One in 12 criminals reoffends just 18 days after being freed from prison – Daily Telegraph
‘Official figures disclose shocking rate of reoffending by thousands of freed inmates.’
Daily Telegraph, 13th January 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Top judge says justice system is now unaffordable to most – The Guardian
‘Civil justice is unaffordable for most people, more people are being forced to represent themselves, and judges – whose pensions have been cut – feel underappreciated, according to the lord chief justice.’
The Guardian, 13th January 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
More children to be removed from biological parents and placed for adoption under ‘urgent’ new rules – The Independent
‘More children will be removed from their biological parents and placed for adoption, under “urgent” new rules to be announced by ministers.’
The Independent, 14th January 2016
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Snooper’s charter: cafes and libraries face having to store Wi-Fi users’ data – The Guardian
‘Coffee shops running Wi-Fi networks may have to store internet data under new snooping laws, Theresa May has said.’
The Guardian, 13th January 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Interim review of civil courts proposes online court for claims up to £25,000 – Local Government Lawyer
‘There is a clear and pressing need to create an online court for claims up to £25,000, a senior judge has said in his interim review of the civil courts structure in England and Wales.’
Local Government Lawyer, 13th January 2016
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Robot lawyer can help you claim compensation without legal fees – Daily Telegraph
‘Student entrepreneur who created donotpay.co.uk has launched automated lawyer to help people challenge unfair fines.’
Daily Telegraph, 13th January 2016
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Solicitors welcome investigation into cost and quality of UK legal services – The Guardian
‘An investigation into “longstanding concerns about the affordability” and quality of legal services has been launched by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).’
The Guardian, 13th January 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Moyo v Nursing and Midwifery Council – WLR Daily
Moyo v Nursing and Midwifery Council [2015] EWHC 3547 (Admin); [2015] WLR (D) 555
‘In fitness to practise hearings there was no formal burden or standard of proof at the sanction stage of the proceedings; rather it was for the panel to use its own professional judgment to decide what sanction would be proportionate in order to protect the public interest, which included: (1) protection of patients and others; (2) maintenance of public confidence in the professions and the regulatory body; and (3) declaring and upholding proper standards of conduct and behaviour.’
WLR Daily, 10th December 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Amber Services Europe Ltd and others v Director of Border Revenue – WLR Daily
‘A conviction for an offence contrary to section 170B(1) of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 was not required in order for goods to be liable to forfeiture under section 170B(2).”
WLR Daily, 16th December 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Private messages at work can be read by European employers – BBC News
‘Employers can read workers’ private messages sent via chat software and webmail accounts during working hours, judges have ruled.’
BBC News, 13th January 2016
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Flower v HM Coroner for Devon, Plymouth, Torbay and South Devon – WLR Daily
‘An inquest or an investigation had not been “held” for the purposes of section 13(1)(b) of the Coroners Act 1988 until an inquest had been conducted and completed.’
WLR Daily, 16th December 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Regina (Cruelty Free International) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily
‘Nothing in section 18(2) or (2A) of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 required the Secretary of State or someone acting under delegated authority to wait for an inspector’s report before taking any decision against the licence holder.’
WLR Daily, 14th December 2016
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Tribunal allows company’s appeal and confirms that the four-year time limit does not apply to corporation tax self-assessment returns – RPC Tax Take
‘In Bloomsbury Verlag GmbH v HMRC [2015] UKFTT 660 (TC),the First-tier Tribunal (Tax and Chancery) (FTT) has held that the four-year time limit does not apply to corporation tax self-assessment returns and that trading losses can be carried forward even though they were not included in a return.’
RPC Tax Take, 8th January 2016
Source: www.rpc.co.uk
Court of Appeal permits early redemption of Lloyds Banking Group’s Enhanced Capital Notes – Commercial Disputes Blog
‘In BNY Mellon Corporate Trustee Services Ltd v LBG Capital No.1 and No. 2 Plc, the Court of Appeal reversed the first instance decision of the High Court, by allowing early redemption of certain convertible securities (known as Enhanced Capital Notes, or ECNs).’
Commercial Disputes Blog, 4th January 2016
Source: www.rpc.co.uk
Cavendish win on penalties: Supreme Court makes finger-tip save of ageing doctrine – RPC Built Environment
‘The Supreme Court has provided long awaited clarification of the law on penalty clauses and liquidated damages, upholding the “penalty rule” but further limiting its utility in a commercial setting. In the adjoined appeals of Cavendish Square Holding v Talal El Makdessi and ParkingEye Limited v Beavis the Supreme Court created a new authority for consideration of the penalty rule doctrine, termed by Lordships Neuberger and Sumption to be “an ancient, haphazardly constructed edifice which has not weathered well”.’
RPC Built Environment, 6th January 2016
Source: www.rpc.co.uk
Something wicked this way comes – LAG Housing Law
‘Sam Madge-Wyld considers the housing law agenda for 2016.’
LAG Housing Law, 12th January 2016
Source: www.laghousinglaw.com
Modernising the rules on unfitness to plead – Law Commission
‘A new test is needed to establish who is unfit to plead. The existing rules for deciding whether a defendant is unfit to participate in a criminal trial – and what the courts should do if they are not – are out of date, misunderstood and inconsistently applied.’
Law Commission, 13th January 2016
Source: www.lawcom.gov.uk
The new criminal offence for domestic abuse cases: section 76 Serious Crime Act 2015 – Park Square Barristers
‘On Tuesday 29th December 2015, Section 76 Serious Crime Act 2015 came into force, this introduced the new criminal offence of “Controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship“. This offence has been introduced to strength the powers of the police, prosecution and courts in combating domestic abuse and dealing with those cases when an individual is trapped in a controlling and abusive relationship, but may not have been physically assaulted. It is also aimed to deal with the difficulties of obtaining convictions for offences under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 as evidence in the case of R v Curtis [2010] EWCA Crim 123; [2010] 1 Cr. App. R. 31.’
Park Square Barristers, 6th January 2016
Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk
Licence stripped from company that made 40 million nuisance calls – Ministry of Justice
‘A company that made almost 40 million nuisance calls in just 3 months has today had its licence revoked by the Claims Management Regulator (CMR).’
Ministry of Justice, 12th January 2016
Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
