Social Welfare Updates

Garden Court Chambers | Tuesday 29 March 2016

Unsuccessful challenge to alleged ‘gatekeeping’ by Birmingham City Council

R (Edwards) v Birmingham City Council [2016] EWHC 173 (Admin).

Garden Court Chambers | Tuesday 29 March 2016

Liability of non-resident property owner in nuisance

Cocking v Eacock and Waring [2016] EWCA Civ 140.

Garden Court Chambers | Friday 1 January 2016

Guardianship does not create a parental relationship

MS v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (IS) [2016] UKUT 348 (AAC) (Judge Jacobs), 21 July 2016

The claimant instead fell within the scope of Art 3(2)(a) Directive 2004/38/EC as ‘another family member’.

Garden Court Chambers | Wednesday 1 April 2015

2015 03 Children

R (SG) v Secretary of State for Works and Pension [2015] UKSC 16 (previously known as JS v SSWP) (Lady Hale, Lords Kerr, Reed Carnwarth and Hughes): The Benefit Cap (Housing Benefits) Regulations 2012 was not incompatible with article 14, ECHR. Although children's rights can in many cases be inseparable from adults' rights, that was […]

Garden Court Chambers | Wednesday 1 April 2015

2015 03 Education

R (ER) v Commissioner for Local Administration (Local Government Ombudsman) and London Borough of Hillingdon [2014] EWCA Civ 1407 (LLJ Moore-Bick, Aikens, Bean): The Local Government Ombudsman had no jurisdiction to investigate the consequences of a local authority's decision if the investigation itself was excluded by the Local Goverment Act 1974 section 26(6). The judicial […]

Garden Court Chambers | Wednesday 1 April 2015

2015 03 Mental Health

R (on the application of MD) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2014] EWHC 2249 (Admin) (Rhodri Price Lewis QC): On allowing the claim the court held that the detention by the Home Secretary of State of a foreign national suffering from a mental illness, was unlawful both at common law and under […]

Garden Court Chambers | Wednesday 1 April 2015

2015 03 Welfare Benefits

News The Budget and future cuts to benefits In a speech introducing the Budget on 18 March 2015 the Chancellor announced that a further £12bn in welfare savings needed by 2017/2018. Other benefit and tax credit measures outlined in the Budget (some of which have been previously announced) included: EEA nationals’ access to universal credit […]

Garden Court Chambers | Wednesday 1 April 2015

2015 03 Housing

Akerman-Livingston v Aster Communities Limited [2015] UKSC 15 (Lord Neuberger, Lady Hale, Lord Clarke, Lord Wilson and Lord Hughes): the threshold to apply in considering a discrimination defence in possession proceedings. The Appellant, Mr Akerman-Livingston, had been diagnosed with Prolonged Duress Stress Disorder or Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of childhood abuse. […]