Contents for Volume 9 Number 1 Editorial Legal Aid: the end or not? Articles Human rights in 2011, Helen Mountfield QC The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights: scope and competence, Jodie Blackstock Building on Brighton: a foundation for the future of the European Court of Human Rights? Angela Patrick The internet and legal services for the poor, Roger Smith […]
Brighton Declaration on the Future of the ECHR
April 13, 2012
Together with other respected international and domestic NGOs, JUSTICE today urges diplomats heading to Brighton for negotiations on the future of the European Court of Human Rights to resist calls by the UK for amendment of the European Convention. The real focus of the conference must be the need for States across Europe to improve […]
‘No case for secret courts’
April 4, 2012
JUSTICE welcomes highly critical conclusions of parliament’s human rights committee Today Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights publishes a damning report critical of the Government’s Justice and Security Green Paper. Their conclusion that there is no convincing case for change echoes JUSTICE’s view that the expansion of secret evidence is unfair, unnecessary and unjustifiable. Press […]
JUSTICE urges states to treat UK European Court proposals with caution
March 13, 2012
Marking the publication of the latest joint NGO statement as proposals on the draft Brighton declaration on the future of the European Court of Human Rights come to a close, JUSTICE calls on States to focus on better national implementation of human rights standards over measures likely to undermine the long-term future of the European […]
JUSTICE criticises UK shopping list of reforms for the European Court of Human Rights
March 6, 2012
Judicial appointments: Ministers should decide on recommendations not participate in process
February 9, 2012
The Lord Chancellor should keep out of the process of judicial appointment until names are advanced by the Judicial Appointments Commission, JUSTICE said today in its response to a Ministry of Justice consultation. The consultation proposes that, for a number of senior judicial appointments, the Lord Chancellor should be part of the appointment process. This […]
Rabone v Pennine Care NHS Trust
February 8, 2012
In this case, the Court was asked to consider whether there is a preventive operational obligation under Article 2 of the ECHR to informal psychiatric patients to safeguard their lives when at risk of suicide. Also, whether parents of the deceased are victims for the purposes of bringing a claim under the Human Rights Act. […]
Rabone & Anor v Pennine Care NHS Foundation [2012]
Lady Hale [95]: “People suffering from mental disorders have the same human rights as everyone else and are entitled to enjoy those rights without discrimination on account of their mental status.” Facts In April 2005, Melanie Rabone was admitted to a hospital operated by the Defendant as an emergency following a suicide attempt. Although assessed […]
Police Powers and Public Order Consultation
February 3, 2012
The Consultation paper recognises JUSTICE’s previous work recommending reform of Section 5, Public Order Act 1986 (“POA”). In our response to the previous consultation on this issue in 2009, we called for broad reform of Section 5 and indicated that the removal of the “insulting” element of the offence should be at a minimum accompanied […]
Justice and Security Green Paper JCHR Inquiry
JUSTICE is deeply concerned that the language used in the Green Paper obscures a series of proposals which would lead to a fundamental shift in the administration of civil justice in this country. Whilst we welcome the Government’s recognition that reform is needed to increase the effectiveness and transparency of independent oversight mechanisms for the […]