‘A man who spent 17 years behind bars after being wrongly convicted of a sexual assault has been freed by the court of appeal after DNA evidence pointed to another man as the perpetrator.’
The Guardian, 13th December 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Radical reforms to the way children and adult sex abuse victims give evidence in court have been floated by the former Lord Chief Justice.
Lord Judge, who stepped down as England and Wales’ most senior judge at the end of September, said there could be a “powerful case” to end the way in which rape and other sex crimes victims currently give evidence.’
Daily Telegraph, 21st November 2013
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“The Court of Appeal’s decision (11 October 2013) in Coppage v Safety Net Security to uphold as reasonable and enforceable a 6 month non-solicitation restrictive covenant is surprising because of the fact that the covenant covered all customers during the period of Mr Coppage’s employment. In modern times the general advice had been that such covenants should be restricted to those who had been customers in a fixed period prior to termination (‘look back’ requirement) and to be confined to those with whom the employee had had personal dealings.”
Hardwicke Chambers, 21st October 2013
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
“The trial of an NHS doctor accused of kidnapping a British photographer in Syria has collapsed after the prosecution was unable to hear evidence from two alleged victims.”
The Guardian, 11th November 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Niqab-wearing defendants should be obliged to remove their veils before giving evidence say 90% of my colleagues in a poll conducted by the Bar Council for The Times (although personally I’d like to see what the participation rate was for that). Former justice secretary, Ken Clarke, agrees, likening wearing a full-face veil in the witness box to giving evidence ‘in a bag’. The Lord Chief Justice says that trial judges should be able to decide whether a defendant may give evidence wearing a face-veil or not, but promises to provide guidance.”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 7th November 2013
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
“The most senior judge in England and Wales says a public consultation will open on the ‘divisive’ subject soon.”
Daily Telegraph, 5th November 2013
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“The former justice secretary Ken Clarke has rekindled the debate about wearing veils in court by claiming that a proper trial is impossible if a defendant is ‘in a kind of bag’.”
The Guardian, 3rd November 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Teachers and health workers should be prosecuted for failing to alert the police to allegations of child abuse, according to the former director of public prosecutions, who is calling for an overhaul of the law to prevent more victims from slipping through the net.”
The Guardian, 4th November 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Do you object to swearing an oath on the Bible? Sorry, I hope that question didn’t put you off your stride when settling down to read this article. It’s the same question witnesses are asked when they’re about to give evidence in criminal trials.”
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 1st November 2013
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
“John Tughan, barrister, of 4 Paper Buildings reviews important recent cases of which all public law practitioners ought to be aware.”
Family Law Week, 25th October 2013
Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk
“Swearing on the Bible will continue to be a crucial part of giving evidence in court after magistrates threw out proposals to introduce a modernised oath.”
Daily Telegraph, 19th October 2013
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“In ‘Evans (No. 1)’, a 2010 case concerning the transfer of suspected insurgents for questioning in certain military centres in Afghanistan, the High Court had ruled, partly in an open judgment, partly in closed proceedings, that UK transfers to NDS Kandahar and NDS Lashkar Gah could proceed without risk of ill treatment (which is contrary to UK policy), but that it would be a breach of the policy and therefore unlawful for transfers to be made to NDS Kabul. It was subsequently discovered that there had not been jurisdiction to follow a closed procedure in that case, but what was done could not be undone, so the confidentiality agreements and the closed judgment remained in force.”
UK Human Rights Blog, 16th October 2013
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“Potential witnesses holding relevant evidence that should have been heard by Lord Justice Leveson’s press probe were scared off by the perceived threat of being ‘monstered’ by certain newspapers, according to the QC who lead questioning at the inquiry.”
The Independent, 16th October 2013
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“It is now almost 6 months since the Brave New World of Jackson. This article considers the impact (if any) the reforms and stated ‘culture change’ have had, and are likely to have, upon those practising housing law.”
Zenith Chambers, 15th October 2013
Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk
“Victims of sexual offences have been afraid of reporting them because police have asked ‘the wrong questions’, the director of public prosecutions for England and Wales has said.”
BBC News, 13th October 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“Repealing the Human Rights Act would be ‘retrograde step’ that would hurt the victims of crime and witnesses alike, the outgoing director of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has warned.”
The Independent, 13th September 2013
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“A good witness statement can greatly improve the chances of success in any case, whereas conversely a poorly drafted one can undermine what may otherwise be a potentially strong claim or defence. Andy Lane reports on a recent Chancery Division authority which serves as a timely reminder to us all.”
Hardwicke Chambers, 2nd October 2013
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
“In the first of a news series, Clive Anderson asks if overly aggressive cross-examination of witnesses in court turns trial by jury into trial by ordeal.”
BBC Unreliable Evidence, 11th September 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
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