‘Breaches of children’s legal right to have special educational needs support have reached unprecedented levels, says an official complaints body. England’s local government ombudsman said not only had there been a spike in complaints, but nine out of 10 of them were upheld in 2018-19.’
BBC News, 4th October 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The average time it takes to conclude care proceedings remains significantly high, according to latest quarterly statistics published today. Figures released by the Ministry of Justice, covering April to June, show that the average time for a care and supervision case to reach first disposal remained the same as it did for January to March – 33 weeks. This is the longest average time since the last quarter of 2013.’
Law Society's Gazette, 26th September 2019
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘Judges have been warned by the Court of Appeal not to adjourn final decisions in family cases simply to “press the pause button”.’
Law Society's Gazette, 23rd September 2019
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘The Home Office showed “staggering” disregard for innocent people during the visa scandal that saw more than 50,000 overseas students accused of cheating and cost taxpayers nearly £20m, MPs have said. The Public Accounts Committee found that hundreds of people were still protesting their innocence at “great personal cost” more than five years after being accused of fraudulently passing English language tests due to the Home Office’s delay in responding to indications that some may have been wrongly caught up in the probe.’
The Independent, 18th September 2019
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Nearly 80 more courts in England and Wales are due to close under a justice transformation scheme that is falling behind schedule, a watchdog’s report has revealed.’
The Guardian, 13th September 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A university student was left in severe pain for six days and ended up having his right testicle removed after medics failed to act quickly enough, a report has said. An investigation by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch found errors in the care given to the 20-year-old, known only as Ryan, including by GPs and hospital medics.’
The Guardian, 12th September 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘The High Court has set aside an order made by a recorder striking out a claim because the claimants were two hours late for a trial in Cornwall.’
Litigation Futures, 5th September 2019
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
‘A county council has agreed to pay £24,000 after a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigation into a case where a mother of three, who also took on the care of her two grandchildren, had to sleep on a mattress in her living room for more than 10 years because the local authority did not deliver the support it had agreed to.’
Local Government Lawyer, 29th August 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
‘UK immigration reform is imminent. The Government’s 2018 White Paper proposals for a new immigration system appear to be here to stay and a no deal Brexit looks more likely than ever.’
Garden Court Chambers, 22nd August 2019
Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk
‘Changes to the use of police bail were designed to prevent suspects remaining on pre-charge bail for months on end pending investigation and decision about charge. Criticism of the use of Release Under Investigation (‘RUI’) has mostly focussed on the high numbers of suspects it is used for, the sharp fall in charging decisions and the fewer cases reaching court.’
23 Essex Street, 20th August 2019
Source: www.23es.com
‘Nearly half of all crown courts across England and Wales were left empty on Monday, a survey suggests, even though lawyers say they have never known the backlog of criminal cases to be so bad.’
The Guardian, 19th August 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Four leading legal charities have urged the government to delay next year’s whiplash reforms over fears that litigants in person and the organisations supporting them will be overwhelmed by the new regime.’
Legal Futures, 13th August 2019
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
‘The Crown Prosecution Service deals with defence correspondence quickly, according to inspectors in a report published today which, they say, “somewhat undermines” solicitors’ claims that letters go unanswered.’
Crown Prosecution Service, 13th August 2019
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘The legal system in England and Wales is “beyond the point of collapse”, according to a Crown Court judge. Judge Simon Carr gave three men suspended sentences instead of sending them to jail because of how long it had taken for the case to get to court.’
BBC News, 31st July 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘The Court of Appeal has overturned a decision to throw out a widow’s delayed application to claim from her late husband’s estate.’
Law Society's Gazette, 1st August 2019
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘Employment tribunal claims in the UK are taking an average of eight months to be heard, as the system struggles under government funding cuts and a surge in complaints.’
The Guardian, 29th July 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Losing defendants in a civil claim have failed to overturn a judge’s ruling – despite it taking him 18 months from the end of proceedings to hand it down.’
Law Society's Gazette, 26th July 2019
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
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