When the state uses its power to take children away from their parents this has to be treated with a great deal of sensitivity. If consent is needed then that delegation of parental responsibility must be real and voluntary but does it also need to
The ‘gay cake case’ as one of my YouTube commenters described it was decided upon yesterday by the Supreme Court. They asked whether I would be covering it in my podcast and I will in due course but this is just too tasty to miss
Funding terrorism has long been an offence even as the nature of terrorism has changed. The question that is being addressed in this case is what mental element (or mens rea) is required of the accused when it comes to this crime. Should we consider
Secret and half-secret trusts do not meet the formalities set out in section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 but are still enforced by the courts to promote equity, justice and fairness as well as to prevent unjust enrichment and fraud. These types of trust
Companies can group together in order to pay VAT but the exact way that these are structured or operate in a practical sense can be quite confusing. This became a real issue when it turned out that the period for refunding overpaid VAT was too
When a bank fails it is split up into a ‘good bank’ and a ‘bad bank’. The assets and liabilities that pass to each can vary but after it was decided that a large debt owed by the former Portuguese bank ‘Banco Espírito Santo’ would
In 2004 Tony Blair struck the now infamous ‘deal in the desert’ with Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. The assistance provided by the British Secret Intelligence Service in rendering political dissident Abdelhakim Belhaj back to his homeland in the run-up to that meeting was almost certainly
Ever since civil partnerships became available in the UK in late 2005 their status has been up in the air. Originally the only option available to same sex couples, they now have marriage as an alternative. In this case the Supreme Court considers whether civil
The recent decision by the New Yorker to disinvite former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon from an event left me a little perturbed. Don’t get me wrong, Bannon’s views on race, economics and politics in general are disgusting yet few people would seriously deny
The Construction Industry Scheme has been in operation since the early 1970s and aimed to not only provide a means for the government to collect tax but also to crack down on tax evasion in the sector. Trusted sub-contractors can be awarded certificates that exempt