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Legionnaires Disease – You Can Pay a Very High Price

Faltec Ltd has been fined £1.18 million for two legionella outbreaks and a machine explosion after failing to comply with their Health and Safety obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Initially the company was given a fine of £1.6 million, it was reduced slightly on their appeal against the sentence (Faltec […]

‘Hung Jury’ – Not as Bad as it Sounds

Last week the Hillsborough trial involving ex-police officer David Duckenfield ended without reaching a conclusion; a number of papers reported that there was a ‘hung jury’ – so, what does that mean? In an ideal world, a jury will reach a clear conclusion by either convicting or acquitting the defendant. In a case with 12 […]

Are child-like sex dolls illegal?

The Crown Prosecution Service has issued new guidance to prosecutors as to which offences may be committed regarding “child-like” sex dolls after more than 200 seizures by Customs Officers in the last two years. The potential offences are: 1) Importing obscene articles. 2) Publishing an article for gain or not, or having an article […]

Appeals from Beyond the Grave

The Court of Appeal has handed down judgment in the case of R v Max Clifford, the disgraced celebrity PR guru who was convicted in 2014 of a number of sexual offences and sentenced to 8 years imprisonment. Clifford died in 2017, so why did the appeal proceed? Section 44A of The Criminal Appeal […]

Bankruptcy – Time to Stop Digging

For many people being declared bankrupt represents either personal and/or business failure, bringing with it feelings of embarrassment, shame and anxiety. From a legal perspective, the story may not be over, as the law requires bankrupts to cooperate fully to maximise recoverable assets for creditors. In this instance, it may be tempting to try and […]

Parliamentary Crime

There have been two entirely different crime stories in the news this week, but both will challenge the court to consider sentencing guidelines and how they ought to be applied. Conservative MP Christopher Davies admitted two charges concerning expenses fraud. The sum of money concerned was relatively small, around £700, but it was a surprise […]

McKenzie Friends: When saving money can cost you a fortune

The unimaginable has happened: you’ve been convicted of a crime you didn’t commit. The lawyers at your trial have told you that there is no hope of an appeal. You can’t afford more legal advice so you decide to look for a cheaper alternative. Surely there must be someone who can help? Perhaps that friend […]

Tina Malone – When Sharing a Picture Can Have You Sent to Prison

The murder of James Bulger in 1993 shocked everyone. That the killers who committed such a violent crime were only ten years of age was astounding. Many people, rightly, felt they should be punished to the full extent of the law. But some people think that the punishment should go further. As a result, Jon […]

Civil Contingencies Act, Martial Law and a State of Emergency

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 confers a power to make regulations if an ‘emergency’ has occurred or is about to occur. In other words, a power to declare a state of emergency and make regulations to deal with it. The reason that this is currently interesting is that the definition of emergency within the Act […]

Facilitating Tax Evasion

HMRC is reported to be investigating alleged violations of a new criminal offence, part of the crackdown on money laundering, for the first time. A freedom of information request made by law firm Greenberg Taurig revealed there are five current criminal investigations. The Criminal Finances Act 2017 introduced the new offence of failing to prevent […]