property damage.’
Henderson Chambers, 27th July 2018
‘Following an investigation in relation to an audit of BHS, the FRC reached a settlement with the auditors whereby they admitted misconduct and accepted the imposition of fines and other sanctions. The FRC and the auditors entered into a settlement agreement which included a 38-page “Particulars of Fact and Acts of Misconduct” setting out the “facts” as agreed between these parties.’
Blackstone Chambers, 29th June 2018
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
‘Those who act for private sector landlords in residential possession proceedings will be familiar with the decision of the Supreme Court in McDonald v McDonald [2017] AC 273, which was argued successfully by Stephen Jourdan QC and Ciara Fairly of Falcon Chambers. In McDonald, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a tenant in summary possession proceedings could require the court to consider the proportionality of making a possession order, having regards to Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR): the well-known right to respect for private and family life. In particular, the court was required to decide whether a private landlord’s mandatory right to possession of her property under section 21 of the Housing Act 1998 could be curtailed or defeated entirely by invoking Article 8.’
Falcon Chambers, May 2018
Source: www.falcon-chambers.com
‘The rise of websites such as Airbnb has seen an increase in short term holiday style letting of traditionally long-term residential properties. In 2015 London’s housing legislation was amended specifically in response to the rise of Airbnb and other websites: a homeowner is able to let out their house, flat or spare rooms for up to three months a year. In London, unlike other cities such as Berlin or Barcelona, there are no city-wide regulations (or restrictions) regarding the use of Airbnb. This case emphasises that it falls to construction of the terms of the lease between the freeholder and leaseholder to ascertain whether a leaseholder’s use of Airbnb is permitted.’
Henderson Chambers, 27th July 2018
‘On 26 July, Leggatt LJ, sitting with Nicol J, handed down a judgment that challenges the long-held view that suicide must be proved to the criminal standard of proof in an inquest. Leggatt LJ, considering the purpose of modern coroner’s courts and the relevant jurisprudence, held that the correct standard of proof to be applied is the normal civil standard of balance of probabilities.’
Henderson Chambers, 31st July 2018
‘As construction lawyers, most of us have had experience with claims concerning the financial loss and/or damage to property arising from a negligent survey of a house. The facts of such cases tend to follow a pattern:
– Prospective purchasers instruct a surveyor to produce a report before deciding whether to buy a particular property.
– The report concludes that the house is in sound structural condition
– The prospective purchasers rely on said report in deciding to purchase the property.
– After moving in, they discover that in fact the house suffers from damage, defects or some other risk not disclosed in the survey.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 1st August 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘Common law private nuisance cases involving the invasive non-native plant, Japanese knotweed (JK), received a considerable amount of attention in the county court in 2017 and 2018. In the joined cases of Williams v Network Rail Infrastructure Limited (B20YX969) and Waistell v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd [2017] UK CC, Mr Recorder Grubb, sitting in Cardiff County Court, awarded damages to the claimants for loss of amenity on the basis that JK on the defendant’s land had diminished the value of the claimants’ land by reason of it rendering the claimants’ land less acceptable as security for mortgage lending, even in the event of the JK on the defendant’s land having been treated (see Article, Japanese knotweed nuisance in the light of Waistell and Smith v Line).’
Hardwicke Chambers, 6th August 2018
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
‘The Administrative Court has held that a person who owns, and lets out rooms in, a House in Multiple Occupation (“HMO”) provides a service for the purposes of EU Directive 2006/123/EC (the “Directive”) and the Provision of Services Regulations 2009, SI 2009/2999 (the “Regulations”), and that the HMO licensing scheme under Part 2, Housing Act 2004 is an “authorisation scheme” for the purposes of the Directive and Regulations. The decision of the CJEU in R (Hemming t/a Simply Pleasure) v Westminster CC [2017] 3 WLR 317, therefore applies to the fees that may be charged on a Part 2 licensing application, so that where a local authority demanded payment on application of an upfront fee which covered not merely the costs of processing the application, but also the costs of administering and enforcing the scheme, the fee was unlawful.’
Arden Chambers, 31st July 2018
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
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