The civil and criminal standard of proof are generally pretty easy to distinguish but the lines get blurred when there is an inquest into a suspicious death. In this case the Supreme Court had the opportunity to straighten out the rules and decide which of the two standards should apply where there is a conclusion of suicide. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe
In a difficult decision the Supreme Court had to balance the interests of a Children's Cancer Trust against new affordable housing. At the heart of the dispute were restrictive covenants and in this landmark case the Justices were presented with an opportunity to set a marker down. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe
Bonus Episode: A Question of Law Interviews Marcus Cleaver About Brexit
A dispute over a drug company's alleged anti-competitive practices leads to a legal case about the influence of decisions from the European Courts in the UK. Music from bensound.com Subscribe to the newsletter: https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe
In the second of two cases looking at illegality as a defence we turn to the proceedings brought by Ecila Henderson who murdered her mother during a psychotic episode. It turned out that the NHS Trust was negligent in its care and she should never have been in a position to commit this awful act in the first place. She claimed damages from the NHS Trust for their negligence and the Supreme Court was asked to consider if her criminal action should serve as a bar to her claim. Music from bensound....
When Maria Grondona committed mortgage fraud she didn't think that her plans would inadvertently fall apart because of the negligence of her solicitors. She pursued a claim for professional negligence but the key question in that case was whether that claim should be allowed to proceed given her own illegal activities. In this episode we also consider the development of case law since the 2016 decision in Patel v Mirza. Subscribe to the newsletter: https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe Musi...
When Mr. Pathan submitted his immigration application everything appeared to be in order. However the Home Office later decided to take away the sponsorship licence form his employer leaving his application doomed to failure. In this episode we discuss whether the Secretary of State was under a duty to let Mr. Pathan know about this development and if he should have time to rectify the issue. Music from bensound.com
When Z and her family needed social housing she turned to her local council for support. Unfortunately the search took longer than expected because one of the charities that provides such accommodation only does so for members of the Orthodox Jewish community. In this anti-discrimination case the Supreme Court has to balance the needs of those who require housing against the aims and wishes of charitable organisations. Music from bensound.com
Animal welfare concerns also enter into the slaughterhouse to ensure that animals are killed in as humane a way as possible without any unnecessary cruelty. When a slaughterhouse was charged with two offences a debate arose as to what level of intent was required. On this episode we discuss the implications of strict liability in a criminal law context and how animal welfare might be affected by Brexit. Music from bensound.com
A fire at a Russian power plant led to the insurance company raising questions about the quality of the construction work. While there is an arbitration agreement in the contract it was unclear whether this was governed by English law or Russian law and so the Supreme Court had to find an answer. Music from bensound.com
A breach of several patents raises questions about the operation of intellectual property law in the mobile phone market and the behaviour of certain Chinese companies. The Supreme Court decides on a range of issues including the impact of competition law in this area. Music from bensound.com
In order to attract a major retailer to his new shopping centre Mr Shortall agreed that Dunnes Stores would not have any competitors on the site. After a few years and with the shopping centre struggling to attract customers Shortall tried to get out of the agreement. In this judgment the Supreme Court had to decide whether the promise was a restraint of trade. Music from bensound.com
What were the motivations of a person who is now dead? That was the question before the court in this tax case as a dispute with HMRC arose in relation to the payment of inheritance tax. Music from bensound.com
A breach of a chartering contract brought up allegations of torture and the Supreme Court had to decide how such evidence should be reviewed in the English courts. Music from bensound.com
When a messy divorce spilled over into the way that a charity is organised the deciding vote remained with one member. Whether the courts should step in to ensure that justice is done is the subject of this case before the Supreme Court. Music from bensound.com
When Mark Sutherland agreed to meet up with a child he had talked to via a dating app he did not expect to be met by a group of paedophile hunters. After the correspondence was handed over to the police its use as evidence was challenged for being a breach of the right to private life. In this human rights case it was for the Supreme Court to decide how far the rights go to protect even those convicted of the most heinous offences. Music from bensound.com
Avoiding the consequences of a judgment by transferring money to a different account is probably one of the least honest things that you can do. However in this case the attempt to recover that loss looked to be prevented by something called the 'reflective loss principle'. It is up to the Supreme Court to decide how this principle should operate and we discuss whether such a principle has any place in the UK legal system at all. Music from bensound.com
A divorce application in Scotland sits alongside a maintenance application in England. In this case the Supreme Court has to decide how feasible this is in line with relevant EU law. Music from bensound.com
After a confiscation order was made against a benefits fraudster questions were raised about its validity. The court had not given other persons with an interest in the relevant property a chance to make their own representations. In this appeal the Supreme Court was asked to make a close analysis of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Music from bensound.com
How time limits on claims work can often feel very technical but they have a significant impact when there is money on the line. This case looks at a claim made by a bingo company amid questions about how VAT should be charged on games. We also look at what the decision means for the way HMRC operates as well as bingo in the time of coronavirus. Music from bensound.com
As the research to find a vaccine for the coronavirus continues in earnest the case in this episode involves a patent that might hold part of the answer. The dispute gets to the heart of patent law and the balance that has to be struck between protecting the rights of inventors while at the same time encouraging new and continued innovation. We also discuss how this operates in practice in the pharmaceutical industry. Music from bensound.com
The relationship between siblings is an important part of family life and this case considers the human rights implications of that relationship in the context of children's hearings in Scotland. Does an older brother or sister have a right to their say in what should happen to their sibling? Music from bensound.com
In the building industry speed and efficiency are the most important factors when it comes to dispute resolution. That is put to the test in this case where an electrical contractor enters into insolvency and the liquidator is left to sort out the financial mess left behind. Music from bensound.com
Most consumers don't think twice about what happens behind the scenes when they use their card to pay for something in a supermarket but for the stores themselves this is a point of contention. In this case they take on the card companies for alleged anti-competitive practices and the Supreme Court is offered the opportunity to consider a wide range of issues. In this episode we also have a broader discussion of economics and the law. Music from bensound.com
A defamation case raises much wider questions about the capability of the judiciary in England and Wales. Music from bensound.com
Fowler is a seabed diver who lives in South Africa but works in the UK. HMRC wanted him to pay income tax here but Fowler relied on an interesting provision in the law to resist. In this episode we explore how judicial interpretation can change in response to legislation. Music from bensound.com
The case in this week's episode is all about supermarket ATMs and how they are taxed. Do they belong to the banks because they operate the machines or do they belong to the supermarkets because they are on their property? Music from bensound.com
How do you define what is and isn't a building? That is the question facing the Supreme Court this week and we also take the opportunity to analyse the question in the context of listed buildings. Music from bensound.com
Irish republican Gerry Adams was subject to an interim custody order in 1973 but now seeks to challenge it on the basis of new evidence that suggests the order should have been signed by the Secretary of State. We discuss whether this is a mere technicality and what consequences the decision of the Supreme Court will have. Music from bensound.com
When Dr. Duval found out that her landlord had granted her neighbour a licence to carry out structural work to their shared property she was not happy and brought a claim for breach of the lease. On the one hand the agreement doesn't specifically ban the granting of a licence but it does seem to impinge on the rights of the lessee. After finding out on which side the Supreme Court came down on we explore what impact this decision will have on landlord/tenant relations. Music from bensound.com
