The last 12 months have provided fertile ground for many significant judgments concerning inquest law. In Episode 136, Emma-Louise Fenelon speaks to Rachel Marcus and Jim Duffy about the developments practitioners will need to know about.  The episode mentions:  Rushbrooke v HM Coroner for West London [2020] EWHC 1612 (Admin)  R (Maughan) v Senior Coroner for Oxfordshire   See Owain Thomas’ piece on this here See the Chief Coroner’s Law Sheet No. 6…

In the News: Having been temporarily suspended in early January as a result of an increase in COVID-19 cases, the Grenfell Tower Inquiry hearings resumed on 8 February 2021. The fire killed 72 people. The hearings are being conducted remotely using a Zoom-based video platform, which the Inquiry describes as “a temporary measure to be used only for as long as absolutely necessary”. The Inquiry conducted Phase 1 of the investigation, which focused on…

In an earlier post I discussed the problem of “vaccine hesitancy” and  written evidence to Parliament to Parliament outlining ways in which a vaccination against Covid-19 without consent could be put on a par with capacity under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and with Section 3 of the Mental Health Act 1983. Since the announcement of successful clinical trials for the vaccination was made in mid-December, the prospect of population-wide vaccinations has become a…

The change will affect cases heard in criminal courts in England and Wales, from the Magistrates’ Courts to the Old Bailey (pictured) On 8 February 2020, small but significant changes were made to the Part 3 (Case Management) of the Criminal Procedure Rules and Practice Directions 2020 (“CrimPR”).  These changes remove the requirement that defendants in criminal trials provide their nationality to the court at preliminary hearings. The question is now to be asked only…

Snowed in while locked down? What would be more cheering reading than news from one of the no-frills airlines that there will soon be a fast track for vaccinated passengers to leave these shores for balmy Mediterranean beaches, or as the ad puts it “sunshine destinations”. Ryanair recently put out the slogan Jab and Go This advertising campaign, encouraging consumers to book flights following the roll out of the UK vaccination programme, might have been…

R (Salvato) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2021] EWHC 102 (Admin) As any working parent will tell you, childcare is expensive.  Unlike in some other European countries, there is no universal provision of free or affordable childcare for school age children in the UK.  This can create a barrier for parents, especially lone parents, returning to work. There is some support in the system of universal credit, a means-tested benefits for families…

Air pollution is particularly high in Bangladesh, the asylum seeker’s country of origin On 18 December of last year, a judgment was handed down by the cour administrative d’appel à Bordeaux (the appeals court of the administrative court of Bordeaux) which, until quite recently, went under the international radar. In a landmark judgment, the Court ruled that the respondent, an asylum seeker from Bangladesh (‘Mr A’), could not be returned to his country of origin…