Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to
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In Nzinga Maswaku v Westminster City Council [2012] EWCA Civ 669 the Court of Appeal clarified
that in offering a homeless person with alternative temporary accommodation the local authority is
obliged to point that if the offer is refused it has discharged its Part VII duties under the Housing Act
1996.
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In Harrow LBC v Ayiku [2012] EWHC 1200 (Admin) Sales J held that the word “or” in the
Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) Order 1992, art 3 Class N, had a disjunctive meaning,
therefore it was sufficient for the non-British spouse of a foreign student to satisfy one or other
of the two conditions, namely being prevented from taking paid employment or being
prevented from claiming benefits, in order to qualify as a “relevant person” who was exempted
from liability to pay council tax.
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Bills already introduced pursuant to the Queen’s Speech on 9 May 2012 include Local
Government Finance Bill and Electoral Registration and Administration Bill, both
accompanied by Explanatory Notes, which in each case address ECHR compatibility.
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In R (Calver) v Adjudication Panel for Wales [2012] EWHC 1172 (Admin) Mr Calver was a
member of Manorbier Community Council who successfully challenged the decision of the
Panel to dismiss his appeal against a decision by Prembrokeshire County Council Standards
Committee censuring him for a number of comments or blogs posted by him on a website he
owned and controlled.
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Clive Sheldon - QC debates the pros
& cons of retrospective tax legislation
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In R (Greenwich Community Law Centre) v Greenwich LBC [2012] EWCA Civ 496
the Court of Appeal held that the Council had had “due regard to the PSED when making
changes to its funding of community legal advice services”. At para 30 Elias LJ said:
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Surrey County Council conducted a review of its Library Service. This
culminated in a Report to the Council’s Cabinet. The Recommendations in the Report
included that there should be consultation about a community-partnership approach at
selected Libraries.
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The Judgment of Lindblom J in The Manydown Co Ltd v Basingstoke and Deane BC
[2012] EWHC 977 (Admin) repays attention. The Claimant sought to challenge by judicial
review 2 decisions of the Council: (1) the Council’s refusal to reconsider its position on the
development of a site that it owns (and is the subject matter of a Joint Development
Partnership Agreement with the Claimant); and (2) a decision of the Council’s Cabinet
approving a selection of sites for development which did not include this site.
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After its torrid passage through Parliament, the Health and Social Care Bill received Royal
Assent on 27 March 2012. The Act deals principally with healthcare reform, but it also
contains some amendments to the legislative framework for social care. It will come into
force on a day yet to be appointed by the Secretary of State.
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