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30 July 2015 / Nicholas Griffin KC
Issue: 7664 / Categories: Features , Public
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Spy cops under scrutiny

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Nicholas Griffin QC explores the scope & approach of the Pitchford Inquiry into undercover policing

Recently, there have been numerous and significant revelations about the way in which the state exercises its powers to spy on its own citizens. For its part, the government explains that we live in a time of terrorist threat and the law enforcement and spy agencies must be given the tools and powers they need to meet that threat. The result is that most of us are left wondering where the line between the competing interests of our security on the one hand and our privacy on the other should be drawn. 

Much of the media coverage has focused on the activities of the spy agencies in this country and in the US, particularly after the revelations of Edward Snowden. However, many of the same issues arise in connection with the activities of the police, including with the use of undercover officers who can gain access to our most private thoughts and information. It is now suggested

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

Fieldfisher partner appointed president as LSLA marks milestone year

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Firm promotes two lawyers to partnership across employment and family

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Firm promotes five lawyers to partnership across key growth areas

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
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