Black History Month: First black magistrate Eric Irons honoured – BBC News
‘A plaque is to be unveiled to commemorate the life of Britain’s first black magistrate.’
BBC News, 1st October 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Category: magistrates
Banned leader – Nearly Legal
’43 Dudmaston, Telford, Shropshire TF3 2DF: BIR/00GF/HSH/2019/0001. This is the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) decision on applications by the Borough of Telford and Wrekin for a banning order against David Beattie under section 15(1) Housing and Planning Act 2016 and for a rent repayment order under section 41 H&PA 2016.’
Nearly Legal, 17th September 2019
Source: nearlylegal.co.uk
Same-sex and single-parent adoption and religious discrimination: Page – Law & Religion UK
‘On 19 June 2019, the Employment Appeal Tribunal handed down two separate judgments relating to the same appellant, Mr Richard Page: Page v Lord Chancellor & Anor [2019] UKEAT 0304 18 1906 and Page v NHS Trust Development Authority [2019] UKEAT 0183 18 1906. The appeals related to Mr Page’s religious beliefs in relation to his position as a magistrate and as a Non-Executive Director of an NHS Trust, respectively; and the EAT dismissed the appeals in both cases. From the legal perspective, the two cases were not “linked” as such because there was no cross-referencing between them. However, the action taken by the Lord Chancellor’s Department resulted, indirectly, in action being instituted by the NHS, and the following note relates to both judgments.’
Law & Religion UK, 24th June 2019
Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com
Magistrates call for end to prison sentences under eight weeks – The Guardian
‘Prison sentences of less than eight weeks should no longer be imposed by the courts, the Magistrates’ Association is urging, in defiance of more radical government proposals.’
The Guardian, 4th June 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
Employment Appeal Tribunal hears appeal from Christian ex-magistrate dismissed over adoption comments – Local Government Lawyer
‘The Employment Appeal Tribunal is this week hearing an appeal from a former magistrate who was removed from the judiciary after he expressed the view that it was in a child’s best interests to be raised by a mother and a father.’
Local Government Lawyer, 15th May 2019
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Half of magistrates courts in England and Wales closed since 2010 – The Guardian
‘More than half of all magistrates courts in England and Wales have closed since 2010, forcing defendants, witnesses, police, lawyers and justices of the peace to travel sometimes more than 50 miles to access local justice.’
The Guardian, 27th January 2019
Source: www.theguardian.com
Case of ex-magistrate challenging top judges moves forward – Family Law
‘Former magistrate Richard Page has been granted permission to take his case against the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice to the Employment Appeal Tribunal. Page is accusing the most senior judges in England and Wales of victimising him for his view that children do best when raised by both a mother and a father.’
Family Law, 5th December 2018
Source: www.familylaw.co.uk
Short Cuts – London Review of Books
‘If you want to appeal against a guilty verdict given by a crown court jury you first have to seek permission from the Court of Appeal. For permission to be granted, a judge has to be satisfied there is an ‘arguable case’ that the conviction was ‘unsafe’. If so, the appeal is heard in full by a panel of three judges. The latest figures show that in 2016-17 the court received 1305 applications for permission to appeal, and dealt with 850, refusing permission to 695 (82 per cent). It heard 215 appeals, and allowed 78 – 36 per cent of those heard.’
London Review of Books, 11th October 2018
Source: www.lrb.co.uk
Cab drivers to challenge decision to grant Uber 15-month licence in London – Local Government Lawyer
‘London cab drivers have applied for judicial review against Westminster Magistrates’ Court in a dispute over whether a judge’s decision to grant a licence to the taxi app firm Uber was tainted with bias.’
Local Government Lawyer, 27th September 2018
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Authority urges Justice Minister to reverse Magistrate’s Court re-organisation – Local Government Lawyer
‘A second council has objected to the Ministry of Justice’s changes to court locations in the West Midlands.’
Local Government Lawyer, 30th August 2018
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Defendants ‘gaming system’ to get domestic violence cases dropped – The Guardian
‘Defendants are “gaming the system” in specialist domestic violence courts by intimidating partners into not appearing in the expectation that magistrates will drop charges, a critical report has said.’
The Guardian, 5th August 2018
Source: www.theguardian.com
Public Order Offences Consultation – Sentencing Council
‘The Sentencing Council has produced this consultation paper in order to seek views from as many people as possible interested in the sentencing of Public Order Act offences.’
Sentencing Council, 9th May 2018
Source: consult.justice.gov.uk
Allocation: Assessment of guideline – Sentencing Council
‘The Sentencing Council has published its assessment of the impact of its Allocation Guideline, under its statutory duty to monitor the operation and effect of its sentencing guidelines and to draw conclusions from this information.’
Sentencing Council, 6th March 2018
Source: www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk
New judgment: R (Gibson) v Secretary of State for Justice [2018] UKSC 2 – UKSC Blog
‘The issue in the appeal is whether interest is included in the starting point under the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980, s 79(2) for the giving of proportionate credit for part payment of a confiscation order.’
UKSC Blog, 24th January 2018
Source: ukscblog.com
Defendant nationality declarations ‘offensive’ – Law Society’s Gazette
‘Making defendants in criminal proceedings declare their nationality is “offensive and objectionable”, the former president of the London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association (LCCSA) has said.’
Law Society's Gazette, 16th November 2017
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Defendants must reveal nationality in magistrates courts – The Guardian
‘Defendants will have to disclose their nationality at their first appearance before magistrates in England and Wales from next week under powers that human rights groups say will undermine the right to a fair trial.’
The Guardian, 9th November 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
Song labelling gay couple ‘fairy’ and ‘fag’ is not homophobic, court rules – The Independent
‘A song labelling gay men as “fairies” and “fags” is not homophobic, a court has ruled.’
The Independent, 12th September 2017
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Increase in female magistrates could mask decline in diversity – The Guardian
‘A majority of magistrates are women but the sustained increase in their numbers may be concealing a reduction of social diversity on the bench, the national chair of the Magistrates Association has suggested.’
The Guardian, 8th August 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
Call for rethink on judges expressing opinions – Law Society’s Gazette
‘A former Court of Appeal judge has stoked the debate about judicial independence by suggesting that rules preventing judges from speaking about their role fuel media and public distrust of the criminal justice system.’
Law Society's Gazette, 28th July 2017
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Christian magistrate in gay adoption row set for legal battle with 0NHS bosses – Daily Telegraph
‘A Christian magistrate who lost his job and then his role as an NHS director for speaking out against adoption by same-sex parents will this week sue NHS bosses claiming political correctness can prevent Christians holding public posts.’
Daily Telegraph, 30th July 2017
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
