Commentary
News, analysis, comment and updates from ICLR's case law and UK legislation platform
How the family courts were induced to deliver open justice by caesarean section There is a story here which is a sad one, about a woman and her baby, and how they were separated, and why. It is a story that has been subject to a good deal of comment, even outrage, not all of… Continue reading about The Curious Case of The Court, The Commentators, The Woman, and Her Baby
The recent decision by a Crown Court judge requiring a Muslim woman defendant to remove her niqaab (face-covering veil) when giving evidence in her own defence, but permitting her to keep it on during the rest of the trial, has prompted a good deal of comment in the social media. The reasons given by His… Continue reading about Further reflections on the niqab ruling
A Muslim woman appearing as a defendant in the Crown Court could be required to remove her niqaab when giving evidence, though she was free to wear it during other parts of the trial. To limit the restriction on her religious freedom, she would be permitted to give evidence from behind a screen, shielding her… Continue reading about Judge Murphy’s ruling in R v D (R) on wearing of niqaab in court
In a recent Commercial case Standard Bank plc v Via Mat International Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 490 the Court of Appeal drew attention to Khader v Aziz (Note) [2010] 1 WLR 2673, reiterated its warning against the unnecessary length of skeleton arguments and reminded parties of the possibility of the sanction of adverse costs orders.… Continue reading about Nothing new under the sun: prolix pleaders then and now
At a time when Parliament is considering whether to legalise same-sex marriage, and when modern medicine has severed the links between sex and procreation, Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division, giving the latest ICLR Annual Lecture, pointed to the “immense gulf” which separates our world from that of the Victorians, and asked how… Continue reading about Modern marriage defined: a spectrum that includes many shades of grey? A very Jamesian problem
If a party is charged with drawing up an order it is the duty of its solicitors and counsel to produce a draft that fairly reflects what they think the judge decided or directed. Thus spake Edwards-Stuart J on 14 March 2013 giving judgment in Webb Resolutions Ltd v JV Ltd (trading as Shepherd Chartered… Continue reading about Contumelious: the order of the day
Although it may only be of persuasive authority, the ruling on the defence of marital coercion raised in the trial of Vicky Pryce is of interest to criminal practitioners and, thanks to the invaluable Crimeline Updater, and the judge having withdrawn reporting restrictions, is now available online here. Ms Pryce was unanimously found guilty by… Continue reading about Marital coercion: the ruling in R v Pryce
Heartbroken That’s presumably how the defendants must feel in the case of Henderson v All Around The World Recordings Ltd [2013] EWPCC 7 after Judge Birss QC, sitting in the Patents County Court last week, upheld a claim by the singer Jodie Aysha for a share in the royalties from her hit song of that… Continue reading about Where there’s a hit, there’s a writ
The law of patents is not always patently clear, but one point is obvious. The question of obviousness is not one that admits of endless elaboration. It is, in fact, obvious. In a judgment handed down yesterday, MedImmune Ltd v Novartis Pharm…… Continue reading about An obvious observation about obviousness
Court cases can be dramatic and riveting; but all too often they turn out to be rather dull and may prompt more than simply an idle yawn or drooping lid. … Continue reading about Court Napping
