Get Carter gangland murder appeal rejected – BBC News
‘A bid to challenge a murder conviction that inspired the classic crime thriller Get Carter has been rejected by the High Court.’
BBC News, 21st February 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Jetha v Basildon Court Residents Company Ltd – Arden Chambers
‘The Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has given guidance on the approach to be followed by the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) when considering whether there is an estoppel by convention which prevents a leaseholder from denying the payability of a service charge which has not been demanded in accordance with the terms of the lease.’
Arden Chambers, 16th February 2017
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
Tax barrister plans to take Uber to court over alleged £20m black hole – The Guardian
‘A leading tax lawyer is planning to challenge Uber in the courts over what he alleges could be a £20m-a-year black hole in its tax payments in the UK.’
The Guardian, 21st February 2017
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
EVENT: The Law Society – Encouraging more diversity among the Law Society’s Council, committees and Divisions
‘The Law Society is keen to encourage greater diversity in the composition of its Council policy committees and Divisions. For example, we believe that women, BAME, LGBT and younger solicitors and solicitors with disabilities are under represented on the Council, which is the elected governing body of the Law Society and sets policy on behalf of the profession. A similar pattern holds true for recruitment to the specialist committees that advise on specific areas of the law. Opportunities also exist for members to play a pro active role on our Divisions committees.’
Date: 21st March 2017, 5.30-8.30pm
Location: The Law Society, 113 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1PL
Charge: Free, booking required
More information can be found here.
EVENT: UCL – Taking Flight – Domestic Violence and Child Abduction
‘Increasing concerns that victims of domestic violence, who flee the country with their children, are effectively being forced, under the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, to return to face their abusers, led to calls for a Protocol to the Convention which would make special provision for such cases. Instead, however, the Hague Conference on Private International Law has established a Working Group with the aim of developing a Guide to Good Practice in relation to article 13(1)(b) of the Convention. This provides an exception to the automatic return of children to their country of habitual residence required by article 12, where there is a grave risk that their return would expose them to physical or psychological harm or otherwise place them in an intolerable situation.’
Date: 16th March 2017, 6.00-7.00pm
Location: Gustave Tuck Lecture Theatre, Wilkins Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT
Charge: Free, registration required
More information can be found here.
EVENT: Birkbeck School Of Law – Criminology Series: Hillsborough: Resisting Injustice, Uncovering Truth
’15 April 1989: an inescapable crush on the terraces at Hillsborough Stadium at an FA Cup Semi-Final led to the deaths of 96 men, women and children. Hundreds of Liverpool fans were injured, thousands traumatised. Throughout the investigations and inquiries, those who died and survived were vilified amid police allegations of drunkenness, violence, criminal and abusive behaviour. The families’ unrelenting campaign for truth recovery led to disclosure of all existing documents to an Independent Panel. Its definitive report revealed institutional mendacity, corrupted evidence and partial investigation. This brought an unreserved Government apology, an ongoing criminal investigation into all agencies involved and an unprecedented IPCC investigation into 2,000 police officers. It also led to new inquests, commencing March 2014 through to 2016. Author of the highly acclaimed Hillsborough: The Truth, Phil Scraton, Professor of Criminology, Queen’s University, headed the Panel’s research and was primary author of its report. He has also been advisor to the families’ legal teams throughout the inquests. In this talk he reflects on the long-term campaign for truth, details the Panel’s extensive findings and analyses the new inquests and their outcome. Finally, he examines the impact of his critical research and truth recovery for challenging institutional injustice and holding State institutions to account.’
Date: 9th March 2017, 6.00-7.30pm
Location: 26 Bedford Way, WC1H 0AP
Charge: Free, registration required
More information can be found here.
EVENT: IALS – Governing Shadow Banking
‘This conference brings together a number of experts in the UK, US and Europe to discuss what shadow banking means and the implications for financial sector governance and regulation of both mainstream and alternative institutions and activities, which by 2014 had grown to an estimated USD$75 trillion in assets held by non-bank financial intermediary institutions.’
Date: 24th March 2017, 9.00am-4.00pm
Location: Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, 17 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DR
Charge: See website for details
More information can be found here.
EVENT: Refugee Law Initiative – EU Law and the Politics of ‘Mass Influx’
‘The Common European Asylum System is strongly focused on the individual asylum-seeker, and the coercive regulation of her predicament and processing. In contrast, international refugee policy has long been engaged with the concept of ‘mass influx’, reflecting the realities of flight, in particular from conflict. Several EXCOM Conclusions recommend practices to be adopted in such instances. Aside from the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive, the concept of ‘mass influx’ and the practices surrounding it have little traction in EU law and policy. This talk will contextualise and problematize the concept of ‘mass influx’, and suggest that notwithstanding its many shortcomings, global refugee policy sets out important standards that are lacking in EU law.’
Date: 2nd March 2017, 6.00-8.00pm
Location: Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (Council Chamber), 17 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DR
Charge: Free, registration required
More information can be found here.
Court rules against heterosexual couple who wanted civil partnership – The Guardian
‘A legal challenge aimed at overturning the ban on heterosexual couples entering into civil partnerships has gained ground despite defeat at the court of appeal, according to equal rights campaigners.’
The Guardian, 21st February 2017
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Proving Propensity via Allegations of Bad Character – 2 Hare Court
‘The approach to contested non-conviction bad character evidence has changed in the wake of the Supreme Court’s judgment in the case of R v Mitchell [2016] UKSC 55.’
2 Hare Court, 5th January 2017
Source: www.2harecourt.com
Miller, BrEXIT and BreUK-up – Counsel
‘The Supreme Court’s treatment of the devolution issues in Miller is troubling, argues Aidan O’Neill QC, who examines the UK’s complex multi-national constitutional history and potential impact on the devolved political constitution.’
Counsel, March 2017
Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk
Defending Private Prosecutions – 2 Hare Court
‘Private prosecutions of crimes such as fraud and trademark or copyright infringement have become an increasingly important tool of litigation in the UK in recent years. A number of us at 2 Hare Court are currently acting in such cases, defending and prosecuting. Whilst much has been written of late about how to bring a private prosecution, relatively little has made its way into print about defending such cases. Whilst doing so will of course involve many of the same considerations as defending a prosecution brought by the CPS, there is an additional array of options that should be borne in mind.’
2 Hare Court, 5th January 2017
Source: www.2harecourt.com
Finance and Divorce Update, February 2017 – Family Law Week
‘Sue Brookes, and Rose-Marie Drury, both Senior Associates with Mills & Reeve LLP analyse the news and case law relating to financial remedies and divorce during January 2017.’
Family Law Week, 10th February 2017
Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk
Rolls-Royce – What price co-operation – Fulcrum Chambers
‘Self referral, co-operation and a balance of mitigating factors were thought to be essential ingredients before a DPA could be considered by a prosecutor. It seems only one existed in this case yet the UK’s largest DPA to date followed.’
Fulcrum Chambers, 20th January 2017
Source: www.fulcrumchambers.com
New government guidelines will end the practice of boomerang bosses – Home Office
‘New government guidelines will stop senior fire officers from being re-employed in the same or similar roles after they have retired.’
Home Office, 21st February 2017
Source: www.gov.uk/home-office
What will the Lords do with the Article 50 bill? – UCL Constitution Unit
‘The bill authorising the Prime Minister to trigger Article 50, enabling the UK to leave the EU, has cleared the Commons. It begins its consideration in the Lords today. In this post Lords expert Meg Russell discusses how the second chamber is likely to treat the bill. She suggests that this illustrates important dynamics between Lords and Commons, which are often disappointingly misunderstood both in the media and inside government.’
UCL Constitution Unit, 20th February 2017
Source: www.constitution-unit.com
Waiving goodbye to the breach: repairing obligations and waiver of breach – The 36 Group
‘Repairing obligations are almost universally incorporated in commercial and residential leases and licences. In the general sense an obligation to repair is to carry out such repairs and maintenance as might be required from time to time (although much can depend upon the precise wording of the covenant/obligation). Where there is a breach by a tenant or licensee, the covenant is broken everyday the property is out of repair: the breach, therefore, is of a continuing nature. ‘
Full story (PDF)
The 36 Group, 6th February 2017
Source: www.36group.co.uk
Reasons – Local Government Law
‘The appeal in Oakley v South Cambridgeshire District Council (2017) EWCA Civ 71 raised the issue whether, in the particular circumstances of the case, the Planning Committee of the South Cambridgeshire District Council ought to have given reasons for granting planning permission for the development by Cambridge City Football Club, a semi-professional club, of a football stadium capable of seating three thousand people. The proposed construction is in the outskirts of Sawston in Cambridgeshire, on land which is part of the Green Belt. The application for planning permission was not only for the erection of the ground, together with associated training and parking facilities, but also for the creation of a partially floodlit recreational ground which would be gifted to the Sawston Parish Council for community use.’
Local Government Law, 17th February 2017
Waaler v Hounslow LBC – Arden Chambers
‘The Court of Appeal has held that whether service charge costs are reasonably incurred, for the purposes of Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, s.19, is to be determined by reference to an objective standard of reasonableness rather than applying public law principles of rationality. A tribunal should not, however, impose its own decision where a landlord has adopted a course of action which led to a reasonable outcome, even if there was a cheaper outcome which was also reasonable.’
Arden Chambers, 2nd February 2017
Source: www.ardenchambers.com
Secession from the European Union and Private International Law: The Cloud with a Silver Lining – Blackstone Chambers
‘In the last six months there have been lectures, seminars, evidence-givingsand-takings, reports issued, all over town, in which the future of commercial litigation in England has been discussed. It may not be completely true that these have as their object the utter immiseration of everyone within earshot, but that does appear to be the principal effect. Those who, like me, do not seem to be invited to such gatherings are at liberty to see things rather differently. We have a once-in-a generation opportunity to compare the rules of private international law which we currently have with what we might instead have, and to take stock. When that is done, the path ahead will be seen to be rather clearer and brighter than some others would tell you it is. One certainly hears people suggesting that secession from the European Union is going to have a damaging effect, but for our private international law the truth may well be otherwise. And while the need to deal with these tasks may be an un-looked-for interruption to normal work, for some of us the chance to ask questions challenges us to think about what we would like our rules of private international law to say. My conclusion will be that less will change than most seem to suppose (or, in some cases, seem to hope for). There will be minor changes, certainly, but need be nothing major; and if anything major does change, it will not be a change for the worse. In short, though I am very fearful of sounding like the Daily Mail in human form, private international law has no cause for alarm. I should perhaps say that a fuller and footnoted version of this paper will be available from the Combar website if anyone is interested.’
Full story (PDF)
Blackstone Chambers, 24th January 2017
Source: www.blackstonechambers.com
