In Othman (Abu Qatada) v. the United Kingdom (Application no. 8139/09), on 17 January 2012, the European Court of Human Rights held that the UK could not lawfully deport Abu Qatada, a Jordanian national, to his country, overturning a previous decision by the House of Lords. The European Court considered the legal question of whether… More European Court Blocks Deportation of Terrorism Suspect and Rejects Evidence Obtained by Torture

On 19th January 2012, in the case of Smolik v. Ukraine 11778/05 [2012] ECHR 99, the European Court of Human Rights awarded the applicant 6000 Euros in respect of non-pecuniary damages based on the violation of Article 5(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights. Following the robbery and murder of a minor, the applicant,14-years-old… More ECtHR Judges rule in favour of the Applicant in Smolik v. Ukraine

In the UK, the Court of Appeal in R (on the application of Hannah McClure and Joshua Moos) v the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2012] EWCA Civ 12  ruled that the Metropolitan Police’s use of kettling during demonstrations was lawful. After the G20 summit, two separate demonstrations took place; the Royal Exchange demonstration… More UK Court of Appeal rules that kettling was lawful

Tom Condliff, 63, became the first man to take legal action against his primary care trust (PCT) under section 8 of the Human Rights Act (HRA), after the trust refused to fund the £5,500 operation that his lawyers said was necessary to extend his life. Condliff is an obese diabetic who was told he had… More Human rights and access to surgery operations

On 9 January 2012, the Israeli cabinet passed the “Law to Prevent Infiltrators” to deter migrants from illegally entering the country’s borders. This tough new law targets increasing numbers of refugees and asylum seekers, the majority of whom come from Sudan and Eritrea and mostly enter Israel through Egypt. The new law applies to those… More Infiltration Law Passed in Israel Violates Refugee Rights

Hungary may face formal legal action on Tuesday 17 January 2012 from the European Union if it fails to amend its controversial new constitution. The constitution puts restrictions on the right to vote for people with “limited mental ability.” If applied to those with intellectual or mental disabilities on the basis of those disabilities, this… More Possible EU Legal Action against Hungary’s New Constitution

In British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) & Anor, R (on the application of) v Ahmad (Rev 1) [2012] EWHC 13 Amin, the High Court ruled that the Justice Secretary’s decision to refuse the BBC permission to broadcast an interview with Babar Ahmad, a man suspected of terrorism, was unlawful. Babar Ahmad had had an extradition order… More High Court Deems BBC’s Prevention from Broadcasting an Interview with Terrorism Suspect Unlawful

On 6 January 2012 in Courtroom 7 of Southwark Crown Court, R v. Peacock concluded with the unanimous acquittal of Michael Peacock, who was charged with six counts of obscene publication. The charge came under the Obscene Publications Act 1959 (OPA) of England and Wales for publishing obscene articles “likely to ‘deprave and corrupt,’” distributing… More “Obscenity” Challenged in the UK’s R v. Peacock Sexual Liberties Verdict

A research conducted by the London School of Economics (LSE) and the Open Society Justice Initiative revealed dramatic findings: in England and Wales, black people are 30 times more likely to be stopped and searched by the police than white people. The statistics also reveal that England and Wales currently have the worst international record… More “Racial profiling” in the use of stop and search powers by the police