Latest Cases

Criminal law – Indecency with child. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, held that a sentence of 24 months' imprisonment, suspended for 24 months, for three specimen counts of indecency with a child, contrary to s 1(1) of the Indecency with Children Act 1960, had been unduly lenient. A judge had to arrive at the right sentence on the offences before her and to guard against any temptation, because of what had happened in the intervening period, to suspend the sentence. The sentence would be quashed and substituted for a total term of three years and six months' imprisonment. 

Company – Scheme of arrangement. The Chancery Division adjourned a hearing to convene a single class of creditors to consider a scheme of arrangement in respect of the applicant company, Indah Kiat International Finance Company B.V. Among other things, it considered that 14 days was inadequate notice for a convening hearing for a scheme of the present type, which was neither simple nor straightforward. Even if the notice to the creditors had been adequate, an order convening a single meeting of scheme creditors would not have been made because the evidence adduced by the company as to the appropriate composition of the scheme meetings and draft explanatory statement were materially deficient in their current form. 

Extradition – Human Rights – Right to family life. Sheriff Court: Discharging a European Arrest Warrant in a case in which the German authorities sought the extradition of a Gambian national who was the mother of five children, one of whom was suffering from acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, to serve a 40-month prison sentence for drug trafficking, the court held that on balance the evidence led and the facts established revealed one of those genuinely rare and exceptional cases where the respondent's extradition to Germany would very likely, if ordered, have such a severe impact on the sick child as to constitute an unjustified and disproportionate interference with his and the respondent's right to a family life together and would accordingly be incompatible with their rights under art 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

Immigration – Appeal. The Administrative Court dismissed the Immigration Law Practitioners Association's application for judicial review. It held that r 13 of the Tribunal Procedure (First-Tier Tribunal) (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) Rules 2014, SI 2014/2604, permitting direction prohibiting disclosure to person in specified circumstances, did not give rise to a systemic or inherent lack of fairness. 

European Union – Action for annulment. The General Court of the European Union dismissed the action by Italian International Film Srl (IIFS) for annulment of the decision rejecting the application by IIFS for a grant for the film 'Only God Forgives' following call for proposals EACEA/21/12 MEDIA 2007 — Support for the transnational distribution of European films — the 'Selective' scheme 2013, published by the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency pursuant to Decision (EC) No 1718/2006. 

European Union – Freedom to provide services. The Court of Justice of the European Union gave a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of art 56 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and art 8 of Directive (EC) 98/34/, as amended by Directive (EC) 98/48. The request had been made in the context of two joined sets of criminal proceedings brought against Ms Ince, who was alleged to have acted as an intermediary, without the authorisation of the competent authority, in sporting bets within the territory of the state of Bavaria. 

Human rights – Right to respect for private and family life. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal, in resolving ten preliminary issues, determined that warrants or authorisations under ss 5 or 7 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994 were lawful, and in principle complied with arts 8 and 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

Negligence – Duty to take care. The Queen's Bench Division, held that on the facts and evidence, it could not be said that the defendant NHS Trust's negligence had caused the claimant's cerebral palsy which in turn had been caused by a shortage of oxygen (hypoxic ischemia) for a period of not less than 5 minutes and not more than 10 minutes immediately before his delivery. 

Conflict of laws – Foreign proceedings. The Technology and Construction Court set aside a claim by the claimant English company for payment for services provided in connection with the operation of a mine in Sierra Leone 

Extradition – Extradition order. The Administrative Court dismissed the appellant's appeal against orders for his extradition to Poland to face trial for 56 offences, including fraud and forgery, said to have been committed between April 1999 and March 2001. The offences had been adequately particularised, extradition was not oppressive due to the passage of time, and the private life of the appellant and his family had been outweighed by the public interest in extradition.