Paul Burrell wins £5k damages from Max Clifford – The Guardian
‘Former royal butler Paul Burrell has won a high court privacy action against PR agent Max Clifford.’
The Guardian, 19th February 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Relax Sunday trading laws to help shops, MPs say – BBC News
‘Rules on Sunday opening hours for shops in England and Wales are out of date and need to be relaxed, a group of 200 MPs and council leaders has said.’
BBC News, 21st February 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Government’s review of child protection must not undermine vital services – The Guardian
‘The government’s review of local safeguarding children boards (LSCBs), due to report in March, is reshaping the architecture of child protection. LSCBs are tasked with oversight of agencies that protect children, including local authorities, police, schools and health. This is a fundamental review, which implies far-reaching change, and is of huge public interest. The spotlight on this review is made more intense by the cross-departmental children’s taskforce: one key outcome from it must be a better coordinated approach across government departments.’
The Guardian, 22nd February 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Police call for tighter laws on antique guns – BBC News
‘A legal loophole is allowing criminals to lawfully obtain weapons and commit gun crimes including murders, police have said.’
BBC News, 22nd February 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
New offences and sentencing – Law Society’s Gazette
‘Two further significant provisions of the Serious Crime Act 2015 have been brought into force. First, on 10 November 2015, section 79 created section 40CB of the Prison Act 1952, which provides for an offence of throwing any article or substance into a prison without authorisation.’
Law Society’s Gazette, 22nd February 2016
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Dolton Powell murder: Joint enterprise ruling causes charge rethink – BBC News
‘Prosecutors are reconsidering murder charges in the trial of eight people following a Supreme Court ruling on the joint enterprise law.’
BBC News, 19th February 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
City watchdogs investigate financial age discrimination – Daily Telegraph
‘The FCA may for the first time create special rules to protect the interests of the elderly.’
Daily Telegraph, 20th February 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Families to challenge minimum income visa rules in supreme court – The Guardian
‘The families of UK citizens denied the right to live in Britain because of the minimum income visa requirement for non-EU partners are to challenge the rules in the supreme court on Monday.’
The Guardian, 22nd Febraury 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Deportation of woman, 92, ‘against human rights’ – BBC News
‘The lawyer of a 92-year-old woman facing deportation from the UK says he will take her case to the European Court of Human Rights if needed.’
BBC News, 20th February 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
EVENT: The Inner Temple – Lecture: Privacy & The Media
‘This lecture will be given by Dr Paul Wragg, University of Leeds and Inner Temple Academic Fellow. The lecture is accredited for 1 CPD hour and is open to members of all four Inns.’
Date: 27 April 2016, 6.30pm
Location: Inner Temple, London, EC4Y 7HL
Cost: £10 including drinks reception (£5 for Inner Temple pupil/student members)
More information can be found here.
Ombudsman criticises council for lack of transparency in planning decision – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Local Government Ombudsman has criticised a council after members of its planning committee approved an application against an officer’s recommendation but failed to give reasons for doing so.’
Local Government Lawyer, 18th February 2016
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Four-year target for ‘digital court’ in England ambitious, but not unworkable, says expert – OUT-LAW.com
‘An ambitious new report proposes digitising all court processes in England and Wales within four years – but this, as the report itself recognises, will require significant behavioural changes from practitioners if it is to come to fruition.’
OUT-LAW.com, 18th February 2016
Source: www.out-law.com
Warning that courts can still cut “reasonable” budgets – Litigation Futures
‘It is a mistake to think that putting forward a budget that looks acceptable overall means the court will not look at the individual phases and costs within them, litigators have been warned.’
Litigation Futures, 18th February 2016
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
High Court awards Lord Chancellor £1m in battle with legal aid firm – Legal Futures
‘The Lord Chancellor has been awarded almost £1m by the High Court in its battle with a legal aid firm over payments on account (POAs).’
Legal Futures, 19th February 2016
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Publications must be taken as a whole when determining meaning, rules High Court – OUT-LAW.com
‘In order to determine the meaning of a publication in defamation, what matters is the publication taken as a whole, a High Court judge has said.’
OUT-LAW.com, 19th February 2016
Source: www.out-law.com
Fee proposals for grants of probate – Ministry of Justice
‘This consultation sets out the government’s proposals for reforming the fee payable for an application for a grant of probate. The proposed fee regime will move from a flat to a banded fee approach, proportionate to, and rising with, the value of the estate, and at the same time will increase the value of the estate below which no fee is payable from £5,000 to £50,000, lifting some 30,000 estates out of paying any fee. The proposals are intended to be fair and progressive. The Government is also considering whether grant of probate applications should be excluded from the fee remissions scheme and are seeking views on this issue.’
Ministry of Justice, 18th February 2016
Source: www.consult.justice.gov.uk
District council wins Planning Court appeal over permission for 103-dwelling scheme – Local Government Lawyer
‘A district council has won a Planning Court appeal after an inspector granted outline permission for a 103-dwelling development.’
Local Government Lawyer, 18th February 2016
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Domestic violence legal aid changes were ‘invalid’ – BBC News
‘A women’s charity has won an appeal against rule changes which it said “cut too many women off” from legal aid in domestic violence cases.’
BBC News, 19th February 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
EU court ruling on Iranian bank paves way for claims against UK – The Guardian
‘Bank Mellat, an Iranian firm whose assets were frozen due to alleged involvement in nuclear proliferation, has won a European Union court ruling paving the way for claims against the UK.’
The Guardian, 18th February 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Grieving families could be forced to pay a new death tax – Daily Telegraph
‘For some families it could amount to a potential 129-fold increase in costs.’
Daily Telegraph, 18th February 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
