Hot Air – Rope Walk Chambers
‘In his latest Costs article, Andrew Hogan discussed Costs in relation to Judicial review.’
Rope Walk Chambers, 31st March 2020
Source: www.ropewalk.co.uk
Barclays not liable for alleged sexual assaults during medicals, court rules – The Guardian
‘Barclays is not liable for the alleged sexual assault of more than 100 patients by a doctor carrying out medicals on the bank’s behalf, the supreme court has ruled.’
The Guardian, 1st April 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 – Six Pump Court
‘Whilst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is having a unprecedented impact upon human behaviour, businesses should also be aware of the risks to legal persons and officers created by The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020.’
Six Pump Court, 27th March 2020
Source: www.6pumpcourt.co.uk
Morrisons not liable for massive staff data leak, court rules – The Guardian
‘The UK’s highest court has ruled that Morrisons should not be held liable for the criminal act of an employee with a grudge who leaked the payroll data of about 100,000 members of staff.’
The Guardian, 1st April 2020
Source: www.theguardian.com
Witness Statements: Overlong and Over-lawyered? – Hailsham Chambers
‘As many legal commentators including the author have noted recently: long, complex and detailed statements served particularly on behalf of lay witnesses, but written by their legal teams, can be more of a hindrance than of assistance. Straightforward cross-examinations of such witnesses will frequently prove effective in at the very least exciting the suspicion of a court as to the reliability of such lay evidence, or worse, in some cases causing questions to be asked as to their credibility when the inevitable rhetorical question is asked in closing as to whether such a person ever really could have had a reasonable belief in the veracity of what the statement contained.’
Hailsham Chambers, 27th March 2020
Source: www.hailshamchambers.com
Whistleblowing: how easy is it to make a qualifying disclosure? – St John’s Buildings
‘It is generally assumed that the threshold for a statement made by a worker to qualify for whistleblowing protection is not high. After all, the information provided need only ‘tend’ to show, in the ‘reasonable belief’ of the worker that one of the wrongs identified in s.43B Employment Rights Act 1996 is being, has been, or will be committed. Often therefore, an unfair dismissal, or detriment, claim will proceed on the basis, without more, that the worker told the employer something to do with health and safety (or legal obligation or crime etc.). A deeper analysis of the s.43B requirements shows that qualification for protection is not as simple as first appears.’
St John's Buildings, March 2020
Source: stjohnsbuildings.com
Is it possible to take a statutory declaration by Skype video or similar technology? – Hardwicke Chambers
‘Although the position is fast-moving and guidance is expected to be given in due course by the Law Society, it is presently understood that remote video conferencing technology such as Skype or Zoom could be used by a practising solicitor to administer a statutory declaration.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 26th March 2020
Source: hardwicke.co.uk
Do Medical Practitioners have a duty to disclose Genetic Disorders despite the Principles of Confidentiality? – Exchange Chambers
‘An analysis of the ethical and legal considerations underpinning a decision to inform a patient’s relatives about a diagnosis of a genetic disorder in light of the recent judgment handed down in ABC v St Georges Healthcare and Others [2020] EWHC 455 (QB).’
Exchange Chambers, 25th March 2020
Source: www.exchangechambers.co.uk
Directors disqualified after abandoning care homes, diverting council funds – Local Government Lawyer
‘The directors of two care homes in the Midlands have been disqualified after they diverted council funds before abandoning elderly residents and staff, the Insolvency Services has revealed.’
Local Government Lawyer, 31st March 2020
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
In-house lawyer facilitated sham £16m property schemes – Legal Futures
‘A solicitor who acted as head of legal and a “puppet director” for a variety of companies involved in sham £16m property schemes has been struck off.’
Legal Futures, 1st April 2020
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
The choice of experts in Catastrophic and Severe Brain Injury – Exchange Chambers
‘In this article I will examine the issues surrounding the choice of experts in catastrophic brain injury claims. I will write about what experts are reasonably required and in what order the experts should be instructed. We will look at the various expertise available and just what it is they do and how they can help the Court to resolve the issues.’
Exchange Chambers, 25th March 2020
Source: www.exchangechambers.co.uk
Council to appeal High Court ruling that stroke unit reconfiguration was lawful – Law Society Gazette
‘Medway Council has lodged an appeal against a High Court decision which found that a joint committee of clinical commissioning groups had acted lawfully when dealing with health inequalities when they decided the locations of three hyper acute stroke units (HASUs) in Kent.’
Local Government Lawyer, 31st March 2020
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Lawyers echo Sumption’s ‘police state’ warning – Law Society’s Gazette
‘Criticism by former Supreme Court justice Lord Sumption of apparent over-reach by police officers enforcing Covid-19 lockdown restrictions appears to have struck a chord in the legal profession.’
Law Society's Gazette, 31st March 2020
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Government acted unlawfully in sharing information that could lead to death penalty, rules UK Supreme Court – Garden Court Chambers
‘The UK Supreme Court today ruled that the British Government acted unlawfully in a case where it departed from the UK’s longstanding policy on opposing the death penalty in all circumstances.’
Garden Court Chambers, 25th March 2020
Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk
The quickly mutating Coronavirus legislation – drafting anomalies and police powers – UK Police Law Blog
‘The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Business Closure) (England) Regulations 2020 at reg 6(1) create a prohibition against leaving one’s home without reasonable excuse rather than being outside one’s home without reasonable excuse. Not only is that narrower than many people had thought, it shapes the powers of a police constable to direct or remove people to their home, which depends upon the constable considering that they have breached reg 6(1). Furthermore, in criminal proceedings for a breach, it may be that the burden of establishing of the defence of reasonable excuse is on a defendant in Scotland but on the prosecution in the other three home nations.’
UK Police Law Blog, 31st March 2020
Source: ukpolicelawblog.com
Expert Evidence: A Cautionary Tale – Exchange Chambers
‘On 3rd March 2020, Robert Buckland, the incumbent Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, confirmed that electronic signatures are permissible and legally valid if used in commercial and consumer documents. This declaration followed a Law Commission report, published in September last year, that looked at the electronic execution of documents, including deeds.’
Exchange Chambers, 25th March 2020
Source: www.exchangechambers.co.uk
Privately educated lawyers dominate corporate work – Legal Futures
‘The proportion of solicitors who attended state schools is creeping upwards, but those who went to fee-paying schools dominate corporate work, according to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).’
Legal Futures, 31st March 2020
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
Check your Email Signatures! – Falcon Chambers
‘As every property practitioner knows, s 2(3) of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 (the 1989 Act) requires a contract for the sale or other disposition of land to be ‘signed by or on behalf of each party’. Neocleous v Rees [2019] EWHC 2462 (Ch), [2019] All ER (D) 25 (Oct) was the first occasion on which the court was asked to determine whether an email footer satisfied the requirement for a signature in s 2(3). The issue arose in the context of an alleged compromise agreement between the parties to a property dispute, which was contained in an exchange of emails between their solicitors. Viewed in the wider context of the earlier authorities, and a recent Law Commission report, the decision encourages practitioners to consider how formality requirements in property transactions—and more generally—are now operating in an increasingly digital world.’
Falcon Chambers, 13th March 2020
Source: www.falcon-chambers.com
Alibrahim v Asturion Fondation [2020] EWCA Civ 32 – Hardwicke Chambers
‘The primary issue for the Court of Appeal in this case was what conduct constitutes abuse of process where one party to litigation unilaterally suspends proceedings for a substantial amount of time without the agreement of the other party nor the approval or an Order of the court.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 27th March 2020
Source: hardwicke.co.uk
