Prison book ban is unlawful, court rules – The Guardian
‘The blanket ban on sending books to prisoners in England and Wales has been declared unlawful by the high court.’
The Guardian, 5th December 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Judge criticises multi-millionaire tycoon over unpaid fine for illegally felling trees – Daily Telegraph
‘Sir John Thomas, the Lord Chief Justice, says ‘one law for rich and another for poor’ as he tells court penalty imposed on Philip Edward Day should not still be outstanding.’
Daily Telegraph, 5th December 2014
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
FGM: UK plan to require professionals to report suspected cases – The Guardian
‘Campaigners against female genital mutilation (FGM) have cautiously welcomed government moves to require professionals to report suspected cases of FGM, but warned of the risk of alienating communities and forcing the practice further underground.’
The Guardian, 5th December 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Legal challenge to Government’s £2.5bn subsidy scheme for fossil fuel industry – The Independent
‘The Government may be forced to suspend a £2.5bn annual subsidy scheme designed to keep the lights on as cheaply and as greenly as possible following a legal challenge in the European Court of Justice, which claims it amounts to an “unlawful subsidy” for the fossil fuel industry.’
The Independent, 5th December 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Former DJ Ray Teret guilty of raping underage girls – The Guardian
‘A DJ friend of Jimmy Savile has been found guilty of using his celebrity status to groom and then rape underage girls. Over more than 30 years, Ray Teret, 73, used nightclubs and youth discos across Manchester to meet impressionable underage girls. He would then take them back to his flat and rape them.’
The Guardian, 5th December 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
High Court ruling will create new market for pensions debts, says expert – OUT-LAW.com
‘A new market for trading the pension debts of insolvent companies will be created as a result of a recent High Court ruling. The ruling will also result in more efficient, earlier winding up of pension schemes when companies go out of business.’
OUT-LAW.com, 4th December 2014
Source: www.out-law.com
‘Better than nothing… helpful… mad as a bag of frogs’: judges on McKenzie Friends –
‘A new report on litigants in person in private family law cases has added to concerns over the value and legitimacy of McKenzie Friends in the legal services market. The report, commissioned and published by the Ministry of Justice, into litigants in person in the family courts (here) found the Legal Services Consumer Panel’s recommendation that professional McKenzie Friends be recognised as a legitimate part of the market (reported here) ‘somewhat surprising’.’
LegalVoice, 4th December 2014
Source: www.legalvoice.org.uk
Mother loses action over decision by ombudsman not to investigate records loss – Local Government Lawyer
‘The mother of a woman who died as an inpatient at a London hospital has lost a High Court challenge against the Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman (PHSO) over its refusal to investigate the loss of her daughter’s medical records.’
Local Government Lawyer, 4th December 2014
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Swearing man ‘risks life in prison’ after 176 convictions – BBC News
‘A man with 176 convictions for repeated foul-mouthed outbursts risks spending the rest of his life in prison.’
BBC News, 4th December 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
NAO questions whether legal aid reforms have delivered better value for money – Free Movement
‘On 20 November 2014, the National Audit Office – the independent Parliamentary body responsible for scrutinising the way in which the government spends public money – published a report on the implementation of the post-2010 civil legal aid reforms. Its central conclusion is an unsurprising one: while spending on civil legal aid has been reduced significantly, the Ministry of Justice failed properly to consider the wider impact of the reforms before implementing them.’
Free Movement, 5th December 2014
Source: www.freemovement.org.uk
How much?! Damages for unlawfully evicted secure tenants – NearlyLegal
‘So, if a local authority unlawfully evicts a secure tenant (and yes, it happens) what should the measure of damages be? Under s.27 and s.28 Housing Act 1988, damages fall to be assessed under a valuation exercise, governed – so far as is relevant to this case – by s.28(1).’
NearlyLegal, 4th December 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Child sex abuse inquiry in crisis as victims walk away – Daily Telegraph
‘Theresa May, the Home Secretary, is told her inquiry is “not fit for purpose”.’
Daily Telegraph, 4th December 2014
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Duncroft School: No prosecutions over Jimmy Savile inquiry – BBC News
‘No charges will be brought against former staff at a school in Surrey where Jimmy Savile abused girls.’
BBC News, 4th December 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Oldest surviving law faces repeal after 747 years – BBC News
‘Some of the oldest surviving legislation on Britain’s statute books is set to be repealed after 747 years.’
BBC News, 5th December 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Fake sheikh Mazher Mahmood cases to be reviewed by CPS – The Guardian
‘Criminal convictions in 25 cases are to be re-examined over concerns about evidence provided by the undercover Sun on Sunday reporter Mazher Mahmood.’
The Guardian, 4th December 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Venn v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and others – WLR Daily
‘Where a case fell within article 9(3) of the Aarhus Convention but was not a claim for judicial review and therefore not an “Aarhus Convention claim” within CPR r 45.41 it would be inappropriate for the court to relax the usual principles applying to the making of protective costs orders by nevertheless applying the costs protection regime introduced by rule 45.41.’
WLR Daily, 27th November 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
