News & Events: Administrative & Public Law
John’s Campaign – Fighting for the Rights of Care Home Residents
John’s Campaign has been fighting for changes to the way our care homes operate since 2014, with the belief that carers should not just be allowed in, but should be welcomed. On September 9th, John’s Campaign launched a legal challenge against the Government’s guidance on care home visits during the coronavirus pandemic. Jennifer Lee, Co-Head […]
Paul Mertens promoted to Attorney General’s B Panel
We are pleased to announce Paul Merten’s successful promotion onto the Attorney General’s London B Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown. His promotion is recognition of his considerable expertise in information rights (data protection, freedom of information, breach of confidence/privacy/Article 8). For further information on Paul’s practice please contact our clerks via our switchboard or email: […]
Prison & Parole Hearings in the Age of COVID-19
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected all areas of public life and has changed the way the legal professions work. The impact of the changes in prisons has been particularly acute for our clients and for practitioners in crime and civil alike. In Prison & Parole Hearings in the Age of COVID-19, the speakers explore the changes […]
Misuse of private information: A tort in its infancy
There has been an avalanche of commentary on the recent decision of the Supreme Court in WM Morrison Supermarkets plc v Various Claimants [2020] UKSC 12[1]. The case has provided some welcome guidance on vicarious liability in the wake of the earlier decision of Mohamud v WM Morrison Supermarkets plc [2016] UKSC 11[2], and also […]
Remote hearings and witness evidence
Remote hearings come with particular difficulties. One obvious difficulty is that the parties cannot see each other as well as they might in the courtroom. But how much of a problem is this? If the demeanour of witnesses (or indeed parties) is relevant to an issue to be decided by the Court, then restrictions on […]
Secure accommodation – where are we now?
Samara Brackley discusses secure accommodation procedure after HHJ Lazarus’s judgment in Re O [2018] EWFC B60 published this week. Secure accommodation applications and procedure continues to be an area at the forefront of criticism by both judges and practitioners alike. Applications are becoming more and more common as secure placements are used to protect children […]
Recent developments in disciplinary law
There have been two recent important cases, Squier and Enemuwe, on the vexed question of the use that professional disciplinary panels are entitled to make of Court of Appeal judgments in related criminal cases. Squier must now be regarded as the leading authority on the issue. The Queen (on the application of Squier) v General […]
Mind the gap the problem with the benefits cap
On 18th March 2015 the Supreme Court decision in R (on the application of SG and others (Appellants) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Respondent) [2015] UKSC 16 was published. In a majority decision of 3-2 the government’s benefit cap policy was not overturned. Therefore what happens with the policy moving forward will […]
