Month: March 2015
29.03.15
Court of Appeal greenlights Data Protection Act claims for distress where no other loss
The Court of Appeal has handed down a landmark judgment in Vidal-Hall v Google Inc [2015] EWCA Civ 311 – a decision eagerly awaited by media and Data Protection practitioners. The Claimants in the action are a group of individuals who use the ‘Safari’ web browser. They claim that between Summer 2011 and February 2012…
Read more27.03.15
Facebook found liable for failing to act promptly to protect paedophile from harassment and breach of privacy
In CG v. Facebook Ireland Ltd and Joseph McCloskey [2015] NIQB 11 the anonymised claimant was awarded £20,000 in damages and an injunction for misuse of private information and harassment. The claimant is a convicted sex offender who bought the claims against Facebook and Mr Joseph McCloskey. Facebook, the first defendant, was the host and McCloskey, the…
Read more25.03.15
Report criticises quality of Crown Prosecution Service advocacy – an update from Brett Wilson LLP, crime solicitors.
A report from HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) issued this month lists several areas of concern regarding the quality and effectiveness of Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) advocates. The report found that there has been poor progress against the five recommendations in HMCPSI report of 2012. It found that Crown Advocates had a ‘lack of…
Read more19.03.15
Private prosecution costs appeal fails
In R v Hull and Holderness Magistrates Court ex p Darroch [2014] EWHC 4184 Mr Darroch and his son were seeking their costs in connection with an ultimately unsuccessful private prosecution brought against them by a now defunct company called Media Protection Services Ltd. This company had been engaged on behalf of a company representing…
Read more18.03.15
Three judges removed from posts for viewing pornography at work
In a statement released by the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO) on 17 March 2015 it was announced that three judges had been removed from office after they were found to be viewing pornographic material while at work. The men will no longer be able to hold judicial roles. The statement made it clear that…
Read more5.03.15
Cyberbullying, Online Harassment & Twibel – The State of Play in 2015
Brett Wilson have published an e-book exploring the development of online abuse. The 21 page guide charts the recent explosion of cyberbullying and the potential dangers of social media use. The guide is split into four chapters:- Cyberbullying, Trolling and Social Media Twitter Libel, Prosecutions and Contempt of Court Revenge Porn and the Misuse of…
Read moreNCA defeated in POCA declaration claim
In NCA v Robb & Clarke and ors [2014] EWHC 4384 a number of claimants were seeking declarations that they had a proprietary interest in part of a fund deemed to be recoverable property in earlier proceedings brought by the NCA against the Defendant Robb. In brief, the National Crime Agency (NCA) had been successful in its…
Read morePoker ‘card marking’ cheat pleads guilty to fraud
On 27 February 2015, Mihai Lacatos, a 61 year old Romanian man, pleaded guilty to cheating casinos across the UK out of tens of thousands of pounds. He was arrested in March 2014 and had attempted to flee the jurisdiction while on bail but was taken into custody after being traced at Luton Airport. The sum…
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Articles are intended as an introduction to the topic and do not constitute legal advice.