“New laws to help make it easier for children and vulnerable victims and witnesses to give evidence in court come into force today.”
Ministry of Justice, 27th June 2011
Source: www.justice.gov.uk
“New laws designed to make it easier for children and vulnerable people to give evidence in court came into force today (27 June).”
Law Society’s Gazette, 27th June 2011
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
“The family of one of Levi Bellfield’s murder victims has hit out at the way his defence was handled during his trial for the killing of Milly Dowler.”
The Guardian, 27th June 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“The judge in Levi Bellfield’s trial could not spare Milly Dowler’s parents the trauma of giving evidence.”
The Guardian, 27th June 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Murder of couple and complaints from ‘abandoned’ informants prompt review that aims to restore trust. Paul Cahalan reports.”
The Independent, 27th June 2011
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“The treatment of Milly Dowler’s family in court has been branded ‘appalling’ by the Government’s victims’commissioner, Louise Casey.”
Daily Telegraph, 24th June 2011
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“People with learning disabilities continue to be failed by police forces, with many neither properly investigating disability hate crimes or treating victims as credible witnesses, according to a report by Mencap.”
The Guardian, 20th June 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“This project, jointly funded by the Nuffield Foundation and the NSPCC assessed whether changes to the legislative framework have been successful in improving the experience of young witnesses in court. In June 2011 a follow up report was produced.”
Nuffield Foundation, 9th June 2011
Source: www.nuffieldfoundation.org
“Children’s charities have called for ground rules to be enforced in court to prevent the exploitation of young witnesses. A report released this week by the NSPCC and Nuffield Foundation found that inadequate procedures and a lack of training for legal professionals were having detrimental effects on both the youngsters and their evidence.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 9th June 2011
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
“The court of appeal has quashed the conviction of a former police chief who was found guilty by a jury of framing a man.”
The Guardian, 16th May 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A local authority has refused to let a six-year-old testify in court. If it wins the case could severely curtail use of child witnesses in trials.”
The Guardian, 12th May 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“The man whose evidence led to the jailing of a police chief has been arrested on suspicion of fraud days before the crown will try to convince judges that he is still a reliable witness, the Guardian has learned.”
The Guardian, 20th March 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Victims of crime – and witnesses to it – in England and Wales are to be given a ‘louder voice’ thanks to a £1m government initiative.”
BBC News, 21st March 2011
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Werynski v Mediatel 4B spólka z o o (Case C-283/09); [2011] WLR (D) 50
“In respect of acts which had been adopted in the field of Title IV of the EC Treaty, since December 1 2009 the Court of Justice of the European Union has had jurisdiction to hear and determine a reference for a preliminary ruling from a court against whose decision there was a judicial remedy under national law even where the reference was lodged prior to that date. In determining whether the question referred to the Court of Justice was necessary to enable the referring court to ‘give judgment’ pursuant to article 267FEU of the FEU Treaty, ‘give judgment’ referred to the entire process of creating the judgment, including all issues relating to the responsibility for the costs of proceedings. Where the examination of a witness by a court was at issue there was a direct connection between the question referred for a preliminary ruling and the performance by the referring court of a judicial function. A requested court was not entitled pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 1206/2001 on cooperation between the courts of the member states in the taking of evidence in civil or commercial matters (OJ 2001 L 174, p 1), to make the examination of a witness conditional on prior payment of an advance from the requesting court covering his witness expense and there was no obligation upon the requesting court to pay such an advance nor was the requesting court obliged to reimburse the expenses paid to the witness examined.”
WLR Daily, 21st February 2011
Source: www.lawreports.co.uk
Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.
Ex parte MGN Ltd and others [2011] WLR (D) 17
“It was rarely appropriate to impose blanket reporting restrictions under section 4(2) of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 for the purpose of ameliorating the disadvantages of giving evidence and minimising the burdens faced by witnesses in criminal trials. The protection of witnesses was more appropriately provided for by the provisions of section 39 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 and sections 22–30 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999.”
WLR Daily, 26th January 2011
Source: www.lawreports.co.uk
Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.
“Police should review witness protection protocols, a coroner has said in her report into the gangland killings of a Lincolnshire couple.”
BBC News, 10th August 2010
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“Prosecutors are under fire for not challenging the bail of a man who admitted witness intimidation only for him to go on the run for a second time.”
BBC News, 28th June 2010
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Regina v Brewster [2010] EWCA Crim 1194; [2010] WLR (D) 159
“Where a party sought to admit evidence of a witness’s bad character which bore only indirectly on his credibility, and that credibility was a matter in issue in the proceedings and of substantial importance in the context of the case as a whole, such evidence was only admissible pursuant to s 100(1)(b) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 as evidence of substantial probative value on the issue of creditworthiness if it was reasonably capable of assisting a fair minded jury to reach a view as to whether the witness’s evidence was worthy of belief.”
WLR Daily, 25th June 2010
Source: www.lawreports.co.uk
Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.
“Lord Saville could have completed his inquiry into Bloody Sunday more quickly and cheaply if he had stuck to his remit.”
The Guardian, 17th June 2010
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
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