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NLJ this week: A UK written constitution? No thanks!

23 February 2024
Issue: 8060 / Categories: Legal News , Constitutional law
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Could the UK ever have a written constitution, and how would it affect the UK Supreme Court?

In this week’s NLJ, Sir Geoffrey Bindman KC looks across the pond to the US Supreme Court, which has powers to ‘nullify legislation’ by declaring it incompatible with the written US constitution.

Bindman highlights the disadvantages of the US system. He writes that, in the UK, there ‘are still politicians who favour a written constitution. The politicisation of the US Supreme Court should be a powerful warning against it.’

Is it inevitable that a written constitution would undermine judicial independence? Bindman lists the many far-reaching judgments in the US since the last three appointments were made. He discusses former US president Donald Trump’s recent involvement in court cases and also notes recent political pressures that have come about in the UK.

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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