On 9th April 2024 the European Court of Human Rights delivered Grand Chamber rulings in three cases relating to climate change: Carême v. France - https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-233261 Duarte Agostinho and Others v. Portugal and 32 Others - https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-233174 Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland - https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-233206 In this video, Dr Stefan Theil discusses the extent to which the ECHR is prepared to dictate how countrie...
Apr 11, 2024•10 min•Ep. 36
The government has recently announced that it intends to quash by legislation convictions of hundreds of subpostmasters who had been prosecuted by the Post Office for, variously, theft, fraud and false accounting. This follows a number of appeals which have already succeeded where it has been accepted that convictions that are based on generated by the Horizon software are necessarily unsafe. Usually, one would expect other subpostmasters to have to follow that same route, but the government is ...
Jan 23, 2024•17 min•Ep. 35
The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill seeks to circumvent the UK Supreme Court's recent judgment holding the Government's Rwanda policy, concerning the removal of certain asylum-seekers, to Rwanda. The Bill contemplates placing the UK in breach of its international obligations, including under the European Convention on Human Rights and the Refugee Convention, while forming part of a policy that relies upon Rwanda's adherence to its own international obligations. The Bill is thus at...
Dec 07, 2023•12 min•Ep. 34
On the 15 November the UK Supreme Court decided that the United Kingdom's policy of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda was unlawful. In this short video Dr Kirsty Hughes explains the Court's reasoning, and considers the Government's response and possible next steps. Kirsty Hughes is an Associate Professor specialising in Human Rights Law. She is joint General Editor of the European Human Rights Law Review, Director of the Centre for Public Law, University of Cambridge, a member of Blackstone Chamb...
Nov 16, 2023•14 min•Ep. 33
On the 23rd November the UK Supreme court decided that the Scottish Parliament did not have the power to enact legislation to hold a second independence referendum in Scotland. In this short video Professor Alison Young explains the backdrop to the case, sets out how the Supreme court decided the case, and explores possible future paths to Scottish independence. Alison Young is the Sir David Williams Professor of Public Law at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Robinson College. She tea...
Nov 29, 2022•16 min•Ep. 32
On Monday 13 June, the UK Government published the text of the proposed Northern Ireland Protocol Bill. The Northern Ireland Protocol forms part of the Withdrawal Agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union. The Protocol creates a special legal position for Northern Ireland in the light of its particular political circumstances, effectively enabling Northern Ireland to remain within the EU’s Single Market for goods. The UK Government argues that it is necessary to ‘fix’ certain p...
Jun 17, 2022•10 min•Ep. 31
On Thurday 17th March leading UK ferry operator P&O Ferries sacked 800 British crew across its entire fleet and stopped all sailings. The move sparked fury amongst employees and unions, and consternation in parliament. Many asked was the move - and the proposal to use cheap agency staff instead - legal, and also was it a result of Brexit? In this recording, Professor Catherine Barnard considers the legal implications, and the Brexit question. Catherine Barnard is Professor of European Union ...
Mar 25, 2022•9 min•Ep. 30
There have been several recent egregious examples of private prosecutions, including the case of the Post Office prosecuting numerous Postmasters for losses caused by a faulty IT system. Professor John Spencer discusses these cases, the evolution of the system of private prosecutions, and the considerations involved in regulating such actions. Professor Spencer is Professor Emeritus of Law and Honorary President of the European Criminal Law Association. He has written extensively on criminal jus...
Dec 17, 2021•14 min•Ep. 29
In January 2018 it was reported that the Parole Board had approved the release of John Worboys, the so-called ‘Black Cab Rapist’. Worboys had been incarcerated since his conviction for a number of sexual offences in March 2009, and it was believed that he was responsible for many attacks over which he was not charged. The announcement of the decision caused much public unrest, and led to scrutiny of the Parole Board’s decision and suggestions that it should be subject to judicial review. In this...
Feb 20, 2018•8 min•Ep. 28
In the first round of the French Presidential election, Centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen progressed to the runoff on 7 May, notwithstanding neither candidate having the backing of the traditionally powerful parliamentary parties. Will the new French President be hamstrung in power if she or he does not obtain a majority in the parliamentary elections of June 2017? Does the French Constitution enable a government to govern without its policies being approved b...
Apr 25, 2017•9 min•Ep. 27
In Ilott v The Blue Cross [2017] UKSC 17 (http://ukscblog.com/new-judgment-ilott-v-the-blue-cross-ors-2017-uksc-17/) the Supreme Court considered the competing claims of the animal charities included in a woman's will and her estranged adult daughter, who was excluded from the will but living in necessitous circumstances. In this video, Brian Sloan considers the outcome of the case, which raised fundamental principles of succession law, and its broader implications. Brian Sloan is College Lectur...
Mar 29, 2017•19 min•Ep. 26
At the end of November 2016, the British Government published an open consultation green paper on corporate governance reform, seeking views on proposals relating to executive pay, employee and customer voice, and corporate governance in large private businesses. The consultation is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/corporate-governance-reform In this latest edition of the Faculty's series of videos entitled "Law in Focus", Bobby Reddy discusses the government's ambitious...
Dec 07, 2016•14 min•Ep. 25
In the early hours of 24 June 2016, the result of the UK referendum on EU membership was announced. By a narrow but clear majority the vote was to leave the European Union. This result has begun a chain of seismic political consequences in the UK and the EU, and will have widespread implications for the law and constitution in the UK. In this video, Mark Elliott assess the immediate impact of the result. Professor Elliott has also written a blog post available at: https://publiclawforeveryone.co...
Jun 24, 2016•9 min•Ep. 24
After long negotiations, on 19 February Prime Minister David Cameron announced that the European Council had agreed a new settlement for the United Kingdom in the European Union. In line with the Conservative Party manifesto, this agreement has triggered a referendum on whether Britain should remain in the European Union to be held on Thursday 23 June. In this next video in the Law in Focus series, Catherine Barnard examines the effects of the settlement. A three-minute quick summary of the sett...
Mar 07, 2016•30 min•Ep. 23
After long negotiations, on 19 February Prime Minister David Cameron announced that the European Council had agreed a new settlement for the United Kingdom in the European Union. In line with the Conservative Party manifesto, this agreement has triggered a referendum on whether Britain should remain in the European Union to be held on Thursday 23 June. In this next video in the Law in Focus series, Catherine Barnard examines the effects of the settlement. A longer analysis of the settlement is a...
Mar 07, 2016•4 min•Ep. 22
The successful appeal in R v Jogee and Ruddock v The Queen before the a combined Supreme Court and Privy Council raises important issues in the criminal law of complicity (sometimes unhelpfully labelled 'joint enterprise'). In this video Dr Matthew Dyson, who advised the appellant's counsel in the case considers the law of complicity, what the case changed, and its implications. Dr Matthew Dyson is Fellow in Law and Director of Studies at Trinity College. His research includes complicity specifi...
Feb 19, 2016•14 min•Ep. 21
The conviction of Oscar Pistorius for committing culpable homicide in relation to the shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp made worldwide news. In this video Professor Christopher Forsyth reflects on his previous comments about the original conviction, and describes how the Supreme Court of Appeal interpreted the South African law on intent to kill. Although the Court complimented Ms Justice Thokozile Masipa on her handling of the case under intense media scrutiny, they reversed her decisi...
Dec 16, 2015•14 min•Ep. 20
This video discusses six issues arising out of the recent statement of Prime Minister David Cameron to the House of Commons entitled "Prime Minister’s Response to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee on the Extension of Offensive British Military Operations to Syria". Dr Veronika Fikfak and Dr Hayley J Hooper discuss the questionable international legality of military action, the strategic use of parliament and its potential impact upon the emerging Consultation Convention, and the responsibilit...
Nov 27, 2015•17 min•Ep. 19
In his speech at Chatham House on 10 November 2015 (https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/prime-ministers-speech-on-europe), the Prime Minister David Cameron outlined those aspects of the EU he would like to see reformed prior to any referendum on the UK's continued membership of the EU. EU employment law - one of the most controversial areas of EU policy - was not expressly identified in his list. In this video, Catherine Barnard considers the impact of EU social poicy on the lives of UK emplo...
Nov 18, 2015•10 min•Ep. 18
In an interview with the BBC yesterday (23 July 2015), US President Barack Obama argued that having "the United Kingdom in the European Union gives us much greater confidence about the strength of the transatlantic union and is part of the cornerstone of institutions built after World War II that has made the world safer and more prosperous." He continued: "And we want to make sure that United Kingdom continues to have that influence. Because we believe that the values that we share are the righ...
Jul 24, 2015•15 min•Ep. 17
Prior to the 2015 general election, the Conservative Party undertook in its manifesto to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998 and to enact a British Bill of Rights. In this video, Mark Elliott addresses three key questions raised by these proposals: First, what lies behind the desire of some politicians to secure the Human Rights Act’s repeal? Second, how might a British Bill of Rights differ from the present legislation? And, third, what constitutional obstacles might lie in the way of the implemen...
May 22, 2015•12 min•Ep. 16
The recent Supreme Court decision in Vince v Wyatt aroused much media interest because it allowed an ex-wife to proceed with a financial claim against her ex-husband, who became a millionaire years after they divorced. The judgement is available at http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKSC/2015/14.html In this video Dr Brian Sloan describes the reasoning behind the decision focusing on the limits of what has actually been decided by the Supreme Court. He also analyses the possible implications of the ...
Apr 08, 2015•13 min•Ep. 15
The trial of Oscar Pistorius for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp aroused worldwide media interest. From the beginning Pistorius claimed that he had no intent to kill Reeva because when he fired the fatal shots her he thought he was firing at an intruder. And so whether he had the necessary intent to kill became a crucial issue in his trial. In this video Professor Christopher Forsyth describes the South African law on intent to kill and explains how it differs from the relevant Engl...
Jan 29, 2015•19 min•Ep. 14
'How can the government stem the tide of migrant workers coming to the UK?'. This question has been asked with increasing vigour by those who perceive immigration as a threat rather than a benefit to the UK economy. In this video, Catherine Barnard considers whether it is possible to restrict free movement of workers under EU law, both as it now stands and going forward. Professor Barnard is Professor of European Union Law and Jean Monnet Chair of EU Law. She has written extensively on EU Law an...
Nov 06, 2014•11 min•Ep. 13
In this next edition of the Faculty's series of videos entitled 'Law in Focus', Mrs Nicola Padfield explores some aspects of the important decision of the Supreme Court in Nicklinson (R (Nicklinson and another) v Ministry of Justice; R (AM) v The DPP [2014] UKSC 38) focusing on the minority judgement of Baroness Hale. Nicola Padfield is Reader in Criminal and Penal Justice at the University of Cambridge. She is a barrister by training, and also a Bencher of the Middle Temple. Mrs Padfield is als...
Jul 08, 2014•16 min•Ep. 12
This item discusses C-131/12 Google Spain; Google v Agencia Española de Protección de Datos (AEPD), Mario Costeja González (2014), the Court of Justice of the European Union's long awaited "right to be forgotten" case which examined the rights of individuals mentioned in public domain material indexed on Google search. This Court decision enunciated both the scope and breadth of data protection obligations in an even more expansive way than argued by the Agencia Espanola de Protection de Datos i...
Jun 17, 2014•23 min•Ep. 11
In eurosceptic circles it is widely stated that European criminal justice threatens to undermine the basic values of the common law, and this is put forward as a reason why the UK should 'withdraw from the Europe'. This argument was recently put forward by Nigel Farage, of the UK Independence Party, in an article he wrote for The Independent. In this presentation Professor John Spencer - one of the authors of the Corpus Juris project - subjects the argument to analysis. Professor Spencer is Prof...
Dec 03, 2013•13 min•Ep. 10
The case of Vinter v UK was recently decided by the European Court of Human Rights, and has raised a good deal of controversy regarding the right of the United Kingdom to sentence a prisoner to a life sentence (the Whole Life Tariff) without the chance of review. Mrs Nicola Padfield discusses the judgement of the European Court, and the corresponding reaction from members of the UK Government and others. Mrs Padfield is Reader in Criminal and Penal Justice at the University of Cambridge. She is ...
Jul 17, 2013•13 min•Ep. 9
Dr Findlay Stark examines the defence of marital coercion, which recently hit the headlines with the trials of Vicky Pryce and former Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Chris Huhne for perverting the course of justice over an attempt to transfer penalty points for a speeding offence. Findlay Stark is the Yates Glazebrook Fellow in Law at Jesus College, Cambridge. His interests lie in the Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure and Evidence, and Legal Theory. For more information about Dr ...
Mar 25, 2013•8 min•Ep. 8
Dr Brian Sloan examines the case of Re J (Children) [2013] UKSC 9, in which the Supreme Court considered a child protection case involving a mother who had previously been suspected of causing significant harm to her child, and was now looking after different children in a new relationship. Brian discusses the implications of the case and analyses the Court's attempts to balance non-intervention into family life with child protection. Brian Sloan is Fellow and Director of Studies in Law at Robin...
Mar 04, 2013•10 min•Ep. 7
