Pressure grows for inquiry into UK role in Iraq ‘war crimes’ – The Independent

‘Legal experts from around the world are to join calls for an investigation into whether British politicians and senior military figures should be prosecuted for alleged war crimes in Iraq.’

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The Independent, 12th January 2014

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Mark Duggan marksman cleared to return to armed police duties – The Guardian

Posted January 13th, 2014 in firearms, inquests, news, police, professional conduct by sally

‘The police marksman who killed Mark Duggan will be allowed to have his gun back and return to armed duties. The officer was found to have lawfully killed Duggan by an inquest jury last week though the jury decided his account of the shooting, in which he said Duggan had had a gun in his hand, was wrong.’

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The Guardian, 12th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Payday lenders’ default fees could break the law – The Independent

Posted January 13th, 2014 in consumer protection, debts, fees, loans, news by sally

‘Many payday lenders could be breaking the law by charging excessive default fees to borrowers who miss repayments, according to Which? An investigation by the consumer group revealed that 10 of 17 leading payday lenders have default fees of £20 or more, and four charged £25 and above, with Wonga topping the table at £30.’

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The Independent, 13th January 2014

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Sex crimes against young children rise, research suggests – BBC News

Posted January 13th, 2014 in charities, child abuse, news, sexual offences, statistics by sally

‘Recorded sex crimes against children under 11 in England and Wales went up by 16% last year, research suggests. There were 5,547 incidents, against the previous year’s 4,772, according to data from 41 police forces obtained by children’s charity, the NSPCC.’

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BBC News, 14th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Detention of children overnight in police cells ‘is chronic breach of law’ – The Guardian

Posted January 13th, 2014 in children, detention, news, police, statistics, young offenders by sally

‘Senior officer tells MPs that practice of holding children overnight before court appearance is big concern for police.’

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The Guardian, 13th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Is the Mental Capacity Act incompatible with the ECHR? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

‘A group of leading lawyers has expressed concern that the current system for representation of certain protected parties (P) in Court of Protection proceedings is incompatible with the ECHR.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 10th January 2014

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Dr Mansoor Kassim sentenced for faking Viagra scripts – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2014 in breach of trust, doctors, fraud, news, professional conduct, sentencing, theft by sally

‘A doctor with “marital difficulties” forged prescriptions for Viagra because he was too embarrassed to see his GP. Dr Mansoor Kassim, 37, who worked at Ystrad Fawr Hospital near Caerphilly, faked £340.67 worth of scripts, Newport magistrates heard. He was given a suspended jail sentence after admitting four charges of making a false prescription, two of theft by an employee and one of fraud.’

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BBC News, 10th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Plebgate’ affair: Met PC admits misconduct – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2014 in misfeasance in public office, news, police, professional conduct by sally

‘A Met police officer plans to resign after admitting misconduct in public office over the “plebgate” affair. PC Keith Wallis, 53, has admitted falsely claiming to have witnessed a row between then-cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell and police officers in Downing Street in September 2012. The diplomatic protection group officer has been bailed until 6 February when he is due to be sentenced.’

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BBC News, 10th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Court of Appeal refuses blogger permission to appeal in libel case – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 10th, 2014 in appeals, defamation, harassment, internet, news, perverting the course of justice by sally

‘The Court of Appeal last month refused a blogger permission to appeal in her libel claim against a council and its chief executive, it has emerged.’

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Local Government Lawyer,  6th January 2014

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

MLA guidelines for foreign authorities – Home Office

Posted January 10th, 2014 in criminal procedure, foreign jurisdictions, judiciary, news by sally

‘These guidelines describe mutual legal assistance (MLA) that can be provided by the UK.’

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Home Office, 6th January 2014

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

Personal data: Tribunal analyses the ‘relates to’ and ‘identification’ limbs – Panopticon

Posted January 10th, 2014 in benefits, complaints, data protection, freedom of information, news, tribunals by sally

‘I have commented in previous posts on how infrequently the Data Protection Act 1998 has been the subject of substantive litigation before the courts. One consequence of this is persistent uncertainty over how pivotal concepts such as “personal data” are to be analysed and approached. Last year, the High Court in Kelway v The Upper Tribunal, Northumbria Police and the Information Commissioner (2013) EWHC 2575 (Admin) considered how “personal data” issues should be approached.’

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Panopticon, 9th January 2014

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

UK firm fined £25,000 for failure to monitor, supervise and manage its appointed representatives – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 10th, 2014 in financial regulation, fines, insurance, news, unfair commercial practices by sally

‘A firm has been fined £25,000 by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for the misconduct of two of its sales staff acting as its ‘appointed representatives’ (ARs). Amongst other cases of misconduct, the ARs were found to have used “high-pressure sales tactics and misleading information” to push vulnerable customers into buying insurance policies.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 8th January 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

Bias has ‘significant’ effect on verdicts, jury research says – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted January 10th, 2014 in bias, burden of proof, juries, news, verdicts by sally

‘Jurors should be tested before trials to reduce the effect of prejudices on their understanding of the burden of proof, according to the authors of a study suggesting bias has a “significant” impact on verdicts.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 10th January 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Police officer Christopher Semak jailed for sexual activity with girl, 14 – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2014 in child abuse, news, police, sentencing, sexual grooming, sexual offences by sally

‘A police officer who engaged in sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl has been jailed for six years.’

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BBC News, 9th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

16-year legal battle over laptop reaches UK supreme court – The Guardian

Posted January 10th, 2014 in banking, consumer credit, contracts, news, sale of goods, Supreme Court by sally

‘All Richard Durkin wanted was a laptop with an inbuilt modem. But what he ended up with was an epic 16-year legal tussle, a £250,000 bill for legal fees and, now, a date at the supreme court. The 44-year-old married father of two has been engaged in a David-and-Goliath battle against the bank that he says “annihilated” his credit rating after he walked into his local PC World to buy a £1,500 laptop in 1998.’

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The Guardian, 9th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Bedroom tax loophole could exempt 40,000 wrongly identified as liable – The Guardian

Posted January 10th, 2014 in benefits, government departments, housing, news by sally

‘Thousands of people have been wrongly identified as liable for the bedroom tax, including some who now face eviction or have been forced to move to a smaller property, as a result of an error by Department of Work and Pensions. Housing experts believe as many as 40,000 people could be affected by the mistake. The DWP says it believes only a “small number” of tenants are affected, which it estimates number 5,000.’

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The Guardian, 9th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Illegal tobacco seller Roger Gerrey sold cigarettes to children – BBC News

‘A man who turned his Devon home into a shop selling illegal cigarettes to school children has been spared a jail sentence.’

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BBC News, 9th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Drug-dealing father of 22 spared jail to care for son – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 10th, 2014 in drug offences, families, news, sentencing, suspended sentences by sally

‘Drug-dealing father who has 22 children with 11 women has sentence suspended after judge ruled he needed to help his girlfriend look after their seven-month-old baby.’

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Daily Telegraph, 9th January 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Life terms plan for terrorists in training – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 10th, 2014 in imprisonment, news, parole, sentencing, terrorism by sally

‘Maximum sentences for a range of terrorism offences including weapons training will be upgraded from 14 years to life, the Telegraph can reveal.’

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Daily Telegraph, 9th January 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Parkside Nursing Home deaths: Police to review evidence – BBC News

Posted January 10th, 2014 in care homes, care workers, disciplinary procedures, elderly, evidence, news by sally

‘Police are to review evidence given at a tribunal after five “severely” neglected patients died in two weeks at a Northampton home.’

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BBC News, 9th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk