Training & Knowledge: January 2023

31st Jan 2023Blog

Defending contempt cases in the High Court – the overriding need for fairness

High Court contempt proceedings have always held a unique and somewhat uncomfortable position in the judicial system. Whilst civil in nature and governed by Part 81 of the Civil Procedure Rules, they are nonetheless quasi-criminal in substance.  This is illustrated by the availability of custodial sentences if the contempt is found proved and by other […]

27th Jan 2023News

The Relevance of Motive where there is Evidence of Foul Play Case Comment: R (on the application of Leeson) v HM Coroner for Manchester South, Donald McPherson, Scottish Widows & Others [2023] EWHC 62 (Admin)

Facts The facts of this unusual and unhappy case concerned the drowning of Ms Leeson in an indoor swimming pool in remote holiday accommodation in Denmark where she had been holidaying with her husband, Donald McPherson. The medical evidence showed that Ms Leeson had drowned but also identified blunt force injuries on her body. These […]

19th Jan 2023Newsflash

High Court backs purposive interpretation of interim conditions: Kuzmin v General Medical Council [2023] EWHC 60 (Admin) 18th January 2023

If you think the name Kuzmin is familiar you would be right. Dr Kuzmin has been involved in GMC proceedings since 2018, represented throughout by the doughty Mary O’Rourke KC. Apart from lengthy MPTS proceedings, the case has involved a High Court challenge leading to the conclusion that a Tribunal can draw an adverse inference from the […]

6th Jan 2023Newsflash

Hexpress Healthcare Ltd v CQC [2022] EWHC 2943 (Admin) – Is 0.01% a fair sample?

Many healthcare providers will be all too aware of how difficult it can be to obtain an interim injunction against the CQC. Hexpress Healthcare will present few surprises in this regard. However, two points of interest emerge. The court reconsiders the CQC’s procedure for considering factual accuracy comments (“FAC”) from a provider prior to publication. […]

4th Jan 2023Newsflash

An Application by Patricia Downey For Judicial Review [2022] NICA 67, 2022 WL 17340800

If it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, then the coroner has demonstrated apparent bias. As the court touched on in Morahan, Article 2 and legal aid have a somewhat uncomfortable relationship. The need to secure funding encourages protracted and disproportionate struggles to demonstrate Article 2 is engaged. More unusually, in […]