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Crime brief: 7 & 14 April 2023

07 April 2023 / David Walbank KC
Issue: 8020 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Criminal , Rule of law , Human rights
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The Supreme Court has warned that those on the losing side of a political debate should not then resort to undermining legislation: David Walbank KC reports
  • Abortion services in Northern Ireland.
  • Legislative competence of Northern Ireland Assembly.
  • Respect for democratic process and rule of law.

We live in lawless times. However, today's ‘outlaws’ are not just the usual rogues’ gallery of murderers, rapists, thieves and fraudsters. It sometimes seems that the spirit of lawlessness has infected our ruling classes, with ministers and parliamentarians talking with abandon about flouting the law of the land or breaking international law. Indeed, the Supreme Court has recently bemoaned the fact that on occasion nowadays ‘those in public office are not prepared to comply with their legal obligations because they disagree with the relevant law’ ([2022] UKSC 32).

Legislative manoeuvres

The background to Reference by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland—Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Northern Ireland) Bill [2022] UKSC 32, [2022] All ER (D) 25 (Dec)

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
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