Practical Law

Make sure that you have not missed a key development in your area of the law by reading our latest In brief review of the Practical Law Public Sector e-mail for the week ending 7 August 2013.

Replacing our recommended actions, In brief will include a one sentence summary of all of the legal developments reported in our weekly e-mail to make sure that no matter how busy our subscribers are, they can still keep in touch with all the latest developments.

Central government:

• The High Court has held that the closure of a young offender institution was proportionate (R (JM) v Secretary of State for Justice [2013] EWHC 2465 (Admin)).

Civil litigation:

• The Supreme Court has considered when an appellate court can interfere with a finding of fact at first instance (McGraddie v McGraddie and another [2013] UKSC 58).
• The Court of Appeal has:
  • upheld a costs order made by the Upper Tribunal in age assessment judicial review proceedings (R (TR Iran) v East Sussex County Council [2013] EWCA Civ 1027).
  • confirmed that it had jurisdiction to make a costs order at a without notice hearing (MacKay and another v Ashwood Enterprises Ltd and others [2013] EWCA Civ 959).
• A provisional report has been published on modernisation of the Chancery Division.

Education and children’s services:

• Several orders have been published on school standards and school organisation.
• The Court of Appeal has held that the duty to make a grant to a former looked after children in relation to educational expenses may include university tuition fees (R (Newcastle City Council) v Kebede and another [2013] EWCA Civ 960).
• The Home Office has published guidance for schools and colleges on addressing youth violence and gangs.

Employment and pensions:

• The Court of Appeal has:
  • allowed an employee to proceed with a constructive dismissal claim based on her allegation that the employer had breached her contract by putting undue pressure on a witness to give false evidence against her (Singh v Governing Body of Moorlands Primary School and Reading Borough Council [2013] EWCA Civ 909).
  • upheld an EAT decision to remit a case to a fresh tribunal to decide whether employees had an implied contractual right to an enhanced redundancy package based on custom and practice (Park Cakes Ltd v Shumba and others [2013] EWCA Civ 974).
  • confirmed that the loss of death-in-service benefit is recoverable by a deceased former employee’s estate (Fox v British Airways plc [2013] EWCA Civ 972).
• The High Court has held that solicitors letters setting out a proposed settlement sum and subsequent acceptance constituted a binding agreement settling the claim and counterclaim (Newbury v Sun Microsystems [2013] EWHC 2180 (QB)).
• Acas has published a non-statutory guide to settlement agreements.
• A call for evidence on the draft Deregulation Bill 2013 has been published.
• The Pensions Ombudsman has reported that the Government Actuary’s Department is seeking permission to appeal against a decision finding that it was an “administrator” in relation to the Firefighter’s Pension Scheme.

Environment:

• The government has published a consultation on an updated waste planning policy.

FOI and data protection:

• The First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights) has confirmed that the General Medical Council could withhold information about a complaint against a doctor (A v Information Commissioner and others EA/2013/0014).

Health:

• The Department of Health has published a Procurement Development Programme for the NHS.

Housing:

• The government has published a consultation on general consents issued under section 25 of the Local Government Act 1988.
• Guidance has been published for litigants seeking to appeal a refusal to suspend a warrant for possession where no circuit judge is available.

Local government:

• The Local Government (Democracy) (Wales) Act 2013 has received Royal Assent.
• The Local Government Association has published social enterprise, mutual, co-operative and collective ownership models for local authorities.

Property and planning:

• The Technology and Construction Court has considered a no greater liability clause in relation to an architect and its insurers (Oakapple Homes (Glossop) Ltd v DTR (2009) Ltd and others [2013] EWHC 2394 (TCC)).
• The Land Registry has updated Practice Guides 39 and 71.
• The government has announced that changes to Part L of the Building Regulations 2010 have been delayed to April 2014.
• The Better Buildings Partnership has published a revised edition of its Green Lease Toolkit.