BAILII: Recent Decisions
Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
Court of Appeal (Criminal Division)
Western Trading Ltd & Anor v R. [2020] EWCA Crim 1234 (24 September 2020)
High Court (Administrative Court)
High Court (Chancery Division)
Fox Street Village Ltd, Re [2020] EWHC 2541 (Ch) (25 September 2020)
Colt Group Ltd v Unicourt Wandsworth LLB [2020] EWHC 2549 (Ch) (25 September 2020)
Barrowfen Properties v Patel & Ors [2020] EWHC 2536 (Ch) (24 September 2020)
Bramston & Anor v Pye & Anor [2020] EWHC 2473 (Ch) (24 September 2020)
High Court (Commercial Court)
Marriott v Fresson & Ors [2020] EWHC 2515 (Comm) (25 September 2020)
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service v Veevers [2020] EWHC 2550 (Comm) (25 September 2020)
High Court (Family Division)
WS v KL [2020] EWHC 2548 (Fam) (25 September 2020)
High Court (Technology and Construction Court)
Source: www.bailii.org
Were the March 2020 lockdown restrictions lawfully imposed? (Part 1) — Emmet Coldrick – UK Human Rights Blog
‘The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 (“the Regulations”) contained the most draconian restrictions on the liberty of the general population ever imposed in England. They purported to create several new criminal offences (see reg. 9), including an offence of contravening a regulation that “… no person may leave the place where they are living without reasonable excuse” (see reg. 6) and an offence of contravening, without reasonable excuse, a regulation that (subject to limited exceptions) “no person may participate in a gathering in a public place of more than two people” (see reg. 7).’
UK Human Rights Blog, 24th September 2020
Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com
Changes afoot as litigators lambast disclosure pilot – Litigation Futures
‘Commercial litigators have vented their frustration – and in some cases anger – with the disclosure pilot in the Business and Property Courts, and changes to its rules have been put forward as a result of this and other feedback.’
Litigation Futures, 24th September 2020
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
Wine rampage CCTV shows abuse shop workers face – BBC News
‘The CEOs of 23 retailers have co-signed a letter to Boris Johnson asking for better legal protection for shop workers who face abuse.’
BBC News, 26th September 2020
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Theodore Konstadinides, Lee Marsons and Maurice Sunkin: Reviewing Judicial Review: The constitutional importance of the Independent Review of Administrative Law 2020 – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘Last year, the Government committed itself to establishing a Commission on the Constitution, Democracy and Rights, which would consider reform of the UK’s constitutional order, including judicial review and the Human Rights Act 1998. Instead, on 30 July 2020, the Government launched an ostensibly narrower Independent Review of Administrative Law (IRAL) to examine the need for reforms of judicial review in particular. This is to be conducted by an advisory panel of experts led by Lord Faulks QC. Any options for reform put forward by the Review will be considered by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Robert Buckland QC MP and by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Michael Gove MP. Both the report of the Review and the Government’s response will be published by the end of 2020 or shortly thereafter.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th September 2020
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
New Covid fines of up to £10,000 come into force in England – The Guardian
‘A new, more robust chapter in English coronavirus regulations begins on Monday, with fines of up to £10,000 for people who refuse to self-isolate when asked, and enforcement including tip-offs from people who believe that others are breaching the rules.’
The Guardian, 28th September 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Law Commission’s consultation on marriage reforms – Law Society’s Gazette
‘When most couples start planning a wedding, they excitedly think about the day itself – what they will wear, who they will invite and of course, where they want to get married.’
Law Society's Gazette, 24th September 2020
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Report raises alarm over police detention of vulnerable suspects in England and Wales – The Guardian
‘Police officers detained and interviewed hundreds of thousands of vulnerable suspects last year in England and Wales in breach of mandatory safeguards, according to the body that sets standards for those who support vulnerable adults in police custody.’
The Guardian, 28th September 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
High Court judge quashes s.17 Children Act assessment made by council – Local Government Lawyer
‘A judge has strongly criticised a London borough over its handling of the assessment of a family’s accommodation needs.’
Local Government Lawyer, 24th September 2020
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Eviction and contempt – Nearly Legal
‘This is a somewhat unusual appeal in the context of possession proceedings, being an appeal against a 12 month committal of the tenant to prison on two counts of contempt of court.’
Nearly Legal, 21st September 2020
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Ronan Cormacain: The United Kingdom Internal Market Bill and Breach of Domestic Law – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘Huge controversy has already been generated over provisions in the United Kingdom Internal Market Bill granting Ministers the power to disapply the Withdrawal Agreement. Most of the debate (Elliott, Armstrong) has been focused on the potential breaches of international law. This could severely damage the reputation of the United Kingdom in the world. However, what has been relatively overlooked is that this Bill is also a flagrant attack on the Rule of Law at the UK domestic level. This remains the case even if amendments proposed by Sir Bob Neill MP (and apparently accepted by the Government) pass.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 23rd September 2020
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
Anthony Lewis: Life for ‘predatory’ children’s entertainer – BBC News
‘A children’s entertainer who raped and sexually abused young girls over a 20-year period has been jailed for life.’
BBC News, 24th September 2020
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Vulnerable people left without access to solicitors during Covid – Legal Futures
‘Some of the most vulnerable people have been left isolated and without proper access to solicitors because of the official response to the Covid-19 crisis, according to a report from the Law Society.’
Legal Futures, 25th September 2020
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Muslim man wins UK tribunal case over Cognac raffle switch – The Guardian
‘A Muslim man who worked at a country house hotel has successfully sued his employer for religious harassment after he won a bottle of Cognac in a raffle at a staff party but was given a “cheap” box of chocolates instead.’
The Guardian, 24th September 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Bethany Shiner and Tanzil Chowdhury: The Overseas Operation (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill and Impunity of the British State – UK Constitutional Law Association
‘The Overseas Operation (Service Personnel and Veterans) Bill was introduced in the House of Commons in March 2020 and is due its second reading on 23 September 2020. In short, the Bill aims to limit prosecution and civil proceedings against military personnel, as well as to enable the UK government to derogate from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) during combat operations. The Bill emerges in response to what numerous Defence Secretaries have referred to as the “judicialisation of war”, a term which has been used to resist the application of the ECHR to overseas military combat operations. Despite the Bill being described as a way to protect soldiers from the “industry” of “vexatious claims” and preserve the ability of combat forces to fight wars effectively, there is every suggestion that this is really about precluding, or at least severely limiting, the accountability of the British state in its overseas military deployments.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 22nd September 2020
Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org
