In this paper we discuss some important recent civil /commercial law appeals to the Privy Council. We consider how successful claims to the Privy Council can result from new landmark decisions made by the UK Supreme Courts. Although the appeals emanate from the Caribbean, they involve often complex legal issues which concern other international jurisdictions and have broader impact.
In December 2020 the Government announced it was setting up an Independent Human Rights Act Review chaired by Sir Peter Gross, the former Lord Justice of Appeal. On 16 December 2021 the Review published its final report. On the same day the Deputy Prime Minister and new Justice Minister, Dominic Rabb, announced a packet of proposals to launch a new British Bill of Rights.The impact of these proposals will be profound. In this article Richard Clayton outlines what the proposals will involve and will assess the impact of those proposals.
On 6 October 2021 the Privy Council granted permission to appeal to a case from the Bahamas brought by an NGO, Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA) which Richard Clayton has been working on. The appeal will consider whether orders for security for costs breach constitutional rights.
On 6 October 2021 the Privy Council granted permission to appeal to a case from the Bahamas brought by an NGO, Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA) which Richard Clayton has been working on. The appeal will consider whether orders for security for costs breach constitutional rights.
Since the Norman Conquest the Privy Council has been the cabinet through which the monarch governed England. Its jurisdiction was based on the idea that “the King is the fountain of all justice throughout his dominions and exercises jurisdiction in his Council, which acts in an advisory capacity to the Crown”. In 1900 the Privy Council exercised jurisdiction over one fifth of the globe and a quarter of its population. Now it is an appellate court for 0.1% of the world’s population – retained by 14 Commonwealth countries and 10 British Overseas Territories.
On 24 May 2021 the Privy Council gave an important judgment, stressing the wide-ranging scope and effect of the constitutional right to protection of the law. In Commissioner of Prisons v Seepersad [2021] UKPC 13 the Board considered whether detaining children in adult prison in contrary to Trinidad legislation designed to protect children in custody breached constitutional rights.
In Southwark LBC v Ludgate House [2020] EWCA Civ 1637 the Court of Appeal considered for the first time whether property guardians were effective as way of mitigating the liability to pay business rates.
In 2018 Richard Clayon was instructed to defend several judicial review claims in Trinidad brought against a Commission of Enquiry concerning the construction of the Las Alturas Housing Towers.
In Southwark LBC v Ludgate House [2020] EWCA Civ 1637 the Court of Appeal considered for the first time whether property guardians were effective as way of mitigating the liability to pay business rates.
On 2 April 2019 the Trinidad Court of Appeal gave judgment in Sturge v DPP Cr. App. No. P 047 of 2017, reversing the trial judge ‘s finding that defence counsel in a murder trial was guilty of summary contempt- and took the opportunity to lay down guidelines setting out principles of fairness which must be used in contempt cases.
In an important new judgment the Privy Council significantly altered the process for selecting judges by extending the membership of the Commission to non-lawyers.
These cases all have important implications for commercial practitioners but at least two provide opportunities for the Trinidad courts to choose their own direction.
As the relationship between Hong Kong and the People’s Republic of China becomes more problematic, the Hong Kong courts have been confronted with some sensitive issues.
The BHA challenged the lawfulness of a consultation on “Items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care” and NHSE’s subsequent decision to implement the proposals in respect of homeopathy by issuing guidance to Clinical Commissioning Groups.
Opinion on ensuring transparency of information on finance activity and changes to the tax code of Ukraine of public associations and of the use of international technical assistance.
Opinion on the draft acts amending the National Council of The Judiciary, The Supreme Court and The Organisation of Ordinary Courts proposed by the President of Poland.
Section 31(4) of the Senior Courts Act 1981 defines the circumstances in which the court may award damages, restitution or the recovery of a sum due on a claim for judicial review.
Parliament is obliged to give effect to the democratic will which the Brexit referendum expressed. But what if the Courts had been given the opportunity to adjudicate on whether the referendum was disfigured by false statements made by the official campaigning bodies?
Austerity Britain is shrinking the public sector and accelerating the process of contracting out services. However, the legal protections contracting out gives to service users are piecemeal and inadequate, raising very real concerns about how findings of unlawfulness are to be addressed.
The principle that a public body must consult on proposals which it has, itself, rejected has radical implications. Mosley has, on one view, changed legal landscape; and the courts are now wrestling with what this all means.
EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is a lengthy text that reflects the state of human rights law in the European Union at the time of its initial agreement.
The principal issues before the Supreme Court were whether the absolute exemption ended with the inquiry’s conclusion, either as a matter of ordinary construction or under the extended meaning permitted by s 3 of the HRA.
The implications of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for the development of the Human Rights Act (HRA) continue to be controversial.
Opinion on freedoms of conscience and religion, amendments to the criminal code, and the law on the relations between the Republic of Armenia and The Holy Armenian Apostolic Church.
A characteristic combination of caution, history and vision gives an important insight into the approach taken by Lord Bingham to human rights issues over his judicial career.
The Human Rights Act is rightly regarded as a constitutional statute. English law has traditionally had some difficulty in defining what is meant by constitutional.
The Deference principle, that the courts will decline to make their own independent judgment on a particular issue, is critical to a proper understanding of how the courts are to approach the HRA and in what circumstances it is legitimate for the courts to gainsay Parliament or the executive.
Claims for HRA damages in English Courts have been considered in very few cases. As a result, it is unlikely that HRA damages will significantly add to the effective protection of human rights.
Introduction I shall cover two topics: (1) breach of constitutional rights and the emergence of the proportionality principle; (2) […]
This seminar’s theme suggests that the Privy Council deals common law principles by imposing universal standards like Roman law- […]
Richard will speak in the Privy Council session in Goa on 5 March 2023 which says: The Common Law […]
On 31 January 2023 the Privy Council gave important guidelines on security for costs principles in RDA v Christie. […]
On 15 August 2022 the Privy Council in Estate of Dame Bernice Lake QC v AG of Anguilla [2022] […]
On 16 May 2022 a 9 judge panel of the Privy Council gave judgment in the important constitutional case […]
The Government explains its Proposals in its Human Rights Act Reform: A Modern Bill Of Rights A consultation to […]
In this paper we discuss some important recent civil /commercial law appeals to the Privy Council. We consider how successful claims to the Privy Council can result from new landmark decisions made by the UK Supreme Courts. Although the appeals emanate from the Caribbean, they involve often complex legal issues which concern other international jurisdictions and have broader impact.
PART 3: AN ASSESSMENT This article completes my analysis of the Government’s proposals for reform of the Human Rights […]
Part 2: An Assessment The Government explains its Proposals in its Human Rights Act Reform: A Modern Bill Of […]
In December 2020 the Government announced it was setting up an Independent Human Rights Act Review chaired by Sir Peter Gross, the former Lord Justice of Appeal. On 16 December 2021 the Review published its final report. On the same day the Deputy Prime Minister and new Justice Minister, Dominic Rabb, announced a packet of proposals to launch a new British Bill of Rights.The impact of these proposals will be profound. In this article Richard Clayton outlines what the proposals will involve and will assess the impact of those proposals.
On 6 October 2021 the Privy Council granted permission to appeal to a case from the Bahamas brought by an NGO, Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA) which Richard Clayton has been working on. The appeal will consider whether orders for security for costs breach constitutional rights.
On 6 October 2021 the Privy Council granted permission to appeal to a case from the Bahamas brought by an NGO, Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA) which Richard Clayton has been working on. The appeal will consider whether orders for security for costs breach constitutional rights.
Since the Norman Conquest the Privy Council has been the cabinet through which the monarch governed England. Its jurisdiction was based on the idea that “the King is the fountain of all justice throughout his dominions and exercises jurisdiction in his Council, which acts in an advisory capacity to the Crown”. In 1900 the Privy Council exercised jurisdiction over one fifth of the globe and a quarter of its population. Now it is an appellate court for 0.1% of the world’s population – retained by 14 Commonwealth countries and 10 British Overseas Territories.
On 24 May 2021 the Privy Council gave an important judgment, stressing the wide-ranging scope and effect of the constitutional right to protection of the law. In Commissioner of Prisons v Seepersad [2021] UKPC 13 the Board considered whether detaining children in adult prison in contrary to Trinidad legislation designed to protect children in custody breached constitutional rights.
In Southwark LBC v Ludgate House [2020] EWCA Civ 1637 the Court of Appeal considered for the first time whether property guardians were effective as way of mitigating the liability to pay business rates.
In 2018 Richard Clayon was instructed to defend several judicial review claims in Trinidad brought against a Commission of Enquiry concerning the construction of the Las Alturas Housing Towers.
In Southwark LBC v Ludgate House [2020] EWCA Civ 1637 the Court of Appeal considered for the first time whether property guardians were effective as way of mitigating the liability to pay business rates.
Three members of Exchequer Chambers were instructed in a fundamental challenge to the Loan Charge legislation, affecting about 40,000 taxpayers.
The Venice Commission is an advisory body of the Council of Europe, comprising independent experts in the field of constitutional law.
On 2 April 2019 the Trinidad Court of Appeal gave judgment in Sturge v DPP Cr. App. No. P 047 of 2017, reversing the trial judge ‘s finding that defence counsel in a murder trial was guilty of summary contempt- and took the opportunity to lay down guidelines setting out principles of fairness which must be used in contempt cases.
On 20 May 2019 the Privy Council decided an important case concerning the Trinidad Freedom of Information legislation.
The Venice Commission is an advisory body of the Council of Europe, comprising independent experts in the field of constitutional law.
In an important new judgment the Privy Council significantly altered the process for selecting judges by extending the membership of the Commission to non-lawyers.
These cases all have important implications for commercial practitioners but at least two provide opportunities for the Trinidad courts to choose their own direction.
Opinion on constitutional arrangements and separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary and law enforcement in Malta.
As the relationship between Hong Kong and the People’s Republic of China becomes more problematic, the Hong Kong courts have been confronted with some sensitive issues.
The BHA challenged the lawfulness of a consultation on “Items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care” and NHSE’s subsequent decision to implement the proposals in respect of homeopathy by issuing guidance to Clinical Commissioning Groups.
Opinion on ensuring transparency of information on finance activity and changes to the tax code of Ukraine of public associations and of the use of international technical assistance.
Opinion on Romanian draft law no. 140/2017 on amending governmental ordinance no. 26/2000 on associations and foundations.
Opinion on the draft acts amending the National Council of The Judiciary, The Supreme Court and The Organisation of Ordinary Courts proposed by the President of Poland.
Opinion on the provisions of the emergency decree Law n° 674 of 1 September 2016 which concern the exercise of local democracy in Turkey.
Comparisons with developments in other relevant human rights jurisdictions and their implications.
Rights issues have, undoubtedly, become centre stage after the enactment of human rights instruments.
There are many property rights issues for Hong Kong lawyers to grabble with now, and in future years.
Opinion on the draft law on the transparency of Hungarian organisations receiving support from abroad.
The House of Lords’ decision in A v Secretary of State for the Home Department is rightly regarded as a constitutional case of the highest importance.
Section 31(4) of the Senior Courts Act 1981 defines the circumstances in which the court may award damages, restitution or the recovery of a sum due on a claim for judicial review.
Opinion on questions relating to the appointment of Judges of the Constitutional Court in The Slovak Republic.
Parliament is obliged to give effect to the democratic will which the Brexit referendum expressed. But what if the Courts had been given the opportunity to adjudicate on whether the referendum was disfigured by false statements made by the official campaigning bodies?
The Court of Appeal handed down judgment in R(Watch Tower) v Charity but the claimants are seeking permission to appeal from the Supreme Court.
Austerity Britain is shrinking the public sector and accelerating the process of contracting out services. However, the legal protections contracting out gives to service users are piecemeal and inadequate, raising very real concerns about how findings of unlawfulness are to be addressed.
The relationship between common law and Convention rights, and the scope for their further development.
The impact of the Human Rights Act (the HRA) on regulatory work has been significant and wide ranging.
Opinion on the procedure for appointing Judges to the constitutional court in times of presidential transition in the Slovak Republic.
EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is a lengthy text that reflects the state of human rights law in the European Union at the time of its initial agreement.
The principal issues before the Supreme Court were whether the absolute exemption ended with the inquiry’s conclusion, either as a matter of ordinary construction or under the extended meaning permitted by s 3 of the HRA.
Opinion on “whether the Italian laws on defamation are in line with Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights” .
Opinion on the legislation pertaining to the protection against defamation of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Opinion on the Federal Law of the Russian Federation as amended by law of 8 June 2012.
The implications of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for the development of the Human Rights Act (HRA) continue to be controversial.
Opinion on amending federal law on assemblies, meetings, demonstrations, marches and picketing of The Russian Federation.
Opinion on freedoms of conscience and religion, amendments to the criminal code, and the law on the relations between the Republic of Armenia and The Holy Armenian Apostolic Church.
A characteristic combination of caution, history and vision gives an important insight into the approach taken by Lord Bingham to human rights issues over his judicial career.
The Human Rights Act is rightly regarded as a constitutional statute. English law has traditionally had some difficulty in defining what is meant by constitutional.
The Deference principle, that the courts will decline to make their own independent judgment on a particular issue, is critical to a proper understanding of how the courts are to approach the HRA and in what circumstances it is legitimate for the courts to gainsay Parliament or the executive.
Claims for HRA damages in English Courts have been considered in very few cases. As a result, it is unlikely that HRA damages will significantly add to the effective protection of human rights.
The legitimacy of Judicial Intervention under The Human Rights Act
Statutory interpretation under the Human Rights Act is a critical means by which the Act gives effect to Convention rights.