header-logo header-logo

05 December 2019 / Neil Parpworth
Issue: 7867 / Categories: Features
printer mail-detail

Seasons of change?

12477
The ‘Autumn Uprising’: a public assembly or assemblies? Neil Parpworth investigates
  • Roots of the Autumn Uprising: the Extinction Rebellion.
  • Legislative framework: the Public Order Act.
  • The decision: interpreting s 14 powers.

The common law recognises that the citizen has a right to protest and that such a right is closely entwined with freedom of speech: see, for example, the remarks of Lord Denning in Hubbard v Pitt [1976] QB 142, [1975] 3 All ER 1 [1975] 1 All ER 1056 and the decisions in R v Roberts [2019] 1 WLR 2577, [2018] All ER (D) 34 (Dec) and Redmond-Bate v DPP [2000] HRLR 249, [1999] All ER (D) 864. Since the enactment of the Human Rights Act 1998, the citizen has also been able to rely directly upon the Convention rights of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, as protected by Arts 10 and 11, before domestic courts. Where they have done so, judges have been quick to echo the sentiments of the Strasbourg court that such rights are hallmarks

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

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
back-to-top-scroll