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04 March 2022 / David Greene
Issue: 7969 / Categories: Features , Commercial
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Post Office: the battle continues

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Nothing less than full compensation is owed to the victims of this grave miscarriage of justice, argues David Greene

Having had involvement in the Post Office scandal on behalf of sub-postmasters (most recently in a judicial review of the Post Office Compensation Scheme), I have met many of those former sub-postmasters who have been let down by the law and its administration.

It was the judgments of Mr Justice Fraser in 2019 in the Bates and others v Post Office Limited group litigation (in particular ‘Common Issues’ [2019] EWHC 606 (QB), [2019] All ER (D) 100 (Mar) and ‘Horizon issues’ [2019] EWHC 3408 (QB)) that really kicked off all that has since been revealed and the overturning of criminal convictions. Those affected, however, are in the early stages of finding out the full story and resolving their own issues with the Post Office, including standing convictions. The Fraser judgments followed hard-fought—to put it mildly—litigation.

A fatally flawed process

A public inquiry into events surrounding the criminal proceedings and civil claims

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

mfg Solicitors—Deborah Bufton

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Flint Bishop lands corporate partner from Knights amid Sheffield growth drive

Bird & Bird—Huw Edwards

Bird & Bird—Huw Edwards

Bird Bird appoints expert tech patent litigator as new partner in London

NEWS
The Law Society RFC Festival of Sport returns next month, bringing together legal and financial services professionals for one of the sector’s largest annual sporting events
Legal aid deserts leave almost one in four without adequate access to justice
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned solicitors and law firms that using artificial intelligence does not alter their professional obligations, amid concerns over inaccurate legal material and client confidentiality
From forgotten interest claims to case-management appeals, a string of procedural developments offers useful—and occasionally cautionary—lessons for practitioners

Jonathan Fisher KC highlights that it now accounts for around 40% of criminal offences, with roughly 70% involving technology, and argues that the UK cannot simply prosecute its way out of the problem. Detection, investigation and prosecution all require improvement, while different fraud types demand tailored responses.

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