Cart v Upper Tribunal and Eba v Advocate General were both heard in the Supreme Court on 14 March 2011. At issue was the amenability of statutory tribunals designated superior courts of record to judicial review. On 22 June the Supreme Court ruled that decisions of the Upper Tribunal are not immune from judicial review by […]
Adams v Secretary of State for Justice
May 11, 2011
The case concerned the definition of ‘miscarriage of justice’ for the purposes of statutory compensation under section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. On 11 May 2011 by a majority of 5-4, the UK Supreme Court rejected the government’s arguments that only people who could prove their innocence would be entitled to compensation for […]
Stop and search under the Terrorism Act 2000
December 19, 2010
What is stop and search? ‘Stop and search’ is the general term used to describe the power of police (and occasionally other officials) to search members of the public in various contexts. For example, section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 gives police officers a general power to stop and search any […]
The coalition response to terrorism and torture
What has the coalition government done so far? Very little, but it has promised a great deal. In July, the new Home Secretary Theresa May MP announced a ‘rapid review’ of counter-terrorism powers. That review was originally due to report in early October but is now expected to be delayed by at least several weeks. […]
Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Bill
November 11, 2010
This bill was presented as emergency legislation in response to the Cadder judgment handed down on 26 October 2010 by the UK Supreme Court. The legislation came into force as the Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Act 2010 on 29 October 2010. The Act made significant amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) […]
Cadder v HM Advocate
October 26, 2010
This case was a devolution appeal from Scotland to the Supreme Court and concerned fair trial rights in Scotland. At issue was whether a suspect detained by the police has the right to speak with and be represented by a lawyer in the police station – a right long held in England, Wales and Northern […]
Procedural safeguards in the EU
December 19, 2009
What are procedural safeguards? The term ‘procedural safeguards’ refers to the protections afforded to a defendant in the course of criminal proceedings. The European Commission Green Paper and Proposal for a Council Framework Decision on procedural safeguards adopted the phrase to refer to this aspect of criminal procedure in the area of police and judicial […]
International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)
What is the International Commission of Jurists? The ICJ is an international non-governmental organisation which promotes human rights and the rule of law. Its membership consists of sixty eminent jurists from around the world. Its new President is Mary Robinson, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and former President of the Republic of […]
The Lisbon Treaty
Why is the Lisbon Treaty necessary? The current treaty base to the European Union (EU) has developed between 1958 when the European Economic Community (EEC) was formed and the 2003 Nice Treaty. The founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) comprised of six member states. The 15 member states that approved the […]
The parole system of England and Wales
What is Parole? ‘Parole’, a word originally meaning ‘word of honour’, is used in modern-day England and Wales to describe the release of a prisoner on licence by the Parole Board while his or her sentence is still ongoing. ‘Conditional’ release occurs in circumstances where the sentence is still ongoing and the prisoner can be […]