Breaking: Supreme Court backs solicitors over right to recover costs – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 16th, 2022 in airlines, appeals, compensation, costs, delay, law firms, news, solicitors, Supreme Court by tracey

‘Solicitors handling flight compensation claims had a right to their costs despite the airline trying to deal directly with their clients, the Supreme Court has ruled.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 16th March 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Claimants secure key High Court ruling on timeframe for reviewing Education, Health and Care plans – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 10th, 2022 in delay, local government, news, notification, special educational needs by tracey

‘The High Court has ruled in favour of three claimants in a dispute over whether there is a fixed timeframe in respect of steps in the amendment of an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan where a local authority accepts amendment is necessary, during the compulsory statutory annual review.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 9th March 2022

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

MPs slate Ministry of Justice over Crown Court backlog and judges – Legal Futures

‘MPs today slated the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) “meagre ambition” to reduce the Crown Court case backlog and warned that efforts to recruit judges will ignore the need to improve diversity.’

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Legal Futures, 9th March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Covid: Half of Nightingale Courts to close within weeks – BBC News

Posted March 3rd, 2022 in coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, delay, news by sally

‘Almost half of the temporary Nightingale Courts set up at the start of the pandemic are to close, the Ministry of Justice has announced.’

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BBC News, 3rd March 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Disabled people ‘given 12 days’ to respond to human rights consultation – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Disability and human rights groups have called for a consultation on controversial human rights reforms to be extended, telling the lord chancellor that disabled people have been given less than a fortnight to respond. The Ministry of Justice has apologised for the long wait for a ‘fully accessible’ document.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 2nd March 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Rape victims ‘systematically failed’ in England and Wales, report finds – The Guardian

‘Rape survivors who report their attackers are being systematically failed by the criminal justice system resulting in an average wait of nearly two years before a trial begins, a damning official report has found.’

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The Guardian, 25th February 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Defendants waiting over six months for trial up 15% in England and Wales – The Guardian

Posted February 24th, 2022 in criminal justice, delay, news, remand, statistics, trials by sally

‘The government has been urged to tackle “cruel and unjust” waits for defendants in England and Wales to stand trial after figures showed a 15% yearly rise in the number of people being held for longer than the custody time limit of six months.’

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The Guardian, 23rd February 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

A question of standing – UK Human Rights Blog

‘This was an interesting ruling on the matter of standing, something that has fallen rather by the wayside since it formed the subject of much satellite litigation in the 1990s. In essence, the Court ruled that the GLP had no standing to bring this claim. Despite its articles of association, whose purposes include the provision of sound administration and equality, democracy, high standards in public administration, access to justice, preservation of the environment or “any other philanthropic or benevolent purpose ancillary”.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 18th February 2022

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Electronic signatures “largest area of change” for property industry – Legal Futures

Posted February 18th, 2022 in conveyancing, delay, electronic filing, housing, news by sally

‘The use of electronic signatures has been the “single largest area of change” in technology for the property industry over the past 18 months, a survey has found.’

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Legal Futures, 16th February 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Greater Sentencing Power for Magistrates – A Solution to the Backlog? – Pump Court Chambers

‘It was confirmed on 18 January 2020 that Magistrates are to have their sentencing powers increased in the coming months, granting them broader power than ever before. The most significant change is that Magistrates’ will be able to impose a sentence of up to 12 months in custody which is double the previous maximum sentence. Effectively, this means that Magistrates will be able to accept jurisdiction for more serious either way offences, such as for Fraud, Theft or Assault, which would have originally been sent to the Crown Court without giving the Defendant the option to elect to remain in the Magistrates’.’

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Pump Court Chambers, 7th February 2022

Source: www.pumpcourtchambers.com

Identifying and Proving Breach of Duty Relating to Ambulance Response Time – Ropewalk Clinical Negligence Blog

Posted February 7th, 2022 in causation, chambers articles, delay, duty of care, hospitals, news by tracey

‘When you call for an ambulance, you generally want it now. To you, it’s an emergency and an emergency requires an immediate response.

The reality of a modern NHS generally and Ambulance Trusts specifically mean that such an expectation is rarely met. Thankfully, in the vast majority of cases the timing of the arrival of the paramedic is of no real consequence. More important to outcome can be what happens once the paramedic alights from the ambulance and attends to the patient, how long it takes from that point until admission to A&E or the unit to which the patient is taken for necessary specialist care. These latter issues can all have a bearing on the timing, the quality and the nature of care received by the patient.’

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Ropewalk Clinical Negligence Blog , 3rd February 2022

Source: www.ropewalk.co.uk

Flight compensation overhaul for domestic airline passengers – The Independent

‘The days of £220 payouts to delayed passengers who have paid only £30 for a domestic flight may soon be over. The Department for Transport (DfT) is consulting on proposals to overhaul the European air passengers’ rights rules for flights within the UK.’

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The Independent, 31st January 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Sri Lankan man left in immigration limbo for decades can stay in UK – The Guardian

Posted January 31st, 2022 in appeals, delay, deportation, government departments, immigration, news by tracey

‘A man who came to the UK to train as an accountant almost 40 years ago and was left homeless after a catalogue of Home Office delays has finally been granted leave to remain months before his 70th birthday.’

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The Guardian, 30th January 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Campaign seeks to recruit 4,000 lay magistrates in England and Wales – The Guardian

Posted January 25th, 2022 in coronavirus, criminal justice, delay, magistrates, minorities, news, recruitment by sally

‘Adults in England and Wales are being encouraged to apply online via “a revised, streamlined recruitment process” to become a lay magistrate, in an effort to tackle a backlog of criminal cases caused by the pandemic.’

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The Guardian, 24th January 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Criminal prosecution delays hit record 708 days – BBC News

‘Delays in prosecuting suspected criminals have hit a record 708 days for the average time it takes to go from offence to completion of a case.’

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BBC News, 20th January 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

End-to-end encryption protects children, says UK information watchdog – The Guardian

Posted January 21st, 2022 in children, data protection, delay, internet, news, ombudsmen, privacy, telecommunications by sally

‘The UK data watchdog has intervened in the debate over end-to-end encryption, warning that delaying its introduction puts “everyone at risk” including children.’

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The Guardian, 21st January 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

MoJ threatened with fine over huge data request backlog – Legal Futures

Posted January 20th, 2022 in data protection, delay, fines, Ministry of Justice, news by tracey

‘The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has threatened to fine the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) if it fails to deal with thousands of outstanding subject access requests (SARs).’

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Legal Futures, 19th January 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Raab defends plan to double magistrates’ sentencing powers – The Independent

Posted January 18th, 2022 in courts, delay, imprisonment, magistrates, news, sentencing by tracey

‘The Justice Secretary has dismissed criticism of plans to double magistrates’ sentencing powers in a bid to tackle the backlog of cases waiting to be dealt with by criminal courts.’

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The Independent, 18th January 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Magistrates to get power to jail offenders for a year – BBC News

Posted January 18th, 2022 in courts, delay, imprisonment, magistrates, news, sentencing by tracey

‘Magistrates in England and Wales will have greater sentencing powers to enable them to take on more cases, under plans to clear court backlogs.’

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BBC news, 18th January 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Payout offers over Post Office IT scandal sent to less than third of applicants – The Guardian

‘Less than a third of Post Office workers who applied for compensation under a government scheme in the wake of the Horizon IT scandal have received a payout offer, almost 17 months after it closed, MPs have been told.’

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The Guardian, 11th January 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com