New Judgment: Elgizouli (AP) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 10 – UKSC Blog

‘The appellant’s son is alleged to have been one of a group of terrorists operating in Syria, involved in the murder of US and British citizens. The US made a mutual legal assistance request to the UK in relation to an investigation into the activities of that group. The Home Secretary requested an assurance that the information would not be used directly or indirectly in a prosecution that could lead to the imposition of the death penalty. The US refused to provide a full death penalty assurance and the Home Secretary agreed to provide information to the US without requiring any assurance. The appellant challenged the Home Secretary’s decision by way of judicial review. The questions for the Supreme Court were firstly whether it is unlawful for the Secretary of State to exercise his power to provide MLA so as to supply evidence to a foreign state that will facilitate the imposition of the death penalty in that state on the individual and secondly whether it is lawful under the Data Protection Act 2018, Part 3 for law enforcement authorities in the UK to transfer personal data to law enforcement authorities abroad for use in capital criminal proceedings.’

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UKSC Blog, 25th March 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

UK broke law over IS ‘Beatles’ by passing information to US – BBC News

‘The UK acted unlawfully by passing evidence to the US that could lead to the execution of two British members of an Islamic State murder squad.’

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BBC News, 25th March 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

MS (Pakistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – Blackstone Chambers

‘The Supreme Court has today [18 March] handed down an important judgment in the area of human trafficking and modern slavery.’

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Blackstone Chambers, 18th March 2020

Source: www.blackstonechambers.com

False imprisonment: common ground? – No. 5 Chambers

‘On 12 February 2020 Lady Hale delivered the unanimous judgment of the Supreme Court in R (Jalloh) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2010] UKSC 4.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 16th March 2020

Source: www.no5.com

Landmark Supreme Court judgment on state obligations under Article 4 ECHR to identify & protect victims of trafficking – Garden Court Chambers

‘The Supreme Court has issued a landmark judgment regarding the scope of positive obligations of the state under Article 4 ECHR, to identify victims of trafficking and afford them protection, including immigration status, for their safety and recovery.’

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Garden Court Chambers, 18th March 2020

Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk

Asda v Brierley – Old Square Chambers

Posted March 19th, 2020 in equal pay, equality, news, Supreme Court, women by sally

‘Can a group of predominantly female retail store employees compare themselves to a group of predominantly male distribution depot employees for the purposes of an equal pay claim? The Supreme Court will have the final say on this question this year, in the highly anticipated appeal in Asda Stores Ltd v Brierley and other.’

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Old Square Chambers, 12th March 2020

Source: www.oldsquare.co.uk

New Judgment: MS (Pakistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 9 – UKSC Blog

‘MS’ application for asylum was rejected in August 2013 and the Secretary of State decided to remove MS from the UK. Appealing this decision to the FTT, on human rights grounds, the FTT had found that MS had been under compulsion and control but nonetheless dismissed the appeal. The UT then re-made the decision in view of errors of law by the FTT, finding in favour of MS. The UT observed that the decision of the National Referral Mechanism could only be challenged by judicial review proceedings, not through the immigration appeals system. However, the UT also held that if an NRM decision was perverse or otherwise contrary to some public law ground, the UT could make its own decision as to whether an individual was a victim of trafficking. Otherwise, the decision to remove him would be contrary to the European Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (‘ECAT’) and the European Convention on Human Rights (‘ECHR’).’

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UKSC Blog, 18th March 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

Man’s ‘experiments’ with explosives were lawful, court rules – The Guardian

Posted March 12th, 2020 in explosives, news, Supreme Court, terrorism by sally

‘A man who manufactured high explosives at home and triggered blasts remotely has been cleared of the most serious charges by the supreme court after pleading that it was for his “personal experimentation” and “private education”.’

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The Guardian, 11th March 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

False imprisonment not synonymous with breach of right to liberty – UK Human Rights Blog

‘R (on the application of Jalloh (formerly Jollah)) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] UKSC 4.In a pithy parting shot to the Home Secretary, Lady Hale has given the unanimous judgment of the Supreme Court on the question of whether a person subject to a home curfew under immigration powers had been falsely imprisoned at common law and whether that concept should now be aligned with the concept of deprivation of liberty in article 5 of the ECHR. The Court decided the case against the defendant, as did every court below (the Blog covered the Court of Appeal’s decision here). The defendant had been required to pay the claimant £4,000.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 10th March 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Supreme Court to hear case over whether 18th century lead urns were ‘buildings’ for purposes of listed building consent – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 10th, 2020 in appeals, listed buildings, local government, news, planning, Supreme Court by sally

‘The Supreme Court will this week hear a dispute over whether a pair of 18th century lead urns resting on limestone piers were “buildings” on an application for listed building consent.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 9th March 2020

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Supreme Court president refuses to rule out stepping down if Boris Johnson tries to politicise judiciary – The Independent

Posted March 5th, 2020 in judiciary, ministers' powers and duties, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘The president of the Supreme Court has declined to rule out resigning if Boris Johnson attempts to politicise the judiciary.’

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The Independent, 4th March 2020

Source: www.independent.co.uk

New Judgment: R (DN (Rwanda)) (AP) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – UKSC Blog

‘The appellant, DN, is a Rwandan national who was granted refugee status in the UK pursuant to the 1951 Refugee Convention. DN was subsequently convicted of a number of offences, the most serious of which occurred when he pleaded guilty to assisting unlawful entry of a non-EEA national in the UK. The Secretary of State for the Home Department used the powers under the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 to order the deportation of DN. DN’s attempt to assist unlawful immigration to a member state country was a serious offence by way of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (Specification of Particularly Serious Crimes) Order 2004. The Secretary of State ordered DN’s deportation and detention pending deportation.’

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UKSC Blog, 26th February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

Unmarried partners still missing bereavement payments – BBC News

‘Means-tested payments of up to £10,000 are made to parents whose husband, wife or civil partner has died.’

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BBC News, 3rd March 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Supreme Court refuses MIB permission to appeal in landmark case establishing liability for accidents on private land – Exchange Chambers

‘On 13.2.20 the Supreme Court (Lord Reed (President), Lady Arden and Lord Hamblen JJSC) refused the MIB’s application for permission to appeal against a finding that it was directly liable under EU law for injuries sustained by a pedestrian who was struck by an uninsured vehicle on private land. At the same time, it concluded that it was not necessary to refer the case for any ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union. As a result, David Knifton QC (who acted for the Claimant) explains, the MIB has exhausted all avenues of appeal, and will have to meet Mr Lewis’s claim for the catastrophic injuries he suffered.’

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Exchange Chambers, 20th February 2020

Source: www.exchangechambers.co.uk

Case Comment: Micula and others v Romania [2020] UKSC 5 – UKSC Blog

Posted March 3rd, 2020 in appeals, arbitration, compensation, EC law, news, state aids, Supreme Court by sally

‘In this case comment, Richard Bamforth and Laura West from CMS comment on the decision handed down last month in the matter of Micula and others v Romania [2020] UKSC 5. Richard Bamforth is a partner in the Litigation and Arbitration group of CMS, based in the London office. He specialises in international arbitration (as counsel and as arbitrator), commercial litigation and alternative dispute resolution, with a focus on cross border disputes in the media, banking, finance, insolvency, energy and telecommunications sectors. Laura West is an associate at CMS based in Edinburgh. She specialises in construction, engineering and energy disputes providing operational and strategic contract advice as well as representing clients through a range of dispute resolution procedures including arbitration, litigation, adjudication and mediation. Laura has a particular interest in arbitration and is the current Vice Chair of the Global Steering Committee for the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators’ Young Members Group.’

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UKSC Blog, 2nd March 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

Hanna Wilberg: A Duty of Consistency? The Missing Distinction Between Its Two Forms – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted February 28th, 2020 in appeals, constitutional law, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘In R (Gallaher Group Ltd) v Competition and Markets Authority the Supreme Court ruled that UK domestic law “does not recognise equal treatment as a distinct principle of administrative law. Consistency … is a “generally desirable” objective, but not an absolute rule.” (para 24). It took the view that issues of consistency generally arise as aspects of the irrationality ground (paras 26, 50). This ruling has been seen as putting in doubt the previously established duty to decide consistently with relevant policy guidelines. In this post, I will show that the scope of the ruling does not extend this far.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 27th February 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Supreme Court: ICSID award enforceable as state aid investigation continues – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 27th, 2020 in arbitration, EC law, enforcement, news, state aids, Supreme Court, treaties by sally

‘The UK Supreme Court has ruled that an arbitration award made under the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) Convention is enforceable despite an ongoing EU state aid investigation.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 26th February 2020

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Alex Schymyck: Vulnerable Detainees in Prison Illustrate the Need for Consistency as a Ground of Review – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted February 24th, 2020 in appeals, detention, immigration, news, prisons, Supreme Court by sally

‘In R (MR (Pakistan)) v Secretary of State for Justice & Others, the High Court rejected a claim that the inequality in procedural protections available to vulnerable immigration detainees, which depend significantly on the venue of detention, is irrational. The nature of the decision, which fails to properly evaluate the reasons advanced for the difference, highlights two problems caused by the Supreme Court’s refusal to accept consistency as a ground of review in R (Gallaher Group Ltd) v The Competition and Markets Authority. Firstly, the lack of a clear framework for how irrationality should be applied creates a risk that judges accept tangential or irrelevant justifications for inconsistency. Secondly, by keeping consistency within the irrationality framework without any articulation of how separation of powers concerns fluctuate in different contexts, there is a risk of overly deferential decisions. In MR (Pakistan) both of these risks materialised with seriously deleterious consequences for immigration detainees held in prisons.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th February 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Case Comment: The Manchester Ship Canal Company Ltd v Vauxhall Motors Ltd (Formerly General Motors UK Ltd) [2019] UKSC 46 – UKSC Blog

Posted February 24th, 2020 in appeals, canals, forfeiture, leases, news, rent, Supreme Court by sally

‘In this case comment, Michael Cox of CMS comments on the judgment handed down in the matter of The Manchester Ship Canal Company Ltd v Vauxhall Motors Ltd (Formerly General Motors UK Ltd) [2019] UKSC 46. Michael is a senior associate in the Real Estate Dispute team at CMS. Michael advises on all aspects of property law, with a particular emphasis on development advice and dispute resolution.’

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UKSC Blog, 21st February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

New Judgment: Micula & Ors v Romania [2020] UKSC 5 – UKSC Blog

Posted February 21st, 2020 in appeals, arbitration, compensation, EC law, news, state aids, Supreme Court by sally

‘The appeals arose out of the attempted enforcement of an investment arbitration award in favour of the claimants against Romania in relation to investments made by the claimants in food production in Romania before the country acceded to the EU.’

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UKSC Blog, 19th February 2020

Source: ukscblog.com