Following the ongoing fallout from the trial of the Colston Four, and amid much confusion caused by the way in which the complicated issues have been presented by commentators and politicians, it may help to say a little more about criminal damage. I would like to take a hypothetical situation, wholly unrelated to the Colston…
Read moreFake Law: An evening with Joshua Rozenberg QC, Joanna Hardy and The Secret Barrister
Tonight I had the privilege of appearing on a panel with Joshua Rozenberg QC and Joanna Hardy, at a live event for the Human Rights Lawyers’ Association. My words were voiced by the wonderful Joanne Kane. Should you wish to watch the discussion, it is available here:
Read moreGuest post by Dame Judi Bench: Exam Fiasco Part 2: Message in a bottle
I am pleased to host this guest blogpost by Dame Judi Bench. —————————— I just saw a picture of a bottle of yellow liquid in a bar exams. Those crazy students and their Lucozade That’s not Lucozade. Of course it is. That’s what all the kids drink during exams. It’s what I drank. It gave…
Read moreGuest post by Dame Judi Bench: The Bar exams are less exam and more Takeshi’s Castle
I am pleased to host this guest post from a pseudonymous contributor, looking at the exams fiasco facing this year’s Bar students. ——————————————– The Bar Exams in England and Wales are a funny thing. Ask the older generation and they’ll regale you with stories of their local authority paying for them, spending most of the…
Read moreThe UK government responded to Black Lives Matter – by protecting statues
I have written something for The Guardian about our politicians’ rush to create new criminal offences protecting statues. The piece can be found here.
Read moreGuest blogpost by Henry Blaxland QC: Does the buck stop? Legal liability for death from Covid
I am pleased to host this guest blogpost by Henry Blaxland QC of Garden Court Chambers. ________________________________ “If the government were an employee of mine I would have sacked them for gross negligence” – so said Anita Astley, manager of Wren Hall nursing home in Nottinghamshire, where 10 residents died from Covid-19 and 48 carers caught…
Read moreGuest post by Rebecca Penfold and Aparna Rao: Covid-19 and the right to protest
I am pleased to host this guest post by Rebecca Penfold of St John’s Buildings and Aparna Rao of 5 Paper Buildings. ___________________________________________________________ The death of George Floyd has sparked a wave of protests from Minneapolis to Manchester, Los Angeles to London. Never before has the international community been subject to such restrictions as those…
Read moreGuest post by Edward Henry QC: Reflections on the case of Cardinal Pell
I am pleased to host this guest post by Edward Henry QC, of QEB Hollis Whiteman, reflecting on the case of Pell v The Queen [2020] HCA 12, and what the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) in England and Wales can learn from the High Court of Australia. ————————– On 7th April Cardinal Pell was cleared by the…
Read moreDoes it matter that Quiz got the law so hopelessly wrong?
Last week, ITV premiered the three-part drama Quiz, based on the real-life story of the “coughing Major” Charles Ingram (who, despite his popular title, in fact engaged in no coughing himself), and his wife Diana, who along with co-conspirator Tecwen Whittock were convicted at Southwark Crown Court in 2003 of procuring the execution of a…
Read moreCOVID 19: A PROTOCOL TO ASSIST SOLICITORS WHO ARE WORKING REMOTELY AND ADVISING SUSPECTS IN RELATION TO POLICE INTERVIEWS
I am pleased to publish a protocol for solicitors advising suspects at police stations during the COVID-19 crisis. It has been drafted by Keir Monteith QC, Lucie Wibberley, Patrick Roche and Vicky Meads. The starting point is no one should put themselves at risk…. the opening paragraph states: We need to act now to protect the lives of solicitors…
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