Publications

The Supreme Court in R (Imam) v London Borough of Croydon has unanimously held that general funding pressures are not an excuse for non-compliance with a local authority's duty under s193(2) of the Housing Act 1996 to provide suitable accommodation to a homeless individual. However, the court should consider a local authority's resources and extent of its housing portfolio when deciding whether to grant a mandatory order rather than some other relief.

Savannah Laurent summarises a judgment for Family Law Week - Peel J made a final 'best interests' decision about where 8-month-old Indi Gregory should be extubated in  line with her care plan

Joshua Swirsky reminds local authorities conducting short-form age assessments to spell out their reasons for finding that an applicant is an adult. Following R(HAM) v LB Brent (in which Joshua acted for the successful local authority), the local authority in R(LF) v Birmingham Children's Trust (for whom Joshua acts) had conducted an abbreviated age assessment of a young asylum-seeker

Max Lansman summarises a judgment for Family Law Week where the Court of Appeal overturned a decision to authorise interim removal of 3 children from their parents' care. Lord Justice Baker sets out the Court of Appeal's 3 most prominent reasons for interfering with the judgment at first instance.

Rebecca Davies summarises a judgment for Family Law Week about an appeal against the decision to allow a 1-year-old child to remain in her mother's care and for placement orders relating to the child's 2 older brothers to be revoked. Several case management issues were addressed during the appeal, including a reminder that a local authority obtain a transcript when care and placement orders are made and an application of Ladd v Marshall principles.

Ryan Anderson discusses Dudley Metropolitan Council v Mailley [2023] EWCA Civ 1246, the decision considers the key principles for statutory succession and a finding of unlawful discrimination, and highlights the reduction in statutory succession rights and the pertinence of local authority ability to manage social housing stock in order to justify a difference in treatment.

The Supreme Court in Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and another (Appellants/Cross-Respondents) v Agnew and others (Respondents/Cross-Appellants) (Northern Ireland)  held inter alia that, in claims for historic underpayments of holiday pay, breaks of 3 or more months in a series of deductions will not necessarily break the chain of deductions if the deductions are linked by the same underlying cause.

Joanna Thom summarises the judgment for Family Law Week in a case under the High Court's inherent jurisdiction concerning 20-year-old Andy Casey. St George's University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust sought a declaration that Mr Casey had died on 16 July when brain stem testing took place. Also that in the circumstances, it was lawful to withdraw his medical treatment.