Current Awareness

Helmot v Simon: tort in a nutshell from the Channel Islands – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, compensation, Guernsey, indexation, negligence, news, personal injuries by sally

“It’s always, and only, simple propositions that matter. But often, in the law, only big judges have the confidence to utter simple things. That was what happened in Helmot v Simon [2012] UKPC 5 (7 March 2012), an appeal to the Privy Council by an optimistic defendant who sought to overturn a decision of the Court of Appeal of Guernsey, (whose judgment had been delivered by a judge by the name of Sumption).”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 14th March 2012

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

The falsely retracted rape claim: how the justice system failed – The Guardian

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, domestic violence, news, perverting the course of justice, prosecutions, rape, victims by sally

“It has been a catastrophic case for both ‘Sarah’ the victim and the public. Here are the key questions that need answering.”

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The Guardian, 14th March 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Rights Gone Wrong? – BBC Two

Posted March 14th, 2012 in human rights, news by sally

“Anger over votes for prisoners and the release of Abu Qatada shows just what a toxic issue human rights law has become. In this provocative film, Andrew Neil travels to Europe and across Britain to find out why Britain follows these laws and asks can anything be done to restore our faith in them?”

Link

BBC Two, 14th March 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Souglides v Tweedie and another – WLR Daily

Posted March 14th, 2012 in landlord & tenant, law reports, leases, perpetuities by sally

Souglides v Tweedie and another [2012] EWHC 561 (Ch); [2012] WLR (D) 74

“An interest carved out of a superior leasehold or freehold interest could constitute ‘an interest reversionary (whether directly or indirectly)’ on the term of a lease for the purpose of section 9(1) of the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 1964. Accordingly, an option for a lease extension fell within section 9(1) and so was exempt from the rule against perpetuities.”

WLR Daily, 12th March 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Revenue and Customs Commissioners v First Nationwide – WLR Daily

Posted March 14th, 2012 in dividends, HM Revenue & Customs, income tax, law reports by sally

Revenue and Customs Commissioners v First Nationwide [2012] EWCA Civ 278; [2012] WLR (D) 73

“The tax status of preference dividends from a Cayman Islands company to whose shares the taxpayer had subscribed, was determined by the machinery by which they were distributed. Under Cayman law share premium was distributable as dividend, whereas in English tax law share premium was treated in the same way as paid-up share capital. The transaction was not a sale and repurchase of securities such as to constitute a ‘buying back’ within the meaning of sections 737A and 730B of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988.”

WLR Daily, 13th March 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Assuring the Quality of Legal Services – Legal Services Board

Posted March 14th, 2012 in legal services, news, quality assurance by sally

“Options for regulators to consider when deciding how best to prevent risks to, and improve, the quality of legal services consumers receive are outlined today [13 March] by the Legal Services Board (LSB).”

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Legal Services Board, 13th March 2012

Source: www.legalservicesboard.org.uk

Discussion paper developed from Literature Review – Bar Standards Board

Posted March 14th, 2012 in barristers, legal education, news by sally

“A major step will be taken in the delivery of the research-based segment of the Legal Education & Training Review (LETR) now that the a key discussion paper and headline findings from the draft Literature Review have been revealed.”

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Bar Standards Board, 13th March 2012

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Related link: Discussion Paper 01/2012 (PDF)

Law Society slams barristers’ public access plan – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 14th, 2012 in barristers, legal aid, legal education, legal representation, news by sally

“Proposals to allow barristers with less than three years’ experience to accept work directly from the public without supervision are ‘an abdication of regulatory risk,’ according to the Law Society.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 14th March 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Veterans lose nuclear weapons test damages bid – BBC News

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, armed forces, compensation, news, nuclear weapons by sally

“Hundreds of ex-servicemen exposed to radiation in British nuclear weapons tests have lost a Supreme Court bid to launch damages claims against the MoD.”

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BBC News, 14th March 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Strasbourg rules on anti-gay speech for the first time – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, freedom of expression, homosexuality, human rights, news, sexual orientation discrimination by sally

“‘Will both teacher and pupils simply become the next victims of the tyranny of tolerance, heretics, whose dissent from state-imposed orthodoxy must be crushed at all costs?’, asked Cardinal O’Brien in his controversial Telegraph article on gay-marriage. He was suggesting that changing the law to allow gay marriage would affect education as it would preclude a teacher from telling pupils that marriage can only mean a heterosexual union. He later insinuated that the change might lead to students being given material such as an ‘explicit manual of homosexual advocacy entitled The Little Black Book: Queer in the 21st Century.'”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 13th March 2012

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

The European court of human rights needs these British reforms – The Guardian

Posted March 14th, 2012 in constitutional reform, courts, human rights, news by sally

“The Strasbourg court is in a mess. It doesn’t help human rights to damn our eminently sensible reforms as reactionary.”

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The Guardian, 13th March 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

No “near miss” principle in immigration cases, despite Article 8 – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, human rights, immigration, news by sally

“The Court of Appeal has ruled that there is no ‘near miss’ principle in the application of the Immigration Rules. People who miss the five years’ continuous residence requirement – even if by two weeks – will not have met the rules. There is no exception.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 14th March 2012

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Credit Suisse salesman fined £210,000 by FSA – The Guardian

Posted March 14th, 2012 in banking, confidentiality, financial regulation, fines, news by sally

“A senior salesman at Credit Suisse has been fined £210,000 by the Financial Services Authority for playing a guessing game with clients to enable them to identify private information about a forthcoming bond issue.”

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The Guardian, 13th March 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Employees must be consulted in advance before pension scheme measure of inflation can be changed – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 14th, 2012 in indexation, inflation, news, pensions by sally

“Employers with occupational pension schemes will have to consult with affected employees in advance if they want to change the measure of inflation used to calculate the value of benefits.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 14th March 2012

Source: www.out-law.com

Police Commander Ali Dizaei in new conviction appeal – BBC News

Posted March 14th, 2012 in appeals, media, misfeasance in public office, news, perverting the course of justice, police by sally

“Disgraced Metropolitan Police commander Ali Dizaei has lodged an appeal against his latest convictions for misconduct in a public office and perverting the course of justice.”

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BBC News, 13th March 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Outcry over UK plans to charge European court of human rights claimants – The Guardian

Posted March 14th, 2012 in courts, fees, human rights, news by sally

“Proposals to charge claimants for taking their cases to the European court of human rights (ECHR) have triggered an international row over the United Kingdom’s programme for reforming the Strasbourg court.”

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The Guardian, 13th March 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Secret courts condemned – a threat to liberty and justice? – Legal Week

Posted March 13th, 2012 in closed material, criminal justice, news, private hearings, terrorism by sally

“Until this week, reaction to the Government’s green paper on ‘Justice and Security’ has been muted. It has taken the form of detailed and reasoned submissions and has tended to come mainly from organisations and individuals with a legal background. Writing on the UK Human Rights Blog, barrister Adam Wagner, somewhat despairingly, referred to the ‘sound of tumbleweed greeting secret civil trials proposals’.”

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Legal Week, 13th March 2012

Source: www.legalweek.com

Family arbitration – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted March 13th, 2012 in arbitration, families, financial provision, news by sally

“On 22 February 2012 a new arbitration scheme was launched. The IFLA (Institute of Family Law Arbitrators) Scheme is the result of a collaboration between resolution, the Family Law Bar Association (FLBA), the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) and the Centre for Child and Family Law Reform (CCFLR) the whole issue of family law arbitration has been under consideration for about the last decade and during that time a number of family lawyers, arbitrators and judges have worked tirelessly to assist in the formulation of the scheme and its rules.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 13th March 2012

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk