Category: news

Defendants no longer required to state nationality at the start of criminal cases – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 10th, 2021 in case management, criminal procedure, data protection, human rights, news by sally

‘On 8 February 2020, small but significant changes were made to the Part 3 (Case Management) of the Criminal Procedure Rules and Practice Directions 2020 (“CrimPR”). These changes remove the requirement that defendants in criminal trials provide their nationality to the court at preliminary hearings. The question is now to be asked only where a court passes an immediate or suspended custodial sentence.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 9th February 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Romance fraud on rise in coronavirus lockdown – BBC News

Posted February 10th, 2021 in coronavirus, fraud, identity fraud, internet, money laundering, news, statistics by sally

‘Romance fraud – scamming someone out of money by pretending to want a relationship – has been on the rise during lockdown.’

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BBC News, 10th February 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

£1m cost of advertising for claimants is not recoverable, judge rules – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 10th, 2021 in advertising, airlines, case management, class actions, costs, damages, data protection, law firms, news by sally

‘Lawyers leading group litigation against British Airways have been told they cannot expect the defendant to pay the £1m costs of advertising for claimants if the action succeeds.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 8th February 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

The £55 court fee that should have been £10,000 – Litigation Futures

Posted February 10th, 2021 in civil procedure rules, claims management, damages, fees, law firms, news, personal injuries by sally

‘The fee to bring an unlimited additional claim should be £10,000, rather than the £55 the court office had advised one of the parties in bitter litigation involving two law firms, a judge has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 10th February 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Covid travel rule-breakers could face 10-year jail terms, says Hancock – The Guardian

Posted February 10th, 2021 in coronavirus, enforcement, fines, freedom of movement, government departments, imprisonment, news by sally

‘Travellers arriving from coronavirus hotspots could face £10,000 fines and jail sentences of up to 10 years under a package of measures designed to stop new variants entering Britain.’

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The Guardian, 9th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Administrator appointment not void despite notice failure – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 9th, 2021 in administrators, floating charges, insolvency, news, notification by sally

‘A secured creditor’s appointment of an administrator was not void despite the fact it failed to notify its intention to make the appointment to another secured creditor whose security was in place first, the High Court has ruled.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 8th February 2021

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Universal Credit childcare payment system indirectly discriminates against women – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 9th, 2021 in benefits, human rights, judicial review, news, sex discrimination, women by sally

‘R (Salvato) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2021] EWHC 102 (Admin). Ms Salvato is one such lone mother, who brought judicial review proceedings claiming that the differential method for reimbursing childcare costs constituted indirect discrimination against women contrary to Article 14 (read with Article 8 and/or Article 1 Protocol 1) ECHR and was irrational at common law. The Administrative Court agreed on both grounds.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 8th February 2021

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

25% uplift is usual for outdated guideline rates, says judge – Litigation Futures

Posted February 9th, 2021 in fees, indexation, inflation, news, solicitors by sally

‘The conventional approach in relation to the guideline hourly rates (GHR) is to uplift them by about 25% to reflect the effects of inflation since they were set in 2010, a High Court judge has said. He refused without more evidence to reduce the impact of inflation by commercial pressures on solicitors to keep their fees lower.’

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Litigation Futures, 9th February 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Privilege waived in litigation between law firms – Legal Futures

Posted February 9th, 2021 in enfranchisement, law firms, legal profession, negligence, news, privilege by sally

‘The High Court has ruled that legal professional privilege was waived by the liquidators of a company when they released a set of documents to a litigant to help her sue her law firm for negligence.’

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Legal Futures, 9th February 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

COVID-19 vaccination: capacity and best interests – the first reported Court of Protection judgement – Family Law

Posted February 9th, 2021 in care homes, consent, coronavirus, Court of Protection, elderly, mental health, news, vaccination by sally

‘On 20 January 2021 in the matter of Re E (Vaccine) [2021] EWCOP 7, the Vice-President of the Court of Protection Mr Justice Hayden, delivered the first reported judgement in a vaccination dispute. Mrs E, the 80 year old dementia sufferer at the centre of the dispute (and who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia some 20 years ago), was living in a care home where there had been several cases of COVID-19. On 8 January 2021, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham informed Mrs E’s Accredited Legal Representative that she was to be offered a COVID-19 injection on 11 January, however her son, Mr W, objected to this. Due to the risk of Mrs E succumbing to COVID-19, her legal representatives urgently sought a declaration, pursuant to s.15 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (“MCA 2005”), that it would be lawful and in her best interests to receive the vaccine at the next possible date (the appointment on 11 January having been missed due to the son’s objection).’

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Family Law, 3rd February 2021

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

UK’s youngest terror offender walks free from court after recruiting for neo-Nazi group – The Independent

Posted February 9th, 2021 in news, rehabilitation, sentencing, terrorism, young offenders by sally

‘The UK’s youngest known terror offender has walked free from court after recruiting members for a neo-Nazi group.’

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The Independent, 8th February 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Home Office admits 15,000 people deleted from police records – The Guardian

Posted February 9th, 2021 in criminal records, DNA, fingerprints, government departments, news, police by sally

‘A blunder led to the records of more than 15,000 people being deleted in their entirety from the Police National Computer, the Home Office has admitted. News of the data loss emerged last month, but on Monday the government put numbers on what had been erased.’

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The Guardian, 8th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Rise in child abuse online threatens to overwhelm UK police, officers warn – The Guardian

Posted February 9th, 2021 in child abuse, computer crime, encryption, indecent photographs of children, internet, news by sally

‘The vast, and growing, volume of child abuse material being created and shared online is threatening to overwhelm police efforts to tackle it, senior officers have told the Guardian. And the situation is likely to worsen, National Crime Agency (NCA) child abuse lead Rob Jones warned, if social media sites such as Facebook press ahead with further encryption of messaging services.’

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The Guardian, 9th February 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Victims of crimes ‘re-traumatised’ by system – BBC News

Posted February 9th, 2021 in bills, codes of practice, crime, criminal justice, families, news, victims by sally

‘When Tracey Hanson’s son, Josh, was stabbed to death in an unprovoked attack in 2015, it was the start of a tough journey through the criminal justice system. She said she was “passed from pillar to post” throughout and the impact stays with her today. Experiences like hers – and others who have been victims of crime – is driving a fresh call from Labour for a “Victims’ Law” to strengthen their rights.’

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BBC News, 8th February 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Community Treatment Orders: does seeing patients remotely suffice? – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 8th, 2021 in coronavirus, detention, local government, mental health, news, remote hearings by sally

‘Jonathan Auburn and Lucy McCann assess whether decision-making as to community treatment orders requires physical attendance.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th February 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Documents on CEO’s personal phone should be disclosed, court rules – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 8th, 2021 in company directors, disclosure, dispute resolution, documents, news, pilot schemes, telecommunications by sally

‘The terms of a contractual agreement between a CEO and his company mean material held on a personal mobile phone should be disclosed in litigation the company is involved in, the High Court of England has ruled.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 8th February 2021

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Client sued over unpaid fees loses appeal against contempt sentence – Legal Futures

Posted February 8th, 2021 in appeals, contempt of court, fees, law firms, news, suspended sentences by sally

‘A man sued by a Kent law firm for unpaid fees has lost his appeal against a suspended sentence handed out for contempt over his failure to comply with court orders.’

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Legal Futures, 8th February 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Bar Council warns of post-pandemic barrister shortfall – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 8th, 2021 in barristers, coronavirus, news, pupillage, statistics by sally

‘The Bar Council has warned that the pandemic could cause a “persisting” shortage of barristers, after the number of pupillages registered last year fell by 35%.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 5th February 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Court rules lawyers’ £1m advertising costs are not recoverable – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 8th, 2021 in advertising, airlines, case management, class actions, costs, law firms, news by sally

‘Lawyers leading group litigation against British Airways have been told they cannot expect the defendant to pay the £1m costs of advertising for claimants if the action succeeds.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 8th February 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Practice Direction 12J & Scott Schedules – Rearranging a spider’s web – Family Law Week

Posted February 8th, 2021 in appeals, children, domestic violence, families, family courts, news, practice directions by sally

‘Jeremy Ford, Partner at Cambridge Family Law Practice LLP, calls for clarity in the court’s attitude to Scott Schedules when considering what is relevant to its welfare determination.’

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Family Law Week, 3rd February 2021

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk