The risks – and costs – of choosing not to mediate – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted August 7th, 2014 in costs, dispute resolution, news by sally

‘Mediation is a flexible, and generally cost effective way of resolving disputes outside of the courtroom. Although mediation is growing in popularity, particularly in run-of-the-mill commercial disputes, there are still instances where the parties, given the option to mediate, choose to litigate. Such a choice comes with a high degree of risk, as emphasised by a recent decision of the High Court in Manchester – Garritt-Critchley v Ronnan [2014] EWHC 1774 (Ch).’

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 18th July 2014

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Fair or foul: sport and the law – Henderson Chambers

‘The question is: how does one earn a living in sport? By skill? Hand-eye coordination? Fancy footwork? Fast reactions? By luck? By cheating – and getting away with it? Or none of these. As far as we are concerned, the living is earned in the law. The law by, with, to and from all aspects of sport because a legal principle from every page of every textbook will apply somewhere in the entire spectrum of sports activities on and off the field. Think of the law that applies to staff, betting,merchandising of team brands, the corrections of misdemeanours and their effects, ownership of buildings, copyright issues. If I just do a list, it will go on forever. I do not have “a little list.” Mine is endless and what I propose to do is to follow, if not the rules, then the pattern of sport by touching on a topic haphazardly then running back, in an intellectual sort of way, to the other side of the court before starting again on a different tack. There are so many sporting metaphors to mix.’

Full story (PDF)

Henderson Chambers, 8th July 2014

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Shareholder democracy in shackles? – 11 Stone Buildings

Posted August 7th, 2014 in company law, news, shareholders by sally

‘Lexa Hilliard QC and Sarah Clarke discuss the potential ramifications of the first Court of Appeal decision in Burry & Knight Ltd V Martin John Murless Knight (2014) [2014] EWCA Civ 604 on new provisions in the Companies Act 2006 which limit access to the register of members.’

Full story (PDF)

11 Stone Buildings, July 2014

Source: www.11sb.com

Damages for disrepair – Long leasehold properties – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted August 7th, 2014 in compensation, damages, housing, leases, news, repairs by sally

‘A leaseholder with a leaking roof or defective shared heating system faces two questions: Who is responsible for undertaking the necessary repairs to the building and internal repairs to their property and how will it be paid for?’

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 4th July 2014

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

BAILII: Recent Decisions

Posted August 7th, 2014 in law reports by sally

Court of Appeal (Civil Division)

Baturina v Chistyakov [2014] EWCA Civ 1134 (05 August 2014)

High Court (Chancery Division)

Lehman Brothers Finance AG v Klaus Tschira Stiftung GmbH & Anor [2014] EWHC 2782 (Ch) (06 August 2014)

High Court (Administrative Court)

HS2 Action Alliance Ltd & Anor, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for Transport & Anor [2014] EWHC 2759 (Admin) (06 August 2014)

Lemtelsi, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2014] EWHC 2750 (Admin) (04 August 2014)

High Court (Commercial Court)

Brogden & Anor v Investec Bank Plc [2014] EWHC 2785 (Comm) (06 August 2014)

Family Court Decisions (High Court Judges)

AB (A Child: Temporary Leave To Remove From Jurisdiction: Expert Evidence) [2014] EWFC 2758 (4 August 2014)

Q v Q [2014] EWFC 31 (06 August 2014)

Source: www.bailii.org

Dewsbury couple win spare bedroom housing benefit fight – BBC News

Posted August 7th, 2014 in benefits, disabled persons, housing, news by sally

‘A couple from West Yorkshire who went to court to challenge a cut to their housing benefit have won their case.’

Full story

BBC News, 7th August 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Recent Statutory Instruments – legislation.gov.uk

Posted August 7th, 2014 in legislation by sally

The Ecclesiastical Offices (Terms of Service) (Amendment) Regulations 2014

The Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure 2014 (Appointed Day No. 2 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2014

The Ecclesiastical Judges, Legal Officers and Others (Fees) Order 2014

The Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014

The Prospects College of Advanced Technology (Government) Regulations 2014

The Prospects College of Advanced Technology (Incorporation) Order 2014

The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Excluded Activities and Prohibitions) Order 2014

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Trading “with a view to the making of a profit” – an objective or subjective test? – RPC Commercial Disputes Blog

Posted August 7th, 2014 in appeals, corporation tax, HM Revenue & Customs, news by sally

‘In Beacon Estates (Chepstow) Ltd v HMRC [2014] UKFTT 686 (TC), the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber) (‘FTT’) allowed the taxpayer’s appeal, holding that ‘with a view to’ in section 393A(3), Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (‘ICTA’)[1] imports an objective test when considering relief for trading losses.’

Full story

RPC Commercial Disputes Blog, 6th August 2014

Source: www.rpc.co.uk

Richmond Pharmacology Ltd v Chester Overseas Ltd and others – WLR Daily

Richmond Pharmacology Ltd v Chester Overseas Ltd and others [2014] EWHC 2692 (Ch); [2014] WLR (D) 365

‘The test of whether there was a breach of the duty under section 175 of the Companies Act 2006 was objective, and did not depend on whether the director was aware that what he was doing was a breach of his duty. It was no defence to a claim for breach of this duty that the director had acted in good faith. Nor was it a defence that the director had acted reasonably, but wrongly, had thought that he had been entitled to do what he had done.’

WLR Daily, 1st August 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Cheltenham man murdered his ex-wife and hid body in bed – The Guardian

Posted August 7th, 2014 in domestic violence, murder, news, sentencing by sally

‘A man who murdered his ex-wife and hid her body in her own bed, where it lay undiscovered for three weeks, has been jailed for at least 16 years.’

Full story

The Guardian, 6th August 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

‘Hardcore’ criminals with 100 convictions avoid prison – Daily Telegraph

Posted August 7th, 2014 in assault, crime, crime prevention, criminal damage, news, prisons, recidivists, sentencing by sally

‘A “hardcore” of repeat offenders, some with more than 100 convictions, are avoiding prison in record numbers, ministers have admitted.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 6th August 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Top judge authorises court to cover legal aid in challenge to government – The Guardian

‘One of the most senior judges in England and Wales has thrown down a direct challenge to the government over legal aid by suggesting courts spend money in defiance of Ministry of Justice cuts to ensure justice is done.’

Full story

The Guardian, 6th August 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

UK government to assess whether virtual currencies should be regulated – OUT-LAW.com

‘The UK government is to review the trade in virtual currencies to investigate whether it should regulated.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 6th August 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

Information Commissioner sounds alarm over lawyers’ handling of personal data – Legal Futures

‘The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has issued a warning to solicitors and barristers over the need to keep personal information secure, especially paper files, in the wake of “a number of data breaches” in recent months.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 6th August 2014

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

‘Paranoid’ husband killed wife over imaginary affair, inquest hears – Daily Telegraph

Posted August 7th, 2014 in domestic violence, families, inquests, married persons, mental health, news by sally

‘Jonathan Trenchard mistakenly thought his wife of 24 years, Derisa, was on the verge of leaving him for another man.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 6th August 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

High court throws out ‘incredible’ £6m bonus claim by ex-Investec traders – The Guardian

Posted August 7th, 2014 in banking, employment, news, remuneration by sally

‘Two former Investec traders lost a three-year, £6m battle over their bonuses on Wednesday in a case described by a London high court judge as fanciful and “wholly incredible”.’

Full story

The Guardian, 6th July 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Wikipedia refuses to delete photo as ‘monkey owns it’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted August 6th, 2014 in animals, copyright, internet, news, photography by sally

‘Wikimedia, the organisation behind Wikipedia, has refused a photographer’s repeated requests to delete his most famous shot as it is jeopardising his livelihood – because a monkey pressed the shutter button and “owns the copyright”.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 6th August 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

EVENT: IALS – Banking Regulation in the aftermath of the financial crisis

Posted August 6th, 2014 in Forthcoming events by sally

‘Chairman: Michael Ashe QC;

Bob Penn, Allen & Overy, on Banking resolutioin: solving too big to fail
Professor Andrew Haynes, University of Wolverhampton; Visiting Professor of Law, University of Macau, China; Visiting Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, on the Banking Reform Act 2013
Professor Rosa Lastra, Queen Mary, University of London on Is the system more resilient following reforms at national, European and international level?
Richard Barfield, KPMG, on Regulatory change – the firms perspective
Nicholas Walmsley, (TBC), Deutschebank: lunchtime speech on In house training issues caused by developments in regulation
Nick Andrews, MPAC, on The challenge for banks
Dr Costanza Russo, Queen Mary, University of London, on The efficacy of banking union through the lenses of co-operation mechanisms
Peter Casey, former Head of Islamic Finance, Dubai Financial Services Authority, on Regulatory change: the impact on Islamic banking
Professor Peter Cartwright, University of Nottingham, on Consumer redress and financial services’

Date: 16th September 2014, 9.15-5.00pm

Location: Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, Charles Clore House, 17 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DR

Charge: See website for details

More information can be found here.

EVENT: UCL Inaugural Lecture – Patient no longer? What next in health care law?

Posted August 6th, 2014 in Forthcoming events by sally

‘Jonathan Montgomery’s inaugural lecture as Professor of Health Care Law argues that the ‘patient’ is no longer the main concept that defines the subject and organises its doctrines. His earlier work suggested that focus on the doctor-patient relationship had blinded commentators to important issues and allowed only a partial account of the roles of the law. Recent case law confirms that other paradigms are becoming important. The use of human rights arguments makes the immediate health care context less relevant. This feature is amplified by increasingly common permission for ’intervenors’ to make submissions showing how individual cases are linked to wider issues. This in turn is an example of a wider trend – the increasing use of health care litigation by groups and corporate bodies – which further dilutes the role of the ‘patient’ as an organising concept for the law. In the face of these developments, many of the reasons for traditional judicial protection of clinical freedom in English health care law ebb away. It is therefore not surprising that the courts are seeking to redefine their roles in regulating health care. If the patient is no longer the central concern of health care law, then it is appropriate that judges are less patient with the idea that there might be lowered scrutiny for health professional s compared to those working in other areas.’

Date: 30th October 2014, 6.00-7.00pm

Location: UCL Law Faculty, Bentham House, Endsleigh Gardens, London WC1H 0EG

Charge: Free, registration required

More information can be found here.

EVENT: UCL CLP – More than just a different face? Judicial Diversity and Decision-Making

Posted August 6th, 2014 in Forthcoming events by sally

‘This lecture addresses a key question in debates around judicial diversity: what evidence is there that a more diverse judiciary will make a difference to substantive decision-making? The lecture will begin by outlining the range of arguments for a more diverse judiciary, which include but are not confined to making a difference to substantive decision-making. It will then turn to consider the considerable evidence which now exists both to refute and to support the existence of substantive differences in decision-making following the appointment of women and others from non-traditional backgrounds to the judiciary. On the basis of this evidence, it will draw conclusions as to the kinds of differences in decision-making which might be expected, and the circumstances under which different approaches to decision-making are likely to flourish.’

Date: 23rd October 2014, 6.00-7.00pm

Location: UCL Law Faculty, Bentham House, Endsleigh Gardens, London WC1H 0EG

Charge: Free, registration required

More information can be found here.