Case Comment: Royal Mail Group Ltd v Jhuti [2019] UKSC 55, Part One – UKSC Blog

‘If an employee is dismissed on bogus grounds invented by someone more senior than her in the business, that person’s true reason for acting as they did will be the real reason for the dismissal, even if the decision to dismiss was made by another person acting in good faith in reliance on the bogus grounds.’

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UKSC Blog, 17th February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

QOCS rule to change but not in relation to Tomlin orders – Litigation Futures

Posted February 18th, 2020 in civil procedure rules, costs, news, personal injuries by sally

‘An urgently needed amendment to the rules on qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) in so-called mixed claims will come into force in the coming weeks, the Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) has decided.’

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Litigation Futures, 18th February 2020

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Sexist comments “remain rife” in legal profession – Legal Futures

Posted February 18th, 2020 in equality, legal profession, news, sex discrimination, women by sally

‘Some 58% of women in the legal profession say they or women they work with have received inappropriate comments from male colleagues relating to their gender, new research has found.’

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Legal Futures, 17th February 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Claimant who sued over pothole injury given suspended sentence after evidence of extreme sports participation – Local Government Lawyer

‘Walsall Council has successfully prosecuted a man who falsely claimed significant compensation following an injury when falling in a pothole.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 17th February 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Last British member of European court of justice could sue EU – The Guardian

Posted February 18th, 2020 in brexit, EC law, judges, news by sally

‘The last British member of the European court of justice has said she could sue the EU over an attempt by the bloc’s 27 member states to force her out.’

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The Guardian, 17th February 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Caroline Flack: Who decides whether someone should go on trial? – BBC News

Posted February 18th, 2020 in assault, domestic violence, news, prosecutions, public interest by sally

‘TV presenter Caroline Flack was found dead in her home on Saturday, weeks before she was due to stand trial for assaulting her boyfriend, Lewis Burton.’

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BBC News, 17th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Long-term offenders have different brain structure, study says – The Guardian

Posted February 18th, 2020 in news, recidivists, statistics by sally

‘Parents should not worry about their teenagers’ delinquent behaviour provided they were well behaved in their earlier childhood, according to researchers behind a study that suggests those who offend throughout their life showed antisocial behaviour from a young age and have a markedly different brain structure as adults.’

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The Guardian, 17th February 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Met Police remove 374 names from gangs matrix – BBC News

Posted February 17th, 2020 in data protection, gangs, news, ombudsmen, police, statistics by sally

‘The Metropolitan Police has removed 374 people from its gangs matrix after the UK’s data watchdog found it breached data protection laws.’

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BBC News, 15th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Revised pre-action protocols – St Ives Chambers

Posted February 17th, 2020 in chambers articles, housing, landlord & tenant, news, pre-action conduct, repairs by sally

‘Two important protocols have been revised that apply to social housing providers with effect from 13 January 2020.’

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St Ives Chambers, 4th February 2020

Source: www.stiveschambers.co.uk

Clinical negligence and PI costs – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 17th, 2020 in civil procedure rules, compensation, costs, delay, negligence, news, personal injuries by sally

‘Following the decision in I v Hull & East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust (25 February 2019), applications for a further interim payment on account of costs have become common in high-value clinical negligence and personal injury claims where there is likely to be substantial delay before quantum can be determined by the court. In the recent decision in RXK v Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2019] EWHC 2751 (QB), Master Cook observed that there was no decision of the High Court on the principle of whether such applications are well founded and have an adequate judicial basis in the rules and/or the authorities. Thus, the master took the opportunity in RXK to provide guidance ‘in the hope that such applications would be better prepared in future’.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 17th February 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Actual Use, Lawful Use and Ancillary Use – when designating Assets of Community Value – Exchange Chambers

‘Towards the end of last year, the General Regulatory Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal (‘FTT’) determined an appeal by the owner of a 46-acre greenfield site against the decision of the local authority, Winchester City Council, to list the land as an Asset of Community Value (‘ACV’).’

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Exchange Chambers, 12th February 2020

Source: www.exchangechambers.co.uk

Anorexic woman’s death prompted independent review – BBC News

‘The care of a severely anorexic woman prompted 14 recommendations for change, an inquest has heard.’

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BBC News, 14th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Lawyers highlight poor practice in private law cases and the impact on families – Transparency Project

‘A new research report paints a very alarming picture of the way in which some family courts are dealing with cases where there is domestic abuse, ignoring the procedures put in place by court rules. Academics at the University of Sussex conducted a survey of 88 lawyers who act in private law proceedings in Sussex.’

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Transparency Project, 14th February 2020

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Mostyn J. and ‘amicable’ divorces – St Ives Chambers

‘amicable (spelt with a little ‘a’) charged the parties £300 for helping with preparation of their divorce petition and application for decree nisi, and a further £300 for drafting a simple precedent-compliant cleanbreak order (which the parties had negotiated) together with accompanying Form A, D81, joint disclosure statement. Their letter forwarding the same to the court attracted the attention of the court and this application.’

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St Ives Chambers, February 2020

Source: www.stiveschambers.co.uk

Appeal Court rules Islamic marriages invalid in UK – BBC News

Posted February 17th, 2020 in appeals, divorce, Islam, islamic law, marriage, news by sally

‘A court has reversed a judgment from two years ago which found that a couple who had an Islamic wedding ceremony could legally divorce.’

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BBC News, 14th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Impact on rape victims of police phone seizures to be reviewed – The Guardian

‘The impact on rape victims of police seizures of their mobile phones is to be examined as the Metropolitan police begin piloting a data inspection system designed to limit invasion of privacy.’

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The Guardian, 16th February 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police who warned man about ‘transphobic’ tweet acted unlawfully – The Guardian

Posted February 17th, 2020 in freedom of expression, hate crime, internet, news, police, transgender persons by sally

‘Police officers unlawfully interfered with a man’s right to freedom of expression by turning up at his place of work to speak to him about allegedly “transphobic” tweets, the high court has ruled.’

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The Guardian, 14th February 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Removal of life support after brain stem death held lawful – UK Human Rights Blog

‘In two related judgments, Lieven J considered an application made by a Hospital Trust to withdraw treatment from a child receiving mechanical ventilation to keep him alive and an application for anonymity on behalf of his treating clinicians. The Trust succeeded in both. The decision has been upheld by the Court of Appeal.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 14th February 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Man jailed 50 years after raping girl in Prescot – BBC News

‘A man who raped a six-year-old girl when he was a teenager has been jailed almost 50 years after the offence.’

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BBC News, 14th February 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

TV licence convictions hard to justify, says MP scrutinising BBC – The Guardian

Posted February 17th, 2020 in BBC, civil justice, criminal justice, enforcement, fines, licensing, news, select committees by sally

‘The Conservative MP tasked with scrutinising the BBC has said it is hard to justify enforcing the licence fee through the criminal courts, suggesting the corporation is losing support in its battle to prevent the decriminalisation of the £154.50 charge.’

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The Guardian, 15th February 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com