Humberside Police officer pleads guilty to sex assaults – BBC News

‘A former police constable has pleaded guilty to four sexual assaults while serving as an officer in East Yorkshire.’

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BBC News, 8th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Rolf Harris, indecent images and the dangers of the dark net – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

‘News of concern over child abuse on the dark net came within a month of the children’s entertainer and artist Rolf Harris being convicted and sentenced for historic indecent assaults on more than one complainant. The full sentencing remarks are here. Other counts for making indecent images of children were separated and then not pursued. News reports are that paedophilic search terms were entered into his computer which suggests that the searches were done on open sources. It was also reported that Rolf Harris had notes on how to delete the internet history. Paedophilic activity is often cited as a reason to regulate the internet but caution needs to be exercised so as not to lose the essential freedoms that the web was designed to achieve.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 8th July 2014

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Questions over choice of Butler-Sloss as head of child abuse allegations inquiry – The Guardian

Posted July 9th, 2014 in child abuse, conflict of interest, inquiries, judges, news, sexual offences by sally

‘The government faced questions on Tuesday over the appointment of a member of the House of Lords as the chair of a public inquiry into “serious failings by public bodies and important institutions” in their handling of allegations of child abuse.’

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The Guardian, 8th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Bookkeeper jailed for stealing £2m to buy property empire – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 9th, 2014 in abuse of position of trust, accountants, fraud, news, sentencing by sally

‘Mirriam Clark is jailed after building up a property empire in England and Zambia and sending her children to private school with stolen money.’

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Daily Telegraph, 7th July 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Southampton ‘highly organised’ eBay gang sentenced – BBC News

Posted July 9th, 2014 in handling stolen goods, internet, news, sentencing, theft by sally

‘A group of family members and friends have been jailed for their parts a “highly organised” criminal enterprise selling stolen goods on eBay.’

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BBC News, 8th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

NSPCC wants covering up abuse to be criminal offence – BBC News

‘The man leading a review into how the Home Office handled historical allegations of child abuse has said people who cover up such crimes should be prosecuted.’

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BBC News, 9th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mark Duggan case goes back to court – The Guardian

Posted July 9th, 2014 in appeals, coroners, firearms, inquests, juries, news by sally

‘The mother of Mark Duggan, whose fatal shooting by police in London sparked nationwide riots, is challenging an inquest verdict of lawful killing.’

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The Guardian, 9th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ex-senior judge Butler-Sloss to head child sex abuse inquiry – BBC News

Posted July 8th, 2014 in child abuse, documents, inquiries, judges, news, parliament, sexual offences by sally

‘Retired senior judge Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, 80, has been named as the chairman of a wide-ranging review into historical child sex abuse.’

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BBC News, 8th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Grayling agrees legal aid truce with barristers over complex fraud trials – The Guardian

Posted July 8th, 2014 in barristers, costs, fees, legal aid, Ministry of Justice, news, trials by sally

‘Barristers and the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, have agreed a temporary truce in a dispute that threatened to halt all complex fraud trials. Amid taunts of a government climbdown, the Ministry of Justice has enforced a 30% cut in legal aid fees for what are known as Very High Cost Cases (VHCC) but agreed to make more generous payments at an earlier stage in court proceedings.’

Full story

The Guardian, 8th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Foreign students in high court bid to complete their UK courses – The Guardian

Posted July 8th, 2014 in education, immigration, news, universities, visas by sally

‘Group who paid £8,500 each to study in London say they are victims of failed deal between Glyndwr University and a private college.’

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The Guardian, 8th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Expert welcomes Court of Appeal’s “more nuanced approach” to granting relief from ‘Mitchell’ sanctions – OUT-LAW.com

Posted July 8th, 2014 in appeals, civil procedure rules, courts, news, proportionality, sanctions by sally

‘Courts should be much more ready to grant relief from sanctions for failure to comply with court orders, practice directions and rules after the Court of Appeal found that the current approach had been “misunderstood and is being misapplied by some courts”, an expert has said.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 8th July 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

District council loses High Court bid to stop DCLG claw back of EU funds – Local Government Lawyer

Posted July 8th, 2014 in advertising, contracts, government departments, local government, news by sally

‘A district council has lost a judicial review challenge over the Communities Secretary’s decision to claw back almost £160,000 in payments made from the European Regional Development Fund.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 7th July 2014

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Practitioner bodies berate ‘face-saving’ bar deal – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted July 8th, 2014 in barristers, fees, legal aid, Ministry of Justice, news, solicitors by sally

‘The “backroom” deal agreed by the Ministry of Justice to end the VHCC fee dispute with barristers has been sharply criticised for excluding solicitors who are the “backbone” of the system.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 8th July 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Care Orders and Home Placements: removal and the public funding conundrum – Family Law Week

‘Michael Jones, barrister, of 15 Winckley Square Chambers considers the lessons to be learned from Re DE (A Child) when care plans provide for placements at home with the family.’

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Family Law Week, 7th July 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

UK’s wealthiest divorce case can be reported, judge rules – The Guardian

Posted July 8th, 2014 in anonymity, divorce, news, reporting restrictions by sally

‘High court rejects move by hedge fund tycoon Christopher Hohn to prevent media from publishing details from hearings.’

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The Guardian, 7th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Prisoner Anthony Douglas accidentally released because of shared surname – The Guardian

Posted July 8th, 2014 in inquiries, mistake, news, prisons, release on licence by sally

‘Inquiry launched into how man with same surname as another inmate due to come out came to be released from HMP Hewell.’

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The Guardian, 7th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Crime victims’ treatment by police and courts examined – BBC News

Posted July 8th, 2014 in codes of practice, courts, news, police, reports, victims by sally

‘The way crime victims are treated by the police and courts in England and Wales is to be examined.’

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BBC News, 8th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Harassed family gets payout after Home Office failings – BBC News

‘A family who endured a “living nightmare” at the hands of a violent criminal is to receive a £130,000 payout over Home Office failings.’

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BBC News, 8th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

New judicial review test “risks undermining rule of law”, peers warn – Litigation Futures

Posted July 7th, 2014 in bills, budgets, costs, judges, judicial review, legal aid, news, rule of law by sally

‘The government’s plan to introduce a stricter test on judicial review outcomes “risks undermining the rule of law”, the House of Lords constitution committee has warned.’

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Litigation Futures, 7th July 2014

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court of Appeal takes some of the blame for “misunderstood and misapplied” Mitchell ruling – Litigation Futures

‘The Mitchell ruling has been “misunderstood and is being misapplied by some courts”, the Master of the Rolls said today in issuing more detailed guidance on how it should be used – while also recognising that some of the language used in Mitchell may have contributed to the problems.’

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Litigation Futures, 4th July 2014

Source: www.litigationfutures.com