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Would a second EU referendum be undemocratic?
It is only four days since the UK public narrowly voted to leave the European Union. A lot of people are now arguing for a second referendum. But would that be democratic? Like many people who voted...
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One trade freedom we could do without
Supporters of Brexit and campaigners for animal welfare are not natural bedfellows. And indeed my quick poll of the intuitive reaction to Thursday’s vote revealed anxiety about a future race to the...
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UN Committee “seriously concerned” about the impact of austerity on human rights
The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) has published a damning report on the UK’s implementation of economic, social and cultural rights. The report is available here (under...
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Fertility regulator wrongfully denied consent for mother’s surrogacy
M, R (on the application of) Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority [2016] EWCA Civ 611 (30 June 2016) The Court of Appeal has ruled that a 60 year old woman may use her daughter’s frozen eggs to...
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Strasbourg Court rules on “excessive” length of Scottish criminal proceedings
Photo credit: The Guardian O’Neill and Lauchlan v. United Kingdom, nos. 41516/10 and 75702/13, 28 June 2016 – read judgment. The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that criminal proceedings...
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Book Review – Marshall Hall: A Law Unto Himself by Sally Smith
Owain Thomas QC reviews this new book by 1 Crown Office Row’s own Sally Smith QC. Sally Smith’s wonderful new biography of the great Edwardian advocate Edward Marshall Hall is the first reappraisal of...
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Pressing the Red Button on Rights – Joelle Grogan
Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) is the red button for the nuclear option of withdrawal from the EU, and in its design, it was never really, truly envisioned to be pressed. Without...
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Lights in the Dark: My speech to the Withington Girls’ School’s Model United...
I gave the keynote speech at yesterday’s 8th Annual Withington Girls’ School’s Model United Nations Conference. It was an honour to be asked, especially as it was only a few hundred meters from where...
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Get out the back, Jack? make a new plan, Stan?
… well there aren’t exactly fifty ways to leave the European Union, but from the vociferous debate in legal as well as political circles we might be excused for thinking there are a great deal more....
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Another door closes for the Chagossians
In R (on the application of Bancoult (No 2)) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs [2016] UKSC 35, the Supreme Court last week dismissed the attempt to set aside the House of...
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The Chilcot Report – an Illegal War?
More than 7 years after Gordon Brown first announced that a public Inquiry would be conducted to identify lessons that could be learned from the Iraq conflict, the Chilcot report was finally published...
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Book review: “The Inquest Book: The Law of Coroners and Inquests” edited by...
As we mentioned here, ‘The Inquest Book: The Law of Coroners and Inquests’, edited by Caroline Cross and Neil Garnham and written by members of 1 Crown Office Row, was published last month. The...
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Justice for everyone: another Grayling reform bites the dust
R (on the application of Public Law Project) v Lord Chancellor [2016] UKSC 39 Supreme Court bins the Government’s residence test for legal aid as ultra vires: just as the latest non-lawyer assumes the...
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Whose fair trial prevails?
Da Costa and another v. Sargaco [2016] EWCA Civ 764 14 July 2016 read judgment Two people say they owned motorbikes which they kept outside their house – until, it is said, the bikes were mown down...
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How will human rights fare under new PM Theresa May? – the Round-up
In the news Theresa May has been sworn in as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prompting speculation about the impact her leadership will have on human rights. The former Home Secretary has been a...
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Should asylum seekers take action to avoid persecution on the ground of...
Secretary of State for the Home Department v MSM (Somalia) and UNHCR (Intervener) [2016] EWCA Civ 715 – Read judgment The Court of Appeal dismissed the Secretary of State’s appeal challenging the Upper...
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The Round-up: Counter-Extremism Bill – Counter-Productive?
Photo Credit: Steve Parsons/PA In the News In a new report on the much-delayed Counter-Extremism Bill, the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) has concluded that the proposed legislation is...
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Scottish Government’s Named Persons scheme incompatible with Article 8
The Christian Institute and others (Appellants) v The Lord Advocate (Respondent) (Scotland) [2016] UKSC 51 – read judgment here The Supreme Court has today unanimously struck down the Scottish...
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The breaking down of the European Convention on Human Rights, and the UK’s...
Photo credit: the Guardian Numerous members of the new Government have stated that they want a greater role in the world for a post-Brexit UK, rather than a diminished one. If the Government is to be...
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What lies do to claims – the Supreme Court
Hayward v. Zurich [2016] UKSC 48 27 July 2016 read judgment and Versloot Dredging BV v HDI Gerling Industrie Versicherung AG [2016] UKSC, 20 July 2016 read judgment Twin doses of dishonesty in the...
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