Latest Cases

European Union – Trade marks. The General Court of the European Union dismissed the action brought by Nissan Jidosha KK (Nissan) against the decision of the First Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs), relating to a request by Nissan for renewal of the registration of a Community figurative mark depicting the initials 'CVTC' in respect of goods in Class 9 of the Nice Agreement. 

Immigration – Detention. The claimant had sought judicial review of the lawfulness of his immigration detention. The judge held that his detention throughout the whole of the period from 4 July 2007 to 14 August 2009 had not been unlawful. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, held that the judge's conclusion that, for the whole of that period, there was no point at which the defendant Secretary of State had not been entitled to the view that the claimant could be removed within a reasonable time, had been one which was not open to him on the evidence. On the evidence, the claimant's continued detention after November 2008 was unlawful. The claimant's appeal would be allowed to that extent. 

Sentence – Imprisonment. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, increased the offender's sentence for historic paedophile sexual offences against three teenage boys committed during the 1970s from a total of four years' imprisonment to one of six years' imprisonment. 

Immigration – Asylum seeker. The respondent, a Jamaican national, came to the United Kingdom and claimed asylum on the grounds of his risk of persecution in Jamaica due to the fact that he was a homosexual. He was detained pending a decision on removal, under a fast-tracking procedure, as Jamaica was on a list of states designated under s 94(4) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. He applied for judicial review of the Secretary of State's decision to include Jamaica in the designated list. A deputy judge dismissed the application. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed the claimant's appeal. The Supreme Court, in dismissing the Secretary of State's appeal, held that, on its true construction, s 94(5) of the Act referred to countries, or parts of countries, where its citizens were free from any serious risk of systematic persecution, either by the state itself or by non-state agents which the state was unable or unwilling to control. 

Sunday – Dies non juridicus. The applicant city council applied to strike out the respondent parish council's claim to quash its development plan document. The Administrative Court, in dismissing the application, held that, as the last day of the six week period for making the claim, under s 113(4) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, had fallen on a Sunday, the six-week period was to be treated as expiring on the next day when the court office had been open. Accordingly, the claim had been brought within time. 

Human rights – Right to respect for private and family life. The present appeals concerned the systematic collection and retention by police authorities of electronic data about individuals. The Supreme Court, in allowing the Metropolitan Police Commissioner's appeals, held that there had been no disproportionate interference with the respondents' rights under art 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Retention of material concerning the first respondent was justified by the legitimate requirements of police intelligence gathering and, as to the second respondent, the retention policy had been flexible enough to allow for information to be deleted when retaining it would no longer serve any useful policing purpose. 

European Union – Trade marks. The General Court of the European Union dismissed the action brought by Three-N-Products Private Ltd (TPPL) against the decision of the Fourth Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs), relating to opposition proceedings between TPPL and Munindra Holding BV (Munindra) concerning the application by Munindra for registration of a word sign 'PRANAYUR' as a Community trade mark. 

Criminal law – Appeal. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, dismissed the prosecution's appeal against a terminating ruling, pursuant to the provisions of s 58 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, in circumstances where the judge had ruled that due to delay on the part of the prosecution, evidence of telephone call data records and telephone cell site data would be excluded pursuant to the provisions of s 78 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. The court provided guidance and ruled that, in the circumstances, the judge had been fully entitled to reach the conclusion that he had. 

European Union – EU Institutions. The United Kingdom brought an action before the General Court of the European Union for annulment of the Eurosystem Oversight Policy Framework (the Policy Framework) published by the European Central Bank on 5 July 2011, in so far as it set a location requirement applicable to central counterparties (CCPs) established in member states that were not party to the Eurosystem. The General Court allowed the UK's action and annulled the Policy Framework, deciding that the ECB did not have the competence necessary to regulate the activity of securities clearing systems including CCPs. 

European Union – Trade marks. The General Court of the European Union allowed the action brought by FSA Srl (FSA) for annulment of the decision of the Second Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs), relating to invalidity proceedings between Motokit Veículos e Acessórios, SA, and FSA, concerning the application by FSA for registration of a word sign 'FSA K-FORCE' as a Community trade mark.