Caserta v Director of Public Transport [2011] VCAT 98 (27 January 2011)
The applicant sought a review of the decision of the Director of Transport (‘Director’) refusing to grant him an application for driver accreditation for a commercial passenger vehicle. The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (‘VCAT’) affirmed the Director’s decision on the basis it was not satisfied that the applicant had met the application requirements under the relevant Act.
Read MoreAydin v Germany [2011] ECHR 141 (27 January 2011)
The applicant, a Turkish national, brought a claim in the European Court of Human Rights against the Federal Republic of Germany under Article 34 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the ‘ECHR’). The applicant alleged that her criminal conviction for breaching a ban on the activities of the Workers’ Party of Kurdistan (‘PKK’) violated her right to freedom of expression.
Read MoreKupczak v Poland [2011] ECHR 127 (25 January 2011)
Mr Edward Kupczak (the ‘applicant’) was held in detention in Poland awaiting trial for offences related to organised crime. The Applicant was severely disabled in a car accident six years prior to his detention, and suffered severe pain daily. He had been living with a morphine pump installed in his body to help manage his pain. His pump failed shortly after he was detained. The Applicant remained in detention despite making appeals for two and a half years. The Applicant was released from pre-trial detention in 2008 and was then able to have the morphine pump replaced.
The European Court of Human Rights found that through his detention, his lack of access to appropriate pain relief, and the Polish courts’ failure to acknowledge the break-down of his morphine pump, the Applicant had been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment in violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights ( ‘ECHR’).
Read MoreDonaldson v the United Kingdom - 56975/09 [2011] ECHR 210 (25 January 2011)
A majority of the European Court of Human Rights declared that an application concerning a ban on all prisoners in Northern Ireland wearing emblems with a political or sectarian connotation outside of their prison cells was inadmissible.
Read MoreMvumvu v Minister for Transport [2011] ZACC 1 (17 January 2011)
The South African Constitutional Court struck down road accident compensation legislation because it is indirectly discriminatory on the ground of race. However, due to evidence of serious budgetary implications, the Court suspended the order of invalidity for 18 months to enable Parliament to cure the defect.
Read MoreTTM v London Borough of Hackney & Ors [2011] EWCA Civ 4 (14 January 2011)
The UK Court of Appeal recently considered the legality of detention of a mental health patient where the patient’s “nearest relative”, his brother, objected to an application for detention and treatment being made under the Mental Health Act 1983 (UK) (‘MHA’).
Read MoreMorales, R (on the application of) v The Parole Board & Ors [2011] EWHC 28 (Admin) (14 January 2011)
In this case the High Court of England and Wales decided that the actions of the Parole Board, and the Secretary of State for Justice (‘Secretary of State’) caused an ‘undue delay’ in allowing Mr Jan Morales to test the legality of his detention before a court. Accordingly, the High Court held that there had been an infringement of Mr Morales’ rights under Article 5 (4) of the European Convention of Human Rights (‘ECHR’).
Read MoreSuppiah & Ors, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2011] EWHC 2 (Admin) (11 January 2011)
The High Court of England and Wales decided that two families who had sought asylum in the United Kingdom were detained unlawfully by the Secretary of State for the Home Department (Defendant) because the Defendant failed to have regard to its duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
Read MoreIn the Matter of Marriage Commissioners Appointed Under The Marriage Act, 1995, 2011 SKCA 3 (10 January 2011)
In a landmark ruling, the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan, In the Matter of Marriage Commissioners Appointed Under The Marriage Act, 1995 (Marriage Commissioner Case), held that that a marriage commissioner’s refusal to solemnize same-sex marriage on the basis of religious beliefs is unlawful. The Court held that two proposed amendments to the Marriage Act 1995 would offend the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and, if enacted, ‘would violate the equality rights of gay and lesbian individuals’.
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