Court of Appeal judges to rule on 1948 Malaya ‘massacre’ – BBC News

Posted March 19th, 2014 in appeals, armed forces, colonies, human rights, inquiries, news, public interest by sally

‘Court of Appeal judges are set to rule on a long-running battle for an inquiry into the 1948 killings of 24 villagers in Malaya by British troops.’

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BBC News, 19th March 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Not Entirely Secret Diary of Mr Lansley – Panopticon

‘What considerations are relevant when deciding whether a Ministerial diary should be disclosed under FOIA? The decision of the First-tier Tribunal in Department of Health v Information Commissioner EA/2013/0087 is, perhaps surprisingly, the first Tribunal decision to address this issue. The judgment engages with a number of difficult issues: the Tribunal’s approach to Government evidence, the value of cross-examination in Tribunal hearings, aggregation of public interests under FOIA, and Parliamentary privilege. Hence it is of general importance, going beyond the intrinsic interest of its specific subject matter.’

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Panopticon, 18th March 2014

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Prince Charles letters: attorney general acted unlawfully, say senior judges – The Guardian

‘Three senior judges have ruled that Dominic Grieve, the attorney general, acted unlawfully when he blocked the publication of letters written by Prince Charles to government ministers. The ruling, led by Lord Dyson, the head of the civil judiciary in England and Wales, paves the way for the release of the letters which reveal how the prince lobbied government ministers to change official policies.’

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The Guardian, 12th March 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Napoli v Ministero della Giustizia – Dipartimento dell’Amministrazione penitenziaria – WLR Daily

Napoli v Ministero della Giustizia – Dipartimento dell’Amministrazione penitenziaria: (Case C-595/12);   [2014] WLR (D)  115

‘Article 15 of Parliament and Council Directive 2006/54/EC precluded national legislation which, on grounds relating to the public interest, excluded a woman on maternity leave from a vocational training course which formed an integral part of her employment and which was compulsory in order to be able to be appointed definitively to a post as a civil servant and in order to benefit from an improvement in her employment conditions, while guaranteeing her the right to participate in the next training course, the date of which was nevertheless uncertain. Article 14(2), which provided that a difference of treatment based on a characteristic relating to sex did not constitute discrimination in relation to particular occupational activities, did not apply since the national legislation did not limit a specified activity solely to male workers but only delayed access to that activity for female workers who had been unable to receive full vocational training as a result of compulsory maternity leave. Both articles 14(1)(c) and 15 were sufficiently clear, precise and unconditional to have direct effect.’

WLR Daily, 6th March 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Supreme Court brings private nuisance into the 21st century – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 4th, 2014 in damages, injunctions, news, noise, nuisance, planning, public interest, Supreme Court by sally

‘The law of private nuisance is the way of balancing the rights of neighours, the right to be noisy or smelly, and to be free of noise or smells. Hitherto it is has been explicitly a private law remedy, and has slightly odd rules. But it has been struggling with public interests for some years; are they irrelevant, or can they carry the day for claimant or defendant in a private nuisance claim?’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 3rd March 2014

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Reporting Restrictions and the New Transparency – Part 1 – Family Law Week

‘This is the first part of a three-part article by Mary Lazarus, barrister of 42 Bedford Row, reviewing recent developments concerning reporting restriction orders and transparency in the family courts. In this first part Mary considers some procedural issues before concentrating on those cases involving clashes between the need for privacy and the desire to report issues of genuine public interest.’

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Family Law Week, 27th February 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Makudi v Baron Triesman of Tottenham – WLR Daily

Posted February 28th, 2014 in defamation, law reports, parliamentary privilege, privilege, public interest by sally

Makudi v Baron Triesman of Tottenham [2014] EWCA Civ 179; [2014] WLR (D) 98

‘Where a claim in defamation was brought against the defendant for repeating at an extra-parliamentary inquiry his evidence before a parliamentary committee, he was immune from the claim, by virtue of article 9 of the Bill of Rights 1689, because of the public interest in the evidence and the close nexus between the evidence on the two occasions.’

WLR Daily, 26th February 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Not in the Public Interest – London Review of Books

Posted February 28th, 2014 in judicial review, locus standi, news, public interest by sally

‘Stephen Sedley on the purpose of judicial review.’

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London Review of Books, 28th February 2014

Source: www.lrb.co.uk

Papers about Profumo scandal man ‘should be public’ – BBC News

‘A decision to keep documents relating to a man who was at the centre of the Profumo sex scandal hidden should be overturned, a leading lawyer has said. The Information Commissioner is to be asked to overrule a decision by the National Archives to keep the documents about the trial of Stephen Ward hidden.’

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BBC News, 25th February 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mark Duggan’s mother lodges legal challenge against judge – The Guardian

‘The mother of Mark Duggan, whose fatal shooting by police provoked the 2011 riots, has lodged a legal challenge against the judge who presided over the inquest into her son’s death, which ended with a jury making a majority ruling that he was lawfully killed.’

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The Guardian, 26th February 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Reforming judicial review: cutting pointless delay or preventing legitimate challenge? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 25th, 2014 in bills, costs, human rights, judicial review, news, public interest by sally

‘For law students who slept their way through their first Latin 101 lessons in ‘ultra vires’, public law and judicial review may have seemed very detached from the realities of everyday life; less relevant to the man on the Clapham Omnibus than the rigours of a good criminal defence or protection from eviction offered by landlord and tenant law.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 24th February 2014

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

How to be fair about transfer to Broadmoor – UK Human Rights Blog

‘L, aged 26, was in a medium security hospital for his serious mental health problems. Concerns about his animus towards another patient arose, and the Admissions Panel of Broadmoor (a high security hospital) agreed to his transfer. It did so without allowing his solicitor to attend and without giving him the gist of why his transfer was to be made.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 23rd February 2014

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Another council faces judicial review over changes to library provision – Local Government Lawyer

‘Lincolnshire County Council has become the latest local authority to face judicial review proceedings over proposed cuts to its libraries.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 12th February 2014

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judicial review reforms will discourage “ill-conceived and vexatious claims”, experts say – OUT-LAW.com

‘Changes to the rules governing judicial review (JR) claims will ensure that those challenging the decisions of public bodies face a “fair level of financial risk”, the Government has said.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 7th February 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

Solicitor struck off for practising while suspended – Legal Futures

Posted February 10th, 2014 in costs, disciplinary procedures, licensing, news, public interest, solicitors by sally

‘A Birmingham solicitor has been struck off for practising while suspended, including appearing in court.’

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Legal Futures. 10th February 2014

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

High Court to consider Data Protection Act bid to halt reporting of corruption allegations – Panopticon

‘Can the Data Protection Act 1998 (“DPA”) be used to prevent a respected NGO from reporting allegations of corruption by a multi-billion dollar international mining conglomerate? That is the stark question posed by Steinmetz and others v Global Witness Limited, a recently issued High Court DPA Claim.’

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Panopticon, 10th February 2014

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Prosecutors drop case against men caught taking food from Iceland bins – The Guardian

Posted January 30th, 2014 in food, news, prosecutions, public interest, theft, trespass by sally

‘Three men caught taking discarded food from bins outside an Iceland store will not now be prosecuted after an explosion of criticism over the decision to bring charges against them, including from the company’s chief executive.’

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The Guardian, 29th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Is a cheque book better than a defence statement? – Six Pump Court

‘There has recently been a subtle movement away from the traditional approach deployed by the State to tackle economic crime and its consequences. Whilst the criminal justice system is wheeled out and deployed in the more serious or headline capturing cases, there appears to have been a concerted attempt by the government to impose economic penalties and fines upon individuals and companies involved in financial misfeasance through the civil or regulatory route and thus sidestepping the more traditional criminal one.’

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Six Pump Court, 29th January 2014

Source: www.6pumpcourt.co.uk

Three charged with stealing food from skip behind Iceland supermarket – The Guardian

Posted January 29th, 2014 in burglary, Crown Prosecution Service, food, news, public interest, vagrancy, waste by sally

‘Crown Prosecution Service claims there is “significant public interest” in prosecuting men arrested for taking discarded food.’

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The Guardian, 28th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Media can refuse subject access requests if complying could jeopardise stories, says ICO – OUT-LAW.com

‘Newspapers and other media groups can refuse individuals’ requests for access to the personal data those organisations hold about them where the disclosure of that information could jeopardise future stories, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has said.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 27th January 2014

Source: www.out-law.com