The civil (as opposed to criminal) burden of proof is that of the ‘balance of probabilities’ – whether something is more probable than not. Read more...
The Court of Appeal has dismissed a £150,000 damages claim brought against the Royal British Legion by a woman who broke her leg when she fell into a hole in a patch of village green where a maypole used to be placed. Read more...
Under the current law, the offence of murder is committed when a person kills with intent or where death is the virtually certain outcome of their behaviour and they are aware of that. It is also murder when a death results from causing serious bodily harm with intent. A conviction for murder can currently be reduced to one of voluntary manslaughter where a defence of provocation or diminished responsibility (where the crime is committed when the person is not fully responsible for their actions) can be made out or where the death was part of a suicide pact. Read more...
Although not widely publicised, new legislation is coming into effect which will make it an offence for a person responsible for animals not to take reasonable steps to make sure that their needs are met. It may be surprising that this is new law, but the position in England prior to 6 April 2007 (the end of March in Wales) is that the law only comes into play in most cases when an animal has been subjected to cruelty. Read more...
Most travellers know that large quantities of cigarettes and tobacco can be brought back to the UK from another EU country, provided duty and tax have been paid on them in that country and they are for personal consumption only. In this context, personal consumption includes gifts to family and friends. Read more...
A recent Court of Appeal decision dealing with appeals against sentences by six drivers found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving has provided assistance in ascertaining the length of sentence that is likely to be imposed in such cases. Read more...
Recent reported increases in fraud (reports by accountants BDO Stoy Hayward and KPMG both indicate a rapidly increasing problem) will focus the minds of business managers on this issue. Fortunately, there is a new weapon against fraudsters – at least those whose frauds are detected – in the form of the Fraud Act 2006. Read more...
Police and courts are nightmares to most of us. We always try to avoid issues related to police and courts. Keith Richards quotes, “I’ve never had problem with drugs, I had problem with police”. This view is shared by the majority. Read more...
The courts seem to be showing increasing impatience with drivers who attempt to overturn convictions for speeding by raising technical objections to them.
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