Grant Thorowgood jailed for 1980 rape in Slough – BBC News
“A man has been jailed for raping a woman in her home in 1980 while her two-year-old daughter slept upstairs.”
BBC News, 26th September 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Police should face fewer dangerous driving prosecutions, says CPS – The Guardian
“Fewer prosecutions should be brought against police, fire brigade and ambulance staff who commit driving offences while responding to emergencies, according to draft guidance issued by the Crown Prosecution Service on Thursday.”
The Guardian, 27th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Court privacy ruling on divorce – Law Society’s Gazette
“Divorcing couples have been given reassurance that their private financial affairs will remain confidential even when the media attend court, following a recent judgment from the family court.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 26th September 2012
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Boat race saboteur Trenton Oldfield guilty of public nuisance – The Independent
“A protester who disrupted this year’s Boat Race by swimming into the path of the crews was found guilty today of causing a public nuisance.”
The Independent, 26th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Two burglars shot by homeowner jailed for four years – The Guardian
“Two burglars shot by a homeowner who was later arrested have both been jailed for four years.”
The Guardian, 26th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Abu Hamza launches last-minute high court challenge to extradition – The Guardian
“Abu Hamza al-Masri has launched a last-minute appeal to the high court to block his imminent extradition to the US to stand trial on terrorism charges.”
The Guardian, 26th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Minefield around traveller site’ jibe broke equality law – BBC News
“A councillor breached equality laws when he suggested putting a minefield around a travellers’ site in Cambridgeshire, a report has said.”
BBC News, 26th September 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
The extradition that changes the game – The Independent
“The court ruling that settled Abu Hamza’s fate has raised concerns for the rights of others fighting to be tried in Britain.”
The Independent, 26th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Government plan for courts to sit in private is rejected – The Independent
“The Liberal Democrat leadership suffered an embarrassing defeat last night as activists rejected Government plans to allow some courts to sit in private to hear evidence relating to national security.”
The Independent, 26th September 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Phone hacking: judge reveals relative is among claimants – The Guardian
“The high court judge presiding over 155 civil damages claims for alleged phone hacking being brought against News of the World’s publisher has disclosed that one of his relatives is among the fresh cases.”
The Guardian, 25th September 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
A Salutary Lesson on Bad Character – The Devil Is In The Detail – Zenith Chambers
“In a recent Crown Court trial the Prosecution made a Bad Character application alleging that the factual basis of a previous conviction was so similar to the alleged facts of the instant case, that the previous conviction should be admitted. This was propensity with a heavy dollop of similar fact.”
Full story (PDF)
Zenith Chambers, 17th September 2012
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
Pay To Stay: A potential can of worms in social housing reform – Hardwicke Chambers
“‘For far too long, millions of people on waiting lists have watched helplessly as high-earning social tenants continue to occupy homes designed to help the most vulnerable…if they want to continue using this precious national resource, they will pay for the privilege.’
When the then Housing and Local Government Minister, Grant Shapps MP, launched a consultation on giving social landlords the power to charge market rents to high income tenants on 13 June 2012, he did so using deliberately strong language.”
Harwicke Chambers, 13th September 2012
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
A closed door – Article 8 defences in mandatory possession cases – Hardwicke Chambers
“The Supreme Court in Manchester City Council v Pinnock [2010] UKSC 45; [2011] 2 AC 104 and The Mayor & Burgesses of the London Borough of Hounslow v Powell [2011] UKSC 8; [2011] 2 WLR 287 severely restricted the likelihood of an occupier facing (mandatory) possession of their home successfully defending such a claim in reliance upon Article 8 of the Convention Rights – the right to respect for private and family life.”
Hardwicke Chambers, 13th September 2012
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
Divorce – needs and non-matrimonial assets: formula or flexibility? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange
“The Law Commission recently published a supplemental consultation paper (Matrimonial Property, Needs and Agreements – Law Com 2012/208) following its earlier consultation on marital property agreements in 2011. The focus of the supplemental consultation is two particularly problematic aspects of financial provision on divorce or civil partnership dissolution: needs and non-matrimonial assets.”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 24th September 2012
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
Time to untangle the debate over secret courts – UK Human Rights Blog
“Tomorrow (25 September), Liberal Democrats will debate the Justice and Security Bill and will vote on saying no to the Government’s controversial secret courts proposals. Played in the press as a good opportunity to put clear blue water between the coalition partners, the motion will give a party members a chance to speak out on a Bill which many see as an anathema to the traditional liberal commitment to open, fair and equal access to justice.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 24th September 2012
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Chagos Refugees Group in the First-Tier Tribunal: some key points – Panopticon
“The Chagos Archipelago forms part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (‘BIOT’). In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the inhabitants of the Chagos Islands were required to leave those islands. At or around that time, a US military base was established on Diego Garcia, the largest of the Chagos Islands. The removal of the ‘Chagossians’ has been a matter of considerable political and media debate, as well as complex legal proceedings. Two legal challenges are ongoing: Chagos Islanders v UK before the European Court of Human Rights, and Bancoult (No 3) before the domestic courts.”
Panopticon, 24th September 2012
Source: www.panopticonblog.com
