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The NLJ Column

03 April 2008 / Roger Smith
Issue: 7315 / Categories: Features , Public , Legal services , Constitutional law
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Constitutional Reform

Crime, punishment and lacklustre constitutional reform

Ian Norris always had a better case to resist extradition to the than the “Nat West Three”. His reward was to succeed where they did not: halting—or at least delaying—his departure for trial in the . The Nat West Three—David Bermingham, Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby—ran a highly visible, but ultimately unsuccessful, campaign against their extradition requests. However, in the end, the three pleaded guilty to the district court in and, on 27 February, were jailed for 37 months each in relation to a £7.3m fraud. In doing so, a considerable amount of humble pie was consumed as the defendants respectively told the court: “My conduct in this matter fell well below the standards expected”; “We lacked integrity“; and “I didn’t realise the implications”. The threesome’s case was based on the fact that the US–UK extradition treaty does not require the authorities to show any prima facie case against them to a court and,

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Group partner joins Guernsey banking and finance practice

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

London labour and employment team announces partner hire

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Double partner appointment marks Belfast expansion

NEWS
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
Boris Johnson’s 2019 attempt to shut down Parliament remains a constitutional cautionary tale. The move, framed as a routine exercise of the royal prerogative, was in truth an extraordinary effort to sideline Parliament at the height of the Brexit crisis. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC dissects how prorogation was wrongly assumed to be beyond judicial scrutiny, only for the Supreme Court to intervene unanimously
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