Tag: Human Rights

Lisa Smith, Regina (on the Application of) v South Norfolk Council: Admn 10 Nov 2006

The claimant gypsies had bought and moved onto land in Norfolk and stayed there in breach of planning enforcement notices. The inspector upheld the notices, but advised the Council of the difficulties in finding sites and had stayed enforcement for a year. The claimants now said that it was unlawful of the council to use its s178 powers to evict them.
Held: The Council had balanced the removal of the group against the extension of time, and took the view that at the expiry of that time, the notices had to be enforced or else the process of enforcement, appeal, and public respect for it would be set at naught. Developments since had made one site available with planning permission, and the decision must be re-considered in the light of the current position. The use of section 178 powers was not disproportionate.

Judges:

Ouseley J

Citations:

[2006] EWHC 2772 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, Town and Country Planning Act 1990 178

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Cited – South Buckinghamshire District Council and Another v Porter (No 2) HL 1-Jul-2004
Mrs Porter was a Romany gipsy who bought land in the Green Belt in 1985 and lived there with her husband in breach of planning control. The inspector gave her personal permission to continue use, and it had been appealed and cross appealed on the . .
Cited – Regina (O’Brien) v Basildon District Council Admn 2006
There is no inherent restriction on the powers in section 178 to prevent a planning authority using them for the purposes of evicting people using land for a residential purpose in breach of an enforcement notice which had taken effect. It would not . .
Cited – Regina (Yaser Mahmood) v Secretary of State for Home Department Admn 9-Aug-2001
The Home Secretary had served notice that the applicant was an illegal immigrant, and liable to deportation. An order had been made for the cross examination of the applicant. He had come to England to study, but soon dropped his immediate plans. He . .
Cited – Wilson v Secretary of State for Trade and Industry; Wilson v First County Trust Ltd (No 2) HL 10-Jul-2003
The respondent appealed against a finding that the provision which made a loan agreement completely invalid for lack of compliance with the 1974 Act was itself invalid under the Human Rights Act since it deprived the respondent lender of its . .
Cited – Secretary of State for Defence v Elias CA 10-Oct-2006
The claimant said that a scheme drawn by the defendant for compensating British civilians interned by the Japanese during the second world war was indirectly discriminatory on racial grounds by requiring a national origin link with the UK. She had . .
Cited – Begum (otherwise SB), Regina (on the Application of) v Denbigh High School HL 22-Mar-2006
The student, a Muslim wished to wear a full Islamic dress, the jilbab, but this was not consistent with the school’s uniform policy. She complained that this interfered with her right to express her religion.
Held: The school’s appeal . .
Cited – Elias, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for Defence and Another Admn 7-Jul-2005
. .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Planning, Discrimination, Human Rights

Updated: 08 July 2022; Ref: scu.245978

Murungaru v Secretary of State for the Home Department and others: Admn 4 Oct 2006

The claimant challenged the decision of the respondent that his continued presence in the UK would not be conducive to the public good. He had been given multiple entry visas which had been revoked.
Held: The refusal of entry interfered with the peaceful enjoyment of the claimant’s possessions (the right to obtain medical treatment), under the Convention, requiring justification in the public interest. However the Court could not determine this issue or the procedural challenges without examining the closed material. The court considered the appointment of a special counsel. ‘Once proportionality is engaged, and once that issue depends to any significant extent upon material which the claimant cannot see, then in my judgment fairness requires where his Convention rights are engaged that his interests are represented by an advocate who can make submissions to the court. Accordingly, in my view, the application for the appointment of special counsel is well-founded.’

Judges:

Keith J

Citations:

[2006] EWHC 2416 (Admin)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights

Citing:

Cited – In Re K (Infants) CA 2-Jan-1963
The court discussed the need for those appearing before tribunals to be given sufficient access to all the material placed before the judge. Upjohn LJ said: ‘It seems to be fundamental to any judicial inquiry that a person or other properly . .
Cited – Roberts v Parole Board HL 7-Jul-2005
Balancing Rights of Prisoner and Society
The appellant had been convicted of the murder of three police officers in 1966. His tariff of thirty years had now long expired. He complained that material put before the Parole Board reviewing has case had not been disclosed to him.
Held: . .
Cited – Regina v H; Regina v C HL 5-Feb-2004
Use of Special Counsel as Last Resort Only
The accused faced charges of conspiring to supply Class A drugs. The prosecution had sought public interest immunity certificates. Special counsel had been appointed by the court to represent the defendants’ interests at the applications.

Cited by:

See Also – Murungaru, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department Admn 30-Nov-2006
The applicant, a former minister in the Government of Kenya challenged the revocation of entry visas. This had been done on the basis of evidence withheld from him, and the court considered the way in which that evidence could be used by the use of . .
See Also – Murungaru v Secretary of State for the Home Department and others CA 12-Sep-2008
The claimant was a former Kenyan minister. He had been visiting the UK for medical treatment. His visas were cancelled on the basis that his presence was not conducive to the public good. Public Interest Immunity certificates had been issued to . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Immigration, Human Rights

Updated: 07 July 2022; Ref: scu.245359

Martinie v France: ECHR 12 Apr 2006

The Grand Chamber said: ‘The Court reiterates that the public character of proceedings before the judicial bodies referred to in art 6(1) protects litigants against the administration of justice in secret with no public scrutiny; it is also one of the means whereby confidence in the courts, superior and inferior, can be maintained. By rendering the administration of justice visible, publicity contributes to the achievement of the aim of art 6(1), namely a fair trial, the guarantee of which is one of the fundamental principles of any democratic society.
Art 6(1) does not, however, prohibit courts from deciding, in the light of the special features of the case submitted to them, to derogate from this principle. Holding proceedings, whether wholly or partly, in camera, must be strictly required by the circumstances of the case.’

Citations:

58675/00, [2006] ECHR 392

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Cited by:

Cited – Aziz v Aziz and others CA 11-Jul-2007
The claimant sought return of recordings and of money paid to the defendant through an alleged fraud or threats. She was the former wife of the Sultan of Brunei and head of state, who now sought an order requiring the court to protect his identity . .
See Also – Martinie v France ECHR 15-Sep-2010
. .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights

Updated: 07 July 2022; Ref: scu.243683

Bennett v Commissioners of Customs and Excise (No 2): ChD 27 Feb 2001

There was nothing to prevent the Commissioners withdrawing one assessment and replacing it with another even after an adjudication on the first by a tribunal, but they could not do this in such a way as to attempt to relitigate the issues determined.

Citations:

Gazette 29-Mar-2001, Times 27-Feb-2001

Statutes:

Value Added Tax Act 1994 73, Human Rights Act 1998

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Human Rights, VAT

Updated: 07 July 2022; Ref: scu.78340

Dr D, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for Health: CA 19 Jul 2006

The doctor complained of the use of Alert letters where he was suspected of sexual abuse of patients, but the allegations were unsubstantiated. He complained particularly that he had been acquitted in a criminal court and then also by the professional conduct committee of the GMC.
Held: There had been very poor administration of the issue of the letter, but the failures did not assist the claimant. The core submission was that the charge having been dismissed by the committee, it was unlawful to issue the letter on the same basis: ‘the more serious a public authority’s interference with an individual’s interests, the more substantial will be the justification which the court will require if the interference is to be permitted. ‘ There was in this case a pressing need to inform the employer that 6 women had separately made accusations against the doctor, even though no convictions had followed.

Judges:

Ward LJ, Laws LJ, Longmore LJ

Citations:

Times 28-Aug-2006, [2006] EWCA Civ 989

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Cited – Regina v Chief Constable of North Wales Police and Others Ex Parte Thorpe and Another; Regina v Chief Constable for North Wales Police Area and others ex parte AB and CB CA 18-Mar-1998
Public Identification of Pedophiles by Police
AB and CB had been released from prison after serving sentences for sexual assaults on children. They were thought still to be dangerous. They moved about the country to escape identification, and came to be staying on a campsite. The police sought . .
Cited – Regina (X) v Chief Constable of West Midlands Police CA 30-Jul-2004
The claimant had been accused of offences, but the prosecution had been discontinued when the child victims had failed to identify him. The police had nevertheless notified potential employers and he had been unable to obtain work as a social . .
Appeal from – Dr D v The Secretary of State for Health Admn 13-Dec-2005
There had been a series of unsubstantiated allegations against the doctor of sexual abuse of patients. He challenge the issue of an Alert Letter under the 1977 Act when further allegations were made. The complainants were not capable of giving . .
Cited – Associated Provincial Picture Houses Ltd v Wednesbury Corporation CA 10-Nov-1947
Administrative Discretion to be Used Reasonably
The applicant challenged the manner of decision making as to the conditions which had been attached to its licence to open the cinema on Sundays. It had not been allowed to admit children under 15 years of age. The statute provided no appeal . .
Cited – In Re V (Minors) (Sexual Abuse: Disclosure); In Re L (Sexual Abuse; Disclosure) CA 8-Oct-1998
In each case the local authority involved in care proceedings sought to disclose to others (another authority and the football league), information which had come to light regarding sexual improprieties of the parties to the cases. It was . .
Cited – Mullen, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department HL 29-Apr-2004
The claimant had been imprisoned, but his conviction was later overturned. He had been a victim of a gross abuse of executive power. The British authorities had acted in breach of international law and had been guilty of ‘a blatant and extremely . .
Cited – Regina v Local Authority and Police Authority in the Midlands ex parte LM 2000
The applicant owned a bus company whose contract with the local education authority for the provision of school bus services was terminated after the disclosure by the police and the social services department of a past investigation into an . .
Cited – Hammern v Norway ECHR 11-Feb-2003
The claimant was acquitted by a jury at trial and he then sought compensation for the period of his detention on remand. The test applied was whether ‘it is shown to be probable that he did not perform the act that formed the basis for the charge’. . .
Cited – Regina v Z (Prior acquittal) HL 22-Jun-2000
The defendant on a charge of rape had been tried and acquitted of the rape of different women on three previous occasions in three separate trials. The prosecution wished to call those three complainants to give similar fact evidence in support of . .
Cited – PG and JH v The United Kingdom ECHR 25-Sep-2001
The use of covert listening devices within a police station was an infringement of the right to privacy, since there was no system of law regulating such practices. That need not affect the right to a fair trial. The prosecution had a duty to . .
Cited – Regina (A) v Chief Constable of C QBD 2001
The court considered the disclosure of unproved allegations as between police forces. Police authorities had disclosed information concerning the claimant to each other and in one case to a local authority. The information related to allegations of . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Health Professions, Human Rights, Administrative

Updated: 07 July 2022; Ref: scu.243321

Sinclair Gardens Investments (Kensington) Ltd v Wang and others: LT 7 Jul 2006

LANDLORD AND TENANT – services charges – Section27A Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 as introduced by Section 155 Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 which came into force on 30 September 2003 – the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (Commencement No. 2 and Savings) England) Order 2003 – whether on an application made to a Leasehold Valuation Tribunal after 30 September 2003 the provisions of Section 27A(2) and (5) apply so as to enable LVT to exercise jurisdiction under Section 27A notwithstanding that the service charges claimed by the landlord were paid by the tenant before commencement date – Article 1 of the First Protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights – abuse of process.

Citations:

[2006] EWLands LRX – 89 – 2005

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Landlord and Tenant, Human Rights

Updated: 07 July 2022; Ref: scu.243176

Regina v G: CACD 12 Apr 2006

The defendant pleaded guilty to the rape of a twelve year old girl on the agreed basis that he had believed her to be 15, but had been advised that given her age, his belief was immaterial. He now appealed saying that the presumption infringed his human rights.
Held: The question was whether the section conflicted with the presumption of innocence. If it did it could be written down to become compliant. It was necessary to retain the distinction between innocence of criminal conduct and innocence of blameworthy conduct.The section did not infinge the defendant’s human rights, and the section did not require to be read down.

Judges:

Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers LCJ, Andrew Smith J, Wilkie J

Citations:

[2006] EWCA Crim 821, [2006] 1 WLR 2052, [2007] 1 Lloyds Rep IR 186, [2006] All ER (D) 185, [2006] 1 Lloyds Rep 500, [2006] Crim LR 930

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Sexual Offences Act 2003 5, European Convention on Human Rights 6.2

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

Cited – Sheldrake v Director of Public Prosecutions; Attorney General’s Reference No 4 of 2002 HL 14-Oct-2004
Appeals were brought complaining as to the apparent reversal of the burden of proof in road traffic cases and in cases under the Terrorism Acts. Was a legal or an evidential burden placed on a defendant?
Held: Lord Bingham of Cornhill said: . .
Cited – Salabiaku v France ECHR 7-Oct-1988
A Zairese national living in Paris, went to the airport to collect, as he said, a parcel of foodstuffs sent from Africa. He could not find this, but was shown a locked trunk, which he was advised to leave alone. He however took possession of it, . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Crime, Human Rights

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.242609

Karni v Sweden: ECHR 8 Mar 1988

(Commission) The applicant was a doctor who, on his return to Sweden, was entered on the list of those affiliated to the Social Security System which meant he could carry on a private medical practice and receive payment for treatment provided to those who might otherwise not be able to pay. New rules meant that he was removed from the list and so the investments he had made in equipment were lost and his practice closed down. The Commission decided that the loss of his affiliation did not amount to deprivation of a possession since he would, at least in theory, continue to practise with patients who would pay. But the Commission considered that ‘the vested interests in the applicant’s medical practice may be regarded as ‘possessions’ within the meaning of Article 1PI’. It said: ‘The question of affiliation to the Social Insurance system was a decisive element for the running of the practice.’

Citations:

11540/88, (1988) 55 DR 157

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Cited by:

Cited – Malik, Regina (on the Application of) v Waltham Forest PCT and Secretary of State for Health Admn 17-Mar-2006
The doctor had been suspended on full pay whilst allegations against him were investigated. He claimed that the suspension infringed his human rights and that his licence to practice was a possession.
Held: At the disciplinary proceedings: . .
Cited – Murungaru v Secretary of State for the Home Department and others CA 12-Sep-2008
The claimant was a former Kenyan minister. He had been visiting the UK for medical treatment. His visas were cancelled on the basis that his presence was not conducive to the public good. Public Interest Immunity certificates had been issued to . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights, Health Professions

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.242446

FN (Article 8, Removal, Viable Options) Eritrea: IAT 18 Apr 2006

IAT The assessment of an in-country Article 8 claim will normally first require consideration of (i) whether there are insurmountable obstacles to the appellant’s family accompanying him or her abroad and then second, (ii) whether even if there exist such obstacles, there is a viable option of an entry clearance application.
The fact that before being able to apply for entry clearance a person may have to perform military service in his country of origin will not normally be a factor of any significance in assessing the proportionality of a return in the context of Article 8.

Citations:

[2006] UKAIT 00044

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 8

Immigration, Human Rights

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.241834

Lawrence v Pembrokeshire County Council: QBD 11 May 2006

The defendants sought to have struck out the claim in negligence. The claim complained of breach of the claimant’s human rights by the defendant’s social worker in dealing with the claimant and her children

Judges:

Field J

Citations:

[2006] EWHC 1029 (QB)

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 8

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Negligence, Human Rights

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.241661

Hussain v The United Kingdom: ECHR 7 Mar 2006

The claimant had been acquitted in a criminal trial. He applied for a defendant’s costs order. He had faced a charge of interfering with witnesses, and in the case against him, a witness did not appear. The court refused the costs, commenting that ‘There is clear evidence on the court papers. The Crown have taken the view that they are not going to compel this witness although there is compelling evidence in respect of those matters.’
Held: The defendant having been acquitted, the judge’s comments and refusal of costs were incompatible with the presumption of innocence.

Citations:

Times 05-Apr-2006, 8866/04, [2006] ECHR 206

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Cited by:

See Also – Hussain v The United Kingdom ECHR 3-Jun-2010
. .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights, Criminal Practice

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.241286

Regina v Smith (Joe): CACD 20 Dec 2000

The defendant was arrested for burglary and a non-intimate sample taken without his consent. The DNA profile matched blood at the scene of the burglary, and this match was the bedrock of the prosecution case. Before the trial, prosecuting counsel applied ex parte to withhold disclosure of certain material. The defence were notified of the application but not of the category into which the material was said to fall. The judge ruled that the material should not be disclosed and the defence were so informed. The defence then submitted to the judge that the DNA evidence derived from the non-intimate sample should be excluded under section 78 on the ground that the police had had no reasonable grounds for suspecting the defendant of committing the burglary, and had not therefore been entitled to arrest him or take the sample. There was no evidence before the jury to show that the police had had reasonable cause to suspect the defendant of the burglary but the judge relied on the PII information to rule that the police had had reasonable grounds for suspicion and declined to exclude the DNA evidence.
Held: There is nothing in human rights law, or in common law jurisdiction to say that the use of material not disclosed to the defence in an ex parte application for a public interest immunity certificate, was a breach of the defendant’s article 6 right which guaranteed a fair trial. Here, the defendant’s arrest was challenged as unlawful. The police sought to justify the arrest on the basis that they had reasonable suspicion of his involvement in the offence, but they sought permission not disclose the basis of that reasonable suspicion, and there is no provision to allow a hearing with special counsel appointed to represent the defendant’s interest in such a situation, although this might be considered in future.

Citations:

Times 20-Dec-2000, [2001] 2 Cr App R 1, [2001] 1 WLR 1031

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights 6, Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 78

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

Cited – Regina v Dearman, Southgate CACD 8-Oct-2001
The appellants had been convicted of conspiracy to supply class A drugs. They appealed against conviction on the basis that the police and subsequently the prosecution involved lies or deceit intended to protect the identity of undercover detectives . .
Cited – Regina (Director of Public Prosecutions) v Acton Youth Court QBD 21-Jun-2001
It was not normally necessary for magistrates to excuse themselves from further involvement in a case after making preliminary rulings on a request for public immunity certificates. The purpose of that ex parte hearing was to ensure the protection . .
Cited – Regina v H; Regina v C CACD 16-Oct-2003
The defendants were charged with serious drugs offences. The prosecutor had applied for public interest immunity certificates. The judge had required the appointment of independent counsel. The prosecutor appealed.
Held: The same district . .
Not good law – Regina v H; Regina v C HL 5-Feb-2004
Use of Special Counsel as Last Resort Only
The accused faced charges of conspiring to supply Class A drugs. The prosecution had sought public interest immunity certificates. Special counsel had been appointed by the court to represent the defendants’ interests at the applications.
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights, Criminal Practice

Updated: 06 July 2022; Ref: scu.88670

Mursel Eren v Turkey: ECHR 7 Feb 2006

The annulment of a student’s examination results, which resulted in his being denied access to university, was held to violate A2P1.

Citations:

60856/00, [2006] ECHR 119, (2007) 44 EHRR 28

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights A2P1

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Cited by:

Cited – A v Essex County Council SC 14-Jul-2010
The claimant, a severely disabled child sought damages, saying that for well over a year, the local authority had made no provision for his education.
Held: His appeal against the striking out of his action failed. The correct approach had . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Human Rights, Education

Updated: 05 July 2022; Ref: scu.239508

Kearney v Her Majesty’s Advocate: PC 6 Feb 2006

(High Court of Justiciary Scotland) The Board considered the assessment of the independence of a judge.
Held: Lord Carswell said that independence has a separate significance, apart from ensuring impartiality between the parties to the cause, for it is also required to protect the judge from dependence upon, and against interference by, the Executive, whether the latter is a party to the litigation or not.

Judges:

Lord Bingham of Cornhill, Lord Hope of Craighead, Baroness Hale of Richmond, Lord Carswell, Lord Brown of Eaton-under-Heywood

Citations:

[2006] UKPC D1, [2006] HRLR 15, 2006 GWD 15-284, 20 BHRC 157, 2006 SLT 499, 2006 SCCR 130

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Scotland

Cited by:

Cited – Misick and Others v The Queen PC 25-Jun-2015
Turks and Caicos – The appellants, a former Chief Minister and others, faced a trial on charges of corruption. They objected that the Justice set to hear the case had insufficient security of tenure to guarantee independence, and that the same judge . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Crime, Natural Justice, Human Rights

Updated: 05 July 2022; Ref: scu.238742

Fabian v Hungary: ECHR 29 Aug 2017

ECHR suspension of Mr F’s old-age pension : Press Release
ECHR Judgment : Remainder inadmissible No violation of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 – Protection of property Article 1 para. 1 of Protocol No…

Citations:

78117/13, [2017] ECHR 741, [2017] ECHR 744

Links:

Bailii, Bailii

Statutes:

European Convention on Human Rights

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Human Rights

Updated: 04 July 2022; Ref: scu.607846

Wasilewski v Poland: ECHR 6 Dec 2005

ECHR Judgment (Merits and Just Satisfaction) – Violation of Art. 8; Non-pecuniary damage – financial award; Costs and expenses (domestic proceedings) – claim dismissed; Costs and expenses (Convention proceedings) – claim dismissed.

Citations:

63905/00, [2005] ECHR 823

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Human Rights

Updated: 04 July 2022; Ref: scu.236806

Mehmet Kaya v Turkey: ECHR 6 Dec 2005

ECHR Judgment (Merits and Just Satisfaction) – Violation of Art. 6-1; Pecuniary damage – claim dismissed; Non-pecuniary damage – financial award; Costs and expenses partial award – domestic proceedings; Costs and expenses partial award – Convention proceedings.

Citations:

36150/02, [2005] ECHR 816

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Human Rights

Updated: 04 July 2022; Ref: scu.236804

Federici v Italy (No. 2): ECHR 8 Dec 2005

ECHR Judgment (Merits and Just Satisfaction) – Violation of P1-1; Violation of Art. 6-1; Pecuniary damage – claim dismissed; Non-pecuniary damage – financial award; Costs and expenses partial award – domestic proceedings; Costs and expenses partial award – Convention proceedings.

Citations:

66327/01 ; 66556/01, [2005] ECHR 827

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Human Rights

Updated: 04 July 2022; Ref: scu.236818

Kosarevskaya v Ukraine: ECHR 6 Dec 2005

ECHR Judgment (Merits and Just Satisfaction) – Violation of Art. 6-1; Violation of P1-1; Violation of Art. 13; Non-pecuniary damage – financial award; Costs and expenses partial award – Convention proceedings.

Citations:

29459/03 ; 4935/04 ; 26996/04, [2005] ECHR 814

Links:

Worldlii, Bailii

Jurisdiction:

Human Rights

Human Rights

Updated: 04 July 2022; Ref: scu.236812