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Taking liberties?

28 October 2011 / Susan Nash
Issue: 7487 / Categories: Features , Human rights
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Susan Nash rounds up the latest human rights developments

The applicants in Palomo Sanchez v Spain (App Nos 28955/06, 28957/06, 28959/06 and 28964/06) were sacked for publishing a trade union newsletter which contained offensive words and lewd cartoons featuring two employees who had testified against them in an employment tribunal. The newsletter was distributed to employees and displayed on a notice board. Relying on Art 10 (freedom of expression) and Art 11 (freedom of assembly and association), the applicants complained that the real reason for their dismissal had been their trade union activities. Noting that the offending material had been published in a trade union newsletter and distributed at the applicants’ workplace, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) considered whether this sanction was proportionate. The ECtHR observed that the extent of acceptable criticism was narrower in regard to private individuals than for politicians or civil servants acting in their public duty. Furthermore, the offending material was aimed, not directly at the company, but against the company’s employees. However, the ECtHR did not share the Spanish

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Birketts—trainee cohort

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Firm welcomes new cohort of 29 trainee solicitors for 2025

Keoghs—four appointments

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Brabners—Ben Lamb

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NEWS
Robert Taylor of 360 Law Services warns in this week's NLJ that adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms, unless tools are tailored to their needs
From oligarchs to cosmetic clinics, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) target journalists, activists and ordinary citizens with intimidating legal tactics. Writing in NLJ this week, Sadie Whittam of Lancaster University explores the weaponisation of litigation to silence critics
Delays and dysfunction continue to mount in the county court, as revealed in a scathing Justice Committee report and under discussion this week by NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School. Bulk claims—especially from private parking firms—are overwhelming the system, with 8,000 cases filed weekly
Writing in NLJ this week, Thomas Rothwell and Kavish Shah of Falcon Chambers unpack the surprise inclusion of a ban on upwards-only rent reviews in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve charts the turbulent progress of the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords, in this week's NLJ
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