Headlines – Page 1159

  • News

    Senior lawyers attack closed civil hearings

    2012-06-15T00:00:00Z

    Government plans to hold certain civil court hearings in secret have come under fire from 50 senior lawyers who have said that no case has been made for introducing such an ‘inherently unfair’ procedure. The 50 lawyers, all special advocates with experience of the present system ...

  • News

    Courier ‘teething problems’ hit London courts

    2012-06-15T00:00:00Z

    Courts in London have been disrupted this week because of ‘teething problems’ with the new courier service employed to deliver Crown Prosecution Service files to court. An executive officer of the London Criminal Courts Solicitors Association, Greg Powell, told the Gazette that prosecution files arrived ...

  • News

    CofE’s wedding rules can be elastic when it wants them to be

    2012-06-15T00:00:00Z

    Is the Church of England taking a consistent moral line over gay marriage? At one level it would be nice to think so. While I do not share the church’s opposition to same-sex marriage, no one is truly comfortable with tales of parents feigning faith to obtain a church school ...

  • News

    High Court vindicates RSA on ‘in-house’ repair deals

    2012-06-15T00:00:00Z

    An insurance company was entitled to set its own rates for vehicle repairs after claimants suffered accidents, a High Court judge has ruled. In his preliminary judgment on the case of Coles v Hetherton released today, Mr Justice Cooke said RSA Insurance was entitled to ...

  • News

    Social security

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Services for sick and disabled persons - Assessment of needs of sick and disabled persons - Direct payments R (on the application of KM) (by his mother and litigation friend) v Cambridgeshire County Council: Supreme Court (Lords Phillips, Walker, ...

  • News

    Family proceedings

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Disclosure of documents - Third party Revenue and Customs Commissioners v Charman and another: Family Division (Mr Justice Coleridge): 29 May 2012 The Family Division, in dismissing an application ...

  • News

    Probate

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Administration of estates - Beneficial interest - Sole beneficiary Drakeford v Cotton and another: Chancery Division (Mr Justice Morgan): 25 May 2012 The Chancery Division held that, upon the death ...

  • News

    Immigration

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Leave to remain - Appeal - Claimants appealing Patel and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department: Court of Appeal, Civil Division (Lord Neuberger, Lady Justice Hallett and Lord Justice Stanley Burnton): 1 June 2012 ...

  • News

    Employment

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Unfair dismissal - Reason for dismissal Ackroyd & others v Meter U Ltd and another case: Employment Appeal Tribunal (Mrs Justice Slade, Mrs M McArthur and Mr A Harris): 28 February 2012 ...

  • News

    Criminal

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Appeal - Conspiracy to give corrupt payments - Conspiracy to cheat R v Majeed; R v Westfield: Court of Appeal, Criminal Division (Lord Judge CJ, Mr Justice Openshaw and Mr Justice Irwin): 31 May 2012 ...

  • News

    Tort

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Harassment - Prohibition of harassment - Invasion of privacy Trimingham v Associated Newspapers Limited Invasion of privacy: Queen's Bench Division (Mr Justice Tugendhat): 24 May 2012 The Queen's Bench Division ...

  • News

    Bulldog muzzled

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    We must confess that the Obiter office was deserted by two minutes to five on Monday. Our patriotic/deluded team was keen to join in a lusty rendition of the national anthem with Stevie G and the lads, evoking the Agincourt spirit for England’s Euro 2012 clash with France.

  • News

    High notes

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Old Africa hand Obiter has always had a thing for South African music. Think Soweto Beats, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela. And now also think Cape Town Opera, which came to Oxford for the European premiere of its musical tribute to elder statesman Nelson Mandela earlier this week. ...

  • News

    Tough questions

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Mission creep was always a danger for Obiter’s friend Lord Justice Leveson (pictured). It was maybe there from the very moment the prime minister decided that a little local trouble with endemic phone hacking at News of the World merited a wide-ranging look at the relationship between media, politicians and ...

  • News

    Street wise

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Hackney Community Law Centre, as you would expect, is hip and down with the people. This week sees the launch of its Community Law Shop service, where it is taking legal advice to the streets. In step with one of the latest marketing wheezes, it has styled its new initiative ...

  • News

    Insolvency

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Property available for distribution – Pari passu – Anti-deprivation Revenue and Customs Commissioners v Football League Ltd: ChD (Mr Justice David Richards): 25 May 2012 The Chancery Division declined the ...

  • News

    Extradition

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Extradition hearing – European Arrest Warrant – Appellant being arrested pursuant to European Arrest Warrant Assange v Swedish Prosecution Authority: SC (Justices of the Supreme Court, Lords Phillips (president), Walker, Brown, Mance, Kerr, Dyson, Lady Hale): 30 May 2012 ...

  • News

    Greenwich LBC sees off equality challenge

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Greenwich Community Law Centre (the law centre) once again failed to overturn a decision by Greenwich London Borough Council (the council) after the law centre was not reappointed following a recommissioning exercise. On 24 April, the Court of Appeal, in upholding the 21 December 2011 decision of Cranston J, found ...

  • News

    How firms can benefit from lawyers taking up non-executive appointments

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    For some, the lure of a string of non-executive directorships represents a potentially lucrative nest-egg between giving up full-time legal work and retirement proper. For others, the chance to be on the board as a part-time director provides invaluable education into how organisations are run and how boards operate. They ...

  • News

    Two High Court cases focus on the legality of assisted dying

    2012-06-14T00:00:00Z

    Next week the High Court will begin hearing two cases that raise profound ethical issues. The question in each case is whether it can ever be lawful to help another person take their own life. This is a subject on which we might reasonably have expected ...