Current Awareness

Consultation on Repeal of sections 63 to 67 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974: Abolishing Noise Abatement Zones – Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Posted December 10th, 2012 in consultations, local government, news, noise by sally

“This consultation seeks views on the Repeal of sections 63 to 67 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 in relation to England and Wales, which would abolish all existing Noise Abatement Zones and prevent new ones being established.”

Consultation (PDF)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, December 2012

Source: www.defra.gov.uk

BAILII: Recent Decisions

Posted December 10th, 2012 in law reports by sally

Court of Appeal (Civil Division)

Parekh v London Borough of Brent [2012] EWCA Civ 1630 (07 December 2012)

Wuhan Guoyu Logistics Group Co Ltd & Anor v Emporiki Bank of Greece SA [2012] EWCA Civ 1629 (07 December 2012)

High Court (Administrative Court)

Taylor v Manchester City Council TCG Bars Ltd [2012] EWHC 3467 (Admin) (07 December 2012)

High Court (Commercial Court)

Occidental Chartering Inc v Progress Bulk Carriers Ltd [2012] EWHC 3515 (Comm) (06 December 2012)

Source: www.bailii.org

The duty of care of Public Authorities: Too Much, Too Little or About Right? – Speech by Master of the Rolls

Posted December 10th, 2012 in duty of care, local government, negligence, news, personal injuries by sally

The duty of care of Public Authorities: Too Much, Too Little or About Right? (PDF)

Speech by Master of the Rolls

PIBA Richard Davies Lecture, 27th November 2012

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

O and another v Maahanmuuttovirasto; Maahanmuuttovirasto v L – WLR Daily

Posted December 10th, 2012 in citizenship, EC law, families, human rights, immigration, law reports by sally

O and another v Maahanmuuttovirasto Maahanmuuttovirasto v L (Joined Cases C-356/11 and C-357/11); [2012] WLR (D) 371

“In circumstances where a third country national husband had married another third country national lawfully resident in the European Union and where the first child, an EU citizen, was a child of the wife’s former marriage to an EU citizen and the second child was a child of their own marriage, a member state could refuse to grant the third country national husband a residence permit on the basis of family reunification where he sought to derive the right of residence from his wife’s first child on the basis of the child’s enjoyment of EU citizenship pursuant to article 20FEU of the FEU Treaty. In those circumstances, however, Council Directive 2003/86/EC on the right to family reunification could apply.”

WLR Daily, 6th December 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Bundesrepublik Deutschland v Dittrich – WLR Daily

Posted December 10th, 2012 in civil partnerships, civil servants, EC law, employment, equality, law reports, marriage, medical treatment, sexual orientation discrimination by sally

Bundesrepublik Deutschland v Dittrich (Joined Cases C-124/11, C-125/11 and C-143/11); [2012] WLR (D) 370

“On the proper interpretation of article 3(1)(c) and 3(3) of Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation, assistance granted to public servants in the event of illness fell within the scope of the Directive if it was the responsibility of the state, as a public employer, to finance it, that being a matter for the national court to determine.”

WLR Daily, 6th December 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Clinisupplies Ltd v Park and others – WLR Daily

Posted December 10th, 2012 in law reports, patents by sally

Clinisupplies Ltd v Park and others [2012] EWHC 3453 (Ch); [2012] WLR (D) 369

“The mere selection of components forming a composite article did not amount to an aspect of ‘configuration’, and hence a ‘design’, within the meaning of section 213(2) of the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.”

WLR Daily, 5th December 2012

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Privacy and the internet – Speech by Lord Justice Leveson

Posted December 10th, 2012 in freedom of expression, internet, judges, news, privacy by sally

Privacy and the internet (PDF)

Speech by Lord Justice Leveson

Communications Law Centre, University of Technology Sydney, Australia, 7th December 2012

Source: wwww.judiciary.gov.uk

Children and young people in custody – a fall in numbers, but little change otherwise – Ministry of Justice

Posted December 10th, 2012 in news, prisons, rehabilitation, statistics, young offenders by sally

“The number of children and young people in custody continues to fall, but little has changed in their perception of their treatment and conditions, said Nick Hardwick, Chief Inspector of Prisons, publishing a thematic report, Children and Young People in Custody 2011-12: an analysis of the experiences of 15-18-year-olds in prison.”

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 7th December 2012

Source: www.justice.gov.uk

LSB responds to consultation by revising plans for regulation of special bodies – Legal Services Board

Posted December 10th, 2012 in consultations, consumer protection, legal services, Legal Services Board, licensing, news, Solicitors Regulation Authority by sally

“Special bodies – including not-for profit agencies and community interest companies –
providing reserved legal activities will not become licensed under the Legal Services Act 2007
until at least April 2015, the LSB confirms today [5 December].”

Full story (PDF)

Legal Services Board, 5th December 2012

Source: www.legalservicesboard.org.uk

Peer-to-peer lenders to be regulated – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 10th, 2012 in banking, financial regulation, loans, news by sally

“Peer-to-peer lenders such as Zopa, RateSetter and Funding Circle will be regulated by the new Financial Conduct Authority.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 7th December 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Recent Statutory Instruments – legislation.gov.uk

Posted December 10th, 2012 in legislation by sally

The Common Agricultural Policy Single Payment and Support Schemes (Amendment) Regulations 2012

The Immigration (Designation of Travel Bans) (Amendment No. 3) Order 2012

The School and Early Years Finance (England) Regulations 2012

The Freedom of Information (Definition of Historical Records) (Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2012

The Public Records (Transfer to the Public Record Office) (Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2012

The Insurance Companies and CFCs (Avoidance of Double Charge) Regulations 2012

The Authorised Investment Funds (Tax) (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2012

The Car and Van Fuel Benefit Order 2012

The Transport for Greater Manchester (Light Rapid Transit System) (Oldham, Manchester Street Modification) Order 2012

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Elderly driving laws must be changed, says coroner, after 89-year-old dies on M40 – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 10th, 2012 in accidents, driving licences, elderly, inquests, news by sally

“A coroner has condemned driving licence laws for older drivers as ‘puny’ after an 89-year-old died following a head-on-crash as she drove the wrong way down the M40 motorway for more than ten miles.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 7th December 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Winterbourne View scandal prompts new care guidelines – The Guardian

Posted December 10th, 2012 in abuse of position of trust, autism, care homes, learning difficulties, news, reports by sally

“Ministers will on Monday order a programme of action intended to remove up to 1,500 people with learning disabilities and autism from private hospitals such as the Winterbourne View unit where a regime of abuse and humiliation was exposed.”

Full story

The Guardian, 10th December 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ex-SAS Officer to sue Metropolitan Police – Daily Telegraph

Posted December 10th, 2012 in appeals, courts martial, firearms, intelligence services, media, news, official secrets act, police by sally

“A former head of the SAS’s counter-terrorist team is suing the Metropolitan Police claiming he was wrongfully accused of leaking secret intelligence reports to a journalist.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 8th December 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Leases, repairs and ‘errors’ – NearlyLegal

Posted December 10th, 2012 in landlord & tenant, leases, news, repairs by sally

“For long leases, outside the provisions of s.11 Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the repairing obligation of the landlord is limited to the exact terms set out in the lease, as is the extent to which the landlord can recover the costs of repairs from the leaseholder. As anyone who has dealt with repairs on housing association shared ownership schemes where the housing association is itself a lessee of part of the building will know, this can be an utter nightmare, where the immediate landlord can seem to escape any repairing obligations whatsoever. But what if the lease terms themselves contain an apparent error?”

Full story

NearlyLegal, 9th December 2012

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Judge delays ruling on brain tumour boy – The Independent

Posted December 10th, 2012 in cancer, child abduction, children, medical treatment, news, parental rights by sally

“New developments in Neon’s case lead judge to schedule return to court for later in the month.”

Full story

The Independent, 9th December 2012

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Allowing religious gay marriages will avoid human rights challenges – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted December 7th, 2012 in equality, homosexuality, human rights, marriage, news by sally

“The Prime Minister has announced his support for gay marriage in religious institutions. Having already said, memorably, that ‘I don’t support gay marriage in spite of being a conservative. I support gay marriage because I am a conservative’, he has now gone a step further and argued that gay couples should be able to marry on religious premises. But, he also made clear, ‘if there is any church or any synagogue or any mosque that doesn’t want to have a gay marriage it will not, absolutely must not, be forced to hold it’.”

Full story

UK Human Rights Blog, 7th December 2012

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Diversity boost for lowest rung of judiciary – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted December 7th, 2012 in diversity, judiciary, news by sally

“A quarter of the lawyers recommended as deputy district judges (magistrates’ courts) in the most recent round of appointments were black, Asian and minority ethnic (BME), statistics released by the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) this week reveal.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 7th December 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk