Day: 7 September 2015

David Bedenham Discusses HMRC’s Alcohol Wholesalers Registration Scheme that Commences on 1 October 2015 – 11 KBW

Posted September 7th, 2015 in customs and excise, delay, fraud, HM Revenue & Customs, licensing, news, quality assurance, standards, VAT by sally

‘Alcohol duty fraud costs the treasury an estimated £1 billion per annum. HMRC has stated that
‘the wholesale sector is the major point where illicit alcohol is diverted by organised criminals into retail supply chains…this link in the supply chain is vulnerable because it is the only activity not required to be authorised by HMRC…Introducing a requirement for wholesalers to register with HMRC will address this and reduce opportunities for fraud.’’

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11 KBW, 4th September 2015

Source: www.11kbw.com

Commercial Court Judgment on Solicitors’ Minimum Terms: What is related? – Hailsham Chambers

Posted September 7th, 2015 in insurance, news, solicitors by sally

‘A Commercial Court Judge has decided that 214 claims arising out of two similar property developments do not arise from “a series of related matters or transactions” for the purposes of the solicitors’ minimum terms and so cannot be aggregated. This has the potential to have a major impact on the approach currently taken in coverage work.’

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Hailsham Chambers, 18th September 2015

Source: www.hailshamchambers.com

School sex crime reports in UK top 5,500 in three years – BBC News

Posted September 7th, 2015 in child abuse, consultations, education, news, rape, school children, sexual offences, statistics by sally

‘More than 5,500 alleged sex crimes in UK schools were reported to police in the last three years, BBC figures show.’

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BBC News, 6th September 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Consumer Rights Act 2015: an overview – Henderson Chambers

Posted September 7th, 2015 in consumer protection, EC law, news, unfair contract terms by sally

‘The Consumer Rights Act 2015 is a landmark in the field of consumer law. In anticipation of the coming into force on 1 October 2015 of many of the provisions within the Consumer Rights Act 2015, Henderson Chambers will be publishing a series of alerters highlighting different aspects of the new statutory regime, particularly insofar as it governs the content of consumer contractual relationships and how products should be offered to consumers.’

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Henderson Chambers, 3rd September 2015

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Crime would fall if jail population was halved, says penal reform charity – The Independent

Posted September 7th, 2015 in charities, news, parole, prisons, sentencing, statistics, women by sally

‘Billions of pounds would be saved and crime would fall if the prison population were slashed by more than half, a penal reform charity claims.’

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The Independent, 7th September 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Smirking bully freed from jail on legal technicality – Daily Telegraph

Posted September 7th, 2015 in assault, bullying, disabled persons, news, robbery, sentencing by sally

‘Judge says Scott Floyd “should be going to prison for a long, long time” but was forced to release the offender from jail.’

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Daily Telegraph, 4th September 2015

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Diver jailed for fraudulently selling three cannon found in UK waters – The Guardian

Posted September 7th, 2015 in costs, fraud, jurisdiction, news, proceeds of crime, sentencing, weapons, wrecks by sally

‘A professional diver has been jailed for two years after he falsely claimed to have found three rare 17th-century cannon in international waters so he could sell them to the highest bidder rather than surrendering them to the nation.’

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The Guardian, 4th September 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Shipman reforms ‘could have saved Furness General Hospital babies’ – BBC News

Posted September 7th, 2015 in children, documents, hospitals, inquests, inquiries, murder, news, pilot schemes, quality assurance by sally

‘Baby deaths at an NHS hospital could have been prevented if reforms recommended after the Harold Shipman case were made, it has been claimed.’

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BBC News, 5th September 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Colin Pitchfork parole hearing: How to assess a killer’s risk – BBC News

Posted September 7th, 2015 in DNA, mental health, murder, news, recidivists, rehabilitation, sexual offences, statistics by sally

‘Thirty years ago, brutal child killer Colin Pitchfork became the first person to be convicted using DNA profiling.’

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BBC News, 6th September 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Man jailed for murder of 18-year-old at So Solid Crew gig in 2001 – The Guardian

Posted September 7th, 2015 in murder, news, sentencing by sally

‘A man has been sentenced to at least 10 years in prison after he admitted the murder of a student following a So Solid Crew gig 14 years ago.’

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The Guardian, 4th September 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

July 2015 immigration update podcast – Free Movement

Posted September 7th, 2015 in appeals, children, delay, deportation, families, human rights, immigration, news, privacy, refugees, rehabilitation by sally

‘Welcome to the July 2015 edition of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. In this episode I start by talk about Sir Nicholas Winton then move on to discuss the huge delays in appeal hearing listings and some other tribunal news, cover some immigration rule issues including a brief overview of Statement of Changes HC 297 and then move onto a number of cases, including a review of Article 8 case law and some of the more interesting recent offerings from the tribunal. The material is drawn mainly from the July blog posts on Free Movement.’

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Free Movement, 7th September 2015

Source: www.freemovement.org.uk

Striking workers may have to identify themselves to police, carry a letter of authorisation and wear an armband under proposed reforms – The Independent

Posted September 7th, 2015 in bills, consultations, human rights, identification, industrial action, news, trade unions by sally

‘Every worker wanting to join a strike picket could be forced to identify themselves to police, carry a letter of authorisation and wear an armband, under proposed reforms to trade union laws that could be in breach of international agreements, human rights groups have warned.’

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The Independent, 6th September 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Charities back tough fundraising rules to protect vulnerable donors – The Guardian

Posted September 7th, 2015 in budgets, charities, complaints, elderly, fines, harassment, news, select committees, statistics by sally

‘Britain’s top charities have pledged support for proposed tough new rules aimed at preventing the use of aggressive fundraising techniques to target vulnerable and elderly donors after a series of scandals over the summer.’

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The Guardian, 6th September 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Where do the boundaries lie? MN (Adult) [2015] EWCA Civ 411 – No. 5 Chambers

Posted September 7th, 2015 in Administrative Court, appeals, case management, Court of Protection, declaratory judgment, disabled persons, human rights, jurisdiction, news, statutory duty by sally

‘Sir James Munby, President of the Court of Protection, provided clear guidance as to the nature of the Court of Protection’s jurisdiction, and the approach that should be adopted when a care provider is unwilling to provide, or to fund, the care sought.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 2nd September 2015

Source: www.no5.com

Magistrates’ warning as court delays create ‘postcode lottery’ – BBC News

Posted September 7th, 2015 in budgets, courts, delay, magistrates, news, statistics, victims, witnesses by sally

‘Magistrates have warned the criminal justice system is “on the cusp” of breaking down amid growing delays, court closures and funding cuts.’

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BBC News, 7th September 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

DPP Alison Saunders says: ‘I’m still the right person for the job’ – The Guardian

Posted September 7th, 2015 in child abuse, Crown Prosecution Service, doctors, elderly, female genital mutilation, fitness to plead, news, sexual offences by sally

‘The country’s most senior prosecutor said it was “difficult” hearing calls for her to quit over her handling of the Lord Janner case, but insisted: “I’m still the right person for the job.”’

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The Guardian, 6th September 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Patrick O’Brien: Judges and Select Committees: A Developing Accountability Culture – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted September 7th, 2015 in evidence, inquiries, judges, news, select committees, statistics by sally

‘When is a judge not a judge? Lady Justice Hallett carried out a public inquiry into the ‘On the runs’ scheme in 2014. In its report on the same issue in March 2015 the Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee commented rather sternly that

“we chose not to summon Lady Justice Hallett to attend, but we consider it to be a regrettable discourtesy to Parliament that she declined our initial invitation to give evidence to the Committee, especially as she had not acted in a judicial capacity when carrying out her review. [at para. 11]”‘

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 7th September 2015

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Hate crimes against Muslims in London ‘up by 70%’, police figures show – The Independent

Posted September 7th, 2015 in hate crime, Islam, London, news, racism, religious discrimination, statistics, women by sally

‘London’s Muslims have faced a 70% increase in Islamophobic attacks over the past year, according to figures from the Metropolitan Police.’

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The Independent, 7th September 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Over 40% of medical negligence cases take two or more years to settle, research reveals – Litigation Futures

Posted September 7th, 2015 in compensation, consultations, costs, damages, delay, fees, insurance, medical treatment, negligence, news, statistics by sally

‘It takes two years or more for 42% of medical negligence cases to settle or for damages to be awarded by the courts, research by the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) has revealed.’

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Litigation Futures, 4th September 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

London HIV clinic that revealed patients’ names faces legal action – The Guardian

Posted September 7th, 2015 in compensation, data protection, electronic mail, HIV, human rights, medical records, news, privacy by sally

‘The lawyer investigating claims on behalf of a number of patients whose identities were mistakenly revealed last week by an HIV clinic has said that it could face hundreds of legal claims.’

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The Guardian, 5th September 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk