Uk Law Weekly

When HMRC tried to claw-back money from the purchase of a care home that was zero-rated for VAT purposes, the question for the Supreme Court was whether the care home had disposed of their entire interest as part of a sale and lease agreement. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

As part of an equal pay claim, a claimant has to find another employee to compare themselves with. In this episode we examine what the approach should be if that comparator is working at a different site to the claimant. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

What happens when a child abduction case runs up against an asylum claim? Which should take priority? Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

Should a shift where you have to sleep at or near your place of work count as working time for the purposes of the national minimum wage? That is the question the Supreme Court has to answer this week as we also explore the distinction between politics and interpretation of the law. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

In 2015 Shamima Begum left the UK to join Islamic State. Now, with the UK government intending to deprive her of British citizenship, she intended to return to the UK in order to fight that decision. In this high profile case the Supreme Court had to balance the right to a fair trial against the country's national security interests. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

When two ships crashed outside the port of Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates there was a question about which vessel was most at fault. Was it the ship that was exiting the narrow channel or should that have made way for the ship that was getting ready to enter? In this episode we discuss the answer in the context of the International Collision Regulations. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

In this landmark case the Supreme Court decided upon the fate of Uber drivers. While Uber argued that the drivers were self-employed and that the app was equivalent to a booking agent, the drivers submitted that they were workers and should therefore be entitled to certain rights like the national minimum wage. We discuss the judgment and consider what implications it might have for the gig economy. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

What does it mean to describe an area of land as a village green? The words conjure up beautiful greenery in the imagination but what happens when someone tries to register a patch of concrete by a port? The Supreme Court has the answer. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

When a number of oil spills in Nigeria caused significant ground and water contamination, the King of the local community pursued a claim against Shell and its local subsidiary. However when the claim was thrown out early on the question for the Supreme Court became what requirements do need to be met in order for a case to proceed to a full trial. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

In a recent investigation the Serious Fraud Office wanted to access documents held abroad by a U.S. company. Does the department have the power to reach across the Atlantic for relevant paperwork? In this episode we look at the Supreme Court's response. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc for almost every business in the UK. In this case the Supreme Court looked at a range of insurance policies and answered some fundamental questions of interpretation so that claims could proceed and life could slowly get back to normal. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

This week we finish off 2020 by looking at three cases in one episode. The first is about when the courts should allow collective actions by multiple claimants to proceed, the second is about the proposed new runway at Heathrow airport and the third is an immigration case where a deportation is balanced against the need to protect family life. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

After Gourlay's judicial review of a Parole Board decision was successful he argued that the Board should have to pay his costs for the review. This raised questions about whether the Parole Board is a judicial body but as we see in this episode it also led to other important discussions about who makes the rules about costs orders and how effective those rules are. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

Casinos will often use free bet vouchers as a way to lure in punters but in this case the Supreme Court considers how these should be evaluated when it comes to working out gaming duties owed to HMRC. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

Questions arose about the impartiality of an arbitrator after he accepted appointments from one of the parties in other disputes and failed to disclose them. The Supreme Court had to decide whether this amounted to a real possibility of bias or if a new arbitrator should be appointed instead. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

While the limitation period for claims is six years, the precise date on which this starts is not clear in cases of mistake. Over the years attempts to clarify the law have not moved things much further forward but in this sweeping litigation the Supreme Court were given the chance to settle the legal position. Music from bensound.com Support the podcast: https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

The civil and criminal standard of proof are generally pretty easy to distinguish but the lines get blurred when there is an inquest into a suspicious death. In this case the Supreme Court had the opportunity to straighten out the rules and decide which of the two standards should apply where there is a conclusion of suicide. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

In a difficult decision the Supreme Court had to balance the interests of a Children's Cancer Trust against new affordable housing. At the heart of the dispute were restrictive covenants and in this landmark case the Justices were presented with an opportunity to set a marker down. Music from bensound.com https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe

Bonus Episode: A Question of Law Interviews Marcus Cleaver About Brexit

A dispute over a drug company's alleged anti-competitive practices leads to a legal case about the influence of decisions from the European Courts in the UK. Music from bensound.com Subscribe to the newsletter: https://uklawweekly.substack.com/subscribe