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Harvester, Japanese Knotweed, and Amazon Firesticks
Catching up on the last week
Charlie Keast
May 14, 2024
Welcome to weekly legal/business updates, sharing the latest developments and noteworthy events in the legal and business sectors
Thank you for subscribing to my newsletter and welcome! In today’s fast-paced world, it’s overwhelming to keep up. That’s why I’ve curated a weekly round-up of headlines that interest me. Stay informed, enhance your commercial awareness, and gain valuable insights. Sit back, relax, and let this newsletter be your companion in navigating news and knowledge.
Free Counselling After Juror Pilot
The government have announced a pilot scheme to provide specialist expert support for jurors and provide them with 6 free counselling sessions. 15 Crown courts in England and Wales will trial the pilot this summer and run for 10 months. The Ministry of Justice described the scheme as an “important step” in best supporting jurors and highlighted the emotional strain that jurors may have, for example the jurors at the recent trial of Lucy Letby.
You can find out more here.
New Criminal Legal Aid Contracts
The Legal Aid Agency are introducing flexible contracts to help with criminal legal aid. They will last for 10 years and contain a six month termination provision. There are hopes that this will reduce the stress on law firms and provide certainty.
You can find out more here.
A New Type of Law Firm…
a new holistic approach to running a law firm has been set up by Shruti Trivedi and Iain Hibbert. They have abolished billing time on an hourly basis and instead the structure is based on the needs of the client and the knowledge and value they can deliver.
You can find out more here.
Solicitor Struck Off After Taking More Than Just The Free Salad
The SRA have struck off a solicitor who was convicted of fraud during a ‘dine and dash’. Kerry Stevens made a false representation that she would return to a Harvester restaurant and pay her bill of £60.91 but did not, and did this again with a takeaway, not paying £43.47. She was fine £440, ordered to pay £100 compensation, £775 costs and a £88 victim surcharge for the Harvester offence and fined £440 and ordered to pay £100 compensation for the takeaway offence. The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal expressed their concerns as to her honesty and trustworthiness, and she was struck off.
You can find out more here.
Knotweed Damage and the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court ruled that no damages should be awarded to a house owner for Japanese knotweed decreasing the value of his home. In Davies v Bridgend County Borough Council, Mr Davies brought a knotweed nuisance claim against the Welsh council as the Japanese knotweed was growing on land adjoining Mr Davies house when he bought the house in 2004. The council did not implement an effective treatment programme until 2018, and in 2013 they failed to implement this. The county court found there had been a continuing nuisance and Mr Davies sought to recover damages for the decrease in value of his property even though there had been treatment. This went up to the Supreme Court who ruled in favour of the council, that this was a private nuisance and the ‘diminution in value would have occurred in any event so that there is no causal link between the defendant’s breach of duty and the diminution in value claimed’.
You can find out more here and at https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/docs/uksc-2023-0028-judgment.pdf
Suspended Sentence For Juror After Researching Child Abuse
A juror who researched the law on child neglect gets a suspended sentence. Ms Asquith had been serving as a juror on a child cruelty case and became frustrated with other members of the jury. She took it upon herself to research the law online for the debates, including searches for an article “Criminal Law, Child Neglect”. The rest of the jurors reached a majority decision to clear the defendants with Ms Aquith the only juror thinking the defendants were guilty. The judge had given clear directions to the jury and told them not to do their own research. Ms Asquith was sentenced to 22 weeks imprisonment suspended for 12 months.
You can find out more here.
Amazon Fire TV Stick Users Could Face Massive Fines
The Police and Intellectual Property Crime Unit have stepped up their efforts to tackle illegal TV streaming since the introduction of the Digital Economy Act 2017. The legislation gives more tools to pursue and prosecute those illegally streaming, including home raids. The fines to be expected range rom a few thousand to £50,000 if you are found to be breaking the law.
You can find out more here.
Fun facts for your friends…
In Scotland, under the The Conservation of Salmon (Annual Close Time and Catch and Release) (Scotland) Regulations 2014 it is illegal to go rod fishing for salmon on a Sunday.