Law and the Justice System

Jury trials sit at the heart of the criminal justice system in England and Wales.  The opportunity to put your case before 12 of your peers is so fundamental to how we enact justice, many consider it to be a constitutional right. The Government’s recent proposal to suspend jury trials is a potential threat to the Rule of Law – i.e. a legal system that treats everyone equally and which you can access, no matter who you are.

https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/associate-news/suspension-of-jury-trials-a-threat-to-the-rule-of-law?utm_source=iContact%2BWeekly%2BNewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=legal-futures&utm_content=

MPs have today launched an inquiry to investigate delays in the court system and what should be done to clear the backlog of cases.

A High Court judge caught making critical comments of a mother in a care case because her laptop had not been disconnected from Zoom should have recused herself, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

The City of London Police has seized over £2m of criminal funds following a two year investigation into suspected money laundering.

Middlesbrough Town Hall, the Knights’ Chamber within the grounds of Peterborough Cathedral, and the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) headquarters in London are among the venues of the first ‘Nightingale courts’, the government announced yesterday.

The House of Lords has completed its consideration of legislation introduced by the Government to give businesses whose survival is impacted upon by COVID-19 the essential breathing space they need to plot a path to sustainable futures.

More than £1 million worth of assets have been recovered by the National Crime Agency (NCA) following a civil recovery investigation into a Nigerian fraudster and his long-term British partner, who both led extravagant lifestyles despite their combined declared annual income never exceeding £49,000.

https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/news/nigerian-serial-fraudster-and-british-partner-lose-more-than-1million-of-assets

14 July 2020: The National Audit Office has stated that vulnerable claimants struggle with Universal Credit and face financial difficulties, while administration costs are still too high.

On June 25, the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 received Royal Assent, and the majority of its provisions are now in force.

The Ministry of Justice is to begin a search for a new top civil servant following today’s announcement that Sir Richard Heaton will conclude his service later this summer when his five-year tenure as permanent secretary comes to an end. His departure, after nearly 30 years in the civil service, had been widely predicted following the effective dismissal of the Cabinet secretary in the Johnson administration’s ‘war on Whitehall’.