Children Public Law Update (September 2015) – Family Law Week

Posted September 10th, 2015 in adoption, care orders, children, costs, documents, families, legal aid, news by sally

‘John Tughan QC of 4 Paper Buildings reviews recent judgments of significance to child care lawyers.’

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Family Law Week, 2nd September 2015

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Immigration rule ‘has split 15,000 children from a parent’ – BBC News

Posted September 9th, 2015 in children, families, immigration, news, remuneration by sally

‘At least 15,000 children are separated from a parent because of income rules affecting some migrants, says the Children’s Commissioner for England.’

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BBC News, 9th September 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

July 2015 immigration update podcast – Free Movement

‘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

The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth: Opening the Floodgates in Inheritance Act Actions? – Park Square Barristers

Posted September 4th, 2015 in charities, families, news, wills by sally

‘The case of Ilott v Mitson has received quite a lot of publicity last week. In brief, a woman who had been estranged from her late mother for 26 years since she was 17 was given an award from her mother’s estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, despite the fact that her late mother had made it perfectly clear that she did not wish her daughter to get a penny. It sparked some controversy in the press and other media.’
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Park Square Barristers, 4th August 2015

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

ISIL child brides: a big care problem for the Family Court? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted August 28th, 2015 in children, families, guardianship, news, terrorism by sally

‘When a judge waxes lyrical about a child, garlanded with starred GCSEs, their intelligence, their medical school ambitions, you wonder what is coming. It’s the judicial equivalent of those blurred reproductions in the press of murder victims’ graduate portraits.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 27th August 2015

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Inspection of family visit visa system: serious problems remain – Free Movement

Posted August 25th, 2015 in appeals, families, immigration, news, reports, visas by sally

‘The family visit visa system underwent an inspection by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration last month. The posts inspected were Abu Dhabi, Accra, Amman, Dhaka, Kingston, Manila, Nairobi, New Delhi, Croydon and Sheffield. The Inspector confidently declares that there is “no evidence that the removal of the full right of appeal from Family Visitor visa applicants had led to a higher refusal rate or to an overall reduction in decision quality.”’

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Free Movement, 24th August 2015

Source: www.freemovement.org.uk

Girl, 16, who tried to travel to Syria must be removed from her home – The Guardian

Posted August 24th, 2015 in children, families, family courts, Islam, news, passports, terrorism, wardship by sally

‘A schoolgirl “fully radicalised” by Islamic State propaganda must be removed from her family home, the high court has ruled.’

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The Guardian, 21st August 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Merton London Borough Council v B (Central Authority of the Republic of Latvia, intervening) – WLR Daily

Merton London Borough Council v B (Central Authority of the Republic of Latvia, intervening) [2015] EWCA Civ 888; [2015] WLR (D) 365

‘Notwithstanding that concerns might be expressed in many parts of Europe about the law and practice in England and Wales in relation to non-consensual adoption where care proceedings involving foreign nationals were in contemplation, domestic law was not incompatible with the United Kingdom’s international obligations or, specifically, its obligations under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.’

WLR Daily, 6th August 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Judge dismisses LIP’s bid to get solicitor jailed – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 19th, 2015 in children, families, litigants in person, news, social services, solicitors by sally

‘A litigant in person has failed with an attempt to have a solicitor acting for his ex-partner sent to prison.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 18th August 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

When keeping a child from their mother is in their best interests – The Guardian

Posted August 14th, 2015 in adoption, appeals, care orders, child neglect, families, foreign jurisdictions, news by sally

‘Taking a child away from a parent is one of the most profound and far-reaching powers a court can exercise. Can it ever be in the best interests of a child to lose not only a parent but also a nationality and family heritage? These questions are prompted by the decision of the court of appeal last week that a Latvian girl, known only as CB, should be brought up by adoptive parents in the UK.’

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The Guardian, 14th August 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Domestic violence victim wins legal action over borough residency requirement – Local Government Lawyer

Posted August 14th, 2015 in domestic violence, families, housing, judicial review, local government, news by sally

‘A London borough’s revised housing allocations policy was unlawful, a High Court judge has ruled following a judicial review challenge by a victim of domestic violence to the application of a five-year residency requirement.’

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Local Govenment Lawyer, 10th August 2015

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Latvian child must be adopted in the UK, judge rules – BBC News

Posted August 14th, 2015 in adoption, appeals, care orders, child neglect, families, foreign jurisdictions, news by sally

‘A Latvian girl should be adopted in the UK, despite objections from her mother and the Latvian authorities, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’

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BBC News, 13th August 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

All Change for London Family Lawyers: An International Perspective – Family Law Week

‘Stuart Clark, Associate Solicitor at The International Family Law Group LLP, explains the latest changes to the administration of divorce and financial remedies cases in London.’

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Family Law Week, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Lord Janner child sex abuse charges: Making peer attend court would breach his human rights, lawyers argue – The Independent

‘Lord Janner should not appear in court to answer charges of child sex abuse because it would be a breach of his human rights, his lawyer has argued.’

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The Independent, 11th August 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Cherry Groce children to sue Met police for damage shooting caused them – The Guardian

Posted August 7th, 2015 in compensation, families, firearms, news, police, psychiatric damage, violent disorder by sally

‘Five children of Cherry Groce, whose shooting by a police officer led to the 1985 Brixton riots, are to sue the Metropolitan police for the damage caused to them after she was paralysed in the bungled raid almost 30 years ago.’

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The Guardian, 6th August 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Judges considering fate of children as young as two amid radicalisation fears – The Guardian

Posted August 6th, 2015 in children, electronic monitoring, families, news, passports, terrorism by sally

‘More than 30 children – some “almost babes-in-arms” – have been made the subject of family court orders over radicalisation fears, police have revealed.’

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The Guardian, 5th August 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Mothers Confined – Part 2: Time for action – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

It is plain that across the board there is a desire for change in relation to women and criminal justice. Many examples exists of wonderful, creative, worthwhile and even evidently successful projects in relation to diverting women away from custody and improving conditions for women who lose their liberty. Research related to women and criminal justice is ongoing from a range of respected and vociferous advocates such as Women’s Breakout, The Prison Reform Trust, Women in Prison and Halsbury’s Law Exchange to name but a few – many working together to effect change. There is no doubt that evidence and recommendations from each of these respected bodies – and more alongside them – will call for real change, offering genuine educated and reasonable arguments for doing so. However arguably (at least for now), the real “power” lies with the Courts, ergo it is the Courts who need to be at the vanguard of change.

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 3rd August 2015

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Bedroom Tax and separated families – UT again – Nearly Legal

‘The Upper Tribunal has another go at the separated families issue in CH 0062 2015-00 and this time, unsurprisingly, shuts down completely the FTT dissenting position in a Middlesborough FTT decision, while upholding and amplifying MR v North Tyneside.’

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Nearly Legal, 1st August 2015

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Mothers Confined – Part 1: Over the threshold? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted July 31st, 2015 in children, families, human rights, news, prisons, sentencing, statistics, women by sally

‘Research surrounding the imprisonment of women, indeed even the imprisonment of mothers, is not new. A plethora of researchers and scholars have explored the issues surrounding women and criminal justice with passion and tenacity, arguably all of whom have contributed to the evidence-laden pathway culminating in the inspirational and influential 2006 Corston Report.’

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 31st July 2015

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Article 2 inquests – are they becoming more common for grieving families? – Park Square Barristers

Posted July 28th, 2015 in families, human rights, inquests, legal aid, news by sally

‘It seems that every time I watch the news or read a newspaper there is some report following an Article 2 style inquest. If Article 2 style inquests are becoming more common, is the ambit of the inquisition broadening generally? Laura Addy questions whether this prospect is why the government attempted to limit access to legal aid for families involved in inquests and may be influencing the decision to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998. As a member of Park Square Barrister’s Regulatory and Public Law Team, Laura is often instructed to attend and represent families at inquests. She considers the importance of coroner’s inquest and the role of the family of the deceased.’

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Park Square Barristers, 15th July 2015

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk