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29 July 2020
Issue: 7897 / Categories: Case law , Law digest , In Court
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Law digests: 31 July 2020

Contempt of court

Atkinson and another v Varma and others [2020] EWHC 1868 (Ch), [2020] All ER (D) 106 (Jul)

The applicant liquidators’ application to commit the first respondent (V) to prison for contempt of court succeeded. The Chancery Division held that, among other things, V had made false statements in affidavits and witness statements, and he had failed to inform the liquidators of the existence of relevant assets, in breach of an earlier order.


Criminal law

R v RN [2020] EWCA Crim 937, [2020] All ER (D) 109 (Jul)

In allowing the appellant’s appeal against her conviction on the basis of a reconsideration of the verdict by the jury, the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, held, that the present had not been a clear-cut instance of a jury indicating that there had been a mistake in the way that the verdicts had been delivered, with that indication being provided promptly and the matter being resolved in circumstances which excluded the possibility of any further deliberations and a change of mind.

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Cripps—Radius Law

Cripps—Radius Law

Commercial and technology practice boosted by team hire

Switalskis—Grimsby

Switalskis—Grimsby

Firm expands with new Grimsby office to serve North East Lincolnshire

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

Slater Heelis—Will Newman & Lucy Spilsbury

Property team boosted by two solicitor appointments

NEWS
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
Recent allegations surrounding Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have reignited scrutiny of the ancient common law offence of misconduct in public office. Writing in NLJ this week, Simon Parsons, teaching fellow at Bath Spa University, asks whether their conduct could clear a notoriously high legal hurdle
A landmark ruling has reshaped child clinical negligence claims. Writing in NLJ this week, Jodi Newton, head of birth and paediatric negligence at Osbornes Law, explains how the Supreme Court in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC 5 has overturned Croke v Wiseman, ending the long-standing bar on children recovering ‘lost years’ earnings
A Court of Appeal ruling has drawn a firm line under party autonomy in arbitration. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed, associate professor at the University of Leicester, analyses Gluck v Endzweig [2026] EWCA Civ 145, where a clause allowing arbitrators to amend an award ‘at any time’ was held incompatible with the Arbitration Act 1996
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