English court dismisses ‘international law’ issues in Ukrainian Eurobond case – OUT-LAW.com

‘Questions of international law raised by Ukraine in a dispute with Russia involving overdue Eurobond repayments cannot be dealt with by the English courts, the High Court has ruled.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 4th April 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

BREXIT: UK government seeking time limited power to ‘correct’ post-Brexit statute book – OUT-LAW.com

Posted April 3rd, 2017 in bills, brexit, courts, EC law, legislation, news, parliamentary papers, repeals, time limits by sally

‘The UK government is seeking a time-limited power to “correct the statute book” by way of secondary legislation ahead of the country’s departure from the European Union.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 30th March 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

Bar Council issues warning over plan for extended court sittings – Litigation Futures

Posted March 27th, 2017 in barristers, children, courts, diversity, news, pilot schemes, women by tracey

‘Forthcoming plans for courts to start earlier and finish later will disadvantage barristers with children and do not take account of the cab-rank rule, the Bar Council has warned.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 24th March 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Prisons and Courts Bill to improve access to justice and better protect the vulnerable – Ministry of Justice

Posted March 21st, 2017 in bills, civil justice, courts, criminal justice, internet, news, prisons by tracey

‘Plans to revolutionise the courts to make them more straightforward and efficient, and deliver swifter justice for victims.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 20th March 2017

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Quality must trump convenience in online justice reforms – The Bar Council

Posted March 21st, 2017 in barristers, bills, civil justice, courts, criminal justice, internet, press releases by tracey

‘As the Government presses ahead with plans for online and virtual hearings, the Bar Council has warned that the quality and the reputation of our system of justice must not suffer.’

Full press release

The Bar Council, 20th March 2017

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

News focus: ‘Virtual justice’ and the IT panacea – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Just over six years ago, a taxpayer funded independent study of a pilot “virtual court” concluded that: “A rollout based on the pilot’s performance and parameters is likely to cost more money than it saves. A break-even scenario may be achieved, but this is still likely to be a challenge.” ‘

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 20th March 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Justice reformer condemns digital criminal courts plan – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Government plans for virtual court hearings and online guilty pleas for criminal offences are poorly costed, based on weak evidence and have not been subjected to proper consultation, a national justice charity says today.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 15th March 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Business and Property Courts – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted March 14th, 2017 in civil justice, courts, dispute resolution, press releases by tracey

‘From June of this year, the specialist civil courts are to be known as the “Business and Property Courts of England and Wales”.’

Full press release

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 13th March 2017

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Speech by the Lord Chief Justice: Grand Court of the Cayman Islands guest lecture 2017 – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted March 8th, 2017 in arbitration, courts, dispute resolution, international law, speeches by tracey

‘Speech by the Lord Chief Justice: Grand Court of the Cayman Islands guest lecture 2017.’

Full speech

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 7th march 2017

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

New costs cap regime in force for environmental cases – OUT-LAW.com

‘Courts in England and Wales have new powers to change the maximum cost liabilities that those challenging environmental decisions of public bodies’ through judicial review could be exposed to under new rules that are now in force.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 3rd March 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

MoJ confirms hike in probate fees – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 28th, 2017 in consultations, courts, fees, news, probate by tracey

‘The Ministry of Justice has confirmed a massive overhaul in probate charges, which will see some estates charged up to £20,000. From May this year, subject to parliamentary approval, the MoJ is planning to introduce a sliding scale of charges for probate fees to replace the current flat fees.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 27th February 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

David Davies jailed for live-streaming Cardiff court case – BBC News

Posted February 23rd, 2017 in contempt of court, courts, internet, news, telecommunications by sally

‘A man who filmed and live-streamed a court case in Cardiff has been jailed for 28 days.’

Full story

BBC News, 22nd February 2017

Source: www.bb.co.uk

Courts bill: ‘viewing booths’ to preserve open justice – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted February 23rd, 2017 in bills, consultations, courts, criminal justice, criminal procedure, internet, news by sally

‘Interested members of the public will be able to view ‘virtual’ court hearings from purpose-built booths in court buildings, the Prisons and Courts Bill states. The proposal is an attempt to counter threats to open justice by a courts system increasingly operating digitally. Court listings and case results will also be published online, a factsheet published by the Ministry of Justice says.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 23rd February 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government presses ahead with whiplash reforms – but gives ground on other PI claims – Legal Futures

‘The small claims limit will rise to £5,000 for whiplash cases, but only £2,000 for other personal injury (PI) claims, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) announced today in a bid “to crack down on the compensation culture epidemic” – less than seven weeks after its consultation closed.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 23rd February 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Prisons shakeup to give governors more control over rehabilitation – The Guardian

Posted February 23rd, 2017 in bills, courts, internet, news, prisons, rehabilitation by sally

‘Prison governors are to be held to account for getting offenders off drugs, into jobs and learning English and maths under new powers to be detailed in the justice secretary’s flagship legislation to tackle the prison crisis.’

Full story

The Guardian, 23rd February 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Online court “visible by September and no big bang”, top judge reveals – Legal Futures

‘The first signs of an online court (OC) will be visible in tribunals by September, online processes will be extended to a wide range of civil court proceedings by May 2020, and the reforms will be incremental, according to one of the judges in charge.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 22nd February 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Court of Appeal issues new-style short judgment – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 20th, 2017 in appeals, courts, documents, judgments, news by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has issued a new-style ‘short judgment’ in an immigration case, avoiding the lengthy documents normally issued by courts.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 17th February 2017

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Officials “exceeded powers” when barring demonstrators from entering court – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 17th, 2017 in courts, demonstrations, HM Courts Service, news, public order by sally

‘Court officials exceeded their powers when they barred supporters of the founder of the Fathers 4 Justice pressure group from entering Aldershot Magistrates Court.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 17th February 2017

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Fathers4 (Access2) Justice: Administrative Court ruling on the public’s right to attend court hearings and the Court Service’s limited powers of control – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 9th, 2017 in civil justice, courts, families, news, public order, trials by sally

‘On 20 February 2015 Matthew O’Connor, the Claimant in this judicial review and the founder of the campaign group Fathers4Justice, was due to go on trial at Aldershot Magistrates’ Court for a public order offence. He arrived at court with around ten of his supporters, but when they tried to gain entry to the court building they were prevented from doing so by HMCTS staff. Only the Claimant and his Mackenzie Friend were allowed to enter.’

Full story

UK Human Rights Blog, 8th February 2017

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

New guidance on imposing community and custodial sentences – Sentencing Council

Posted February 8th, 2017 in community service, courts, press releases, sentencing by tracey

‘The Sentencing Council guideline on imposition is effective in all courts from today, 1 February 2017. This clarifies that suspended sentences should be imposed only when custody is actually intended and not as a more severe form of community order.’

Full guidance

Sentencing Council, 1st February 2017

Source: http://sentencingcouncil.judiciary.gov.uk