FREE SPEECH AND SCANDALISING THE COURT IN MAURITIUS

2015 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-10
Author(s):  
Sophie Turenne
Keyword(s):  
Free Speech ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Privy Council ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Law Commission

AT the behest of the Law Commission, Contempt of Court: Scandalising the Court (18 December 2012), Parliament recently abolished the common law offence of scandalising the court (s. 33 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013). But the offence is still frequently found in many parts of the common law world and the decision of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in Dhooharika v DPP of Mauritius [2014] UKPC 11; [2014] 3 W.L.R. 1081 may indicate its future in common law jurisdictions. The Privy Council was asked to decide, inter alia, whether the common law offence was compatible with s. 12 of the Constitution of Mauritius. Section 12 protects a person's freedom of expression but also makes saving for any law, or any act done pursuant to law, which aims to maintain the authority and independence of the courts and which is reasonably justifiable to that end.

Time for an English Commercial Code?

1997 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 516-536
Author(s):  
Dame Mary Arden
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Commercial Code ◽  
Unique Experience ◽  
The Common ◽  
Systematic Development ◽  
The Law ◽  
Lord Chancellor ◽  
Law Commission

Parliament has imposed on the Law Commission the duty to review the law of England and Wales “with a view to its systematic development and reform, including in particular the codification of [the] law … and generally the simplification and modernisation of the law”. There are a number of points which flow from this. First, as a body which reviews great swathes of the common law to see if they require to be modernised or simplified, the Law Commission has a unique standpoint from which to view the strengths and weaknesses of the common law method. Second, it has unique experience of law reform and the Parliamentary process. Third, in discharge of its functions, it has an interest in seeing that, if codification is appropriate, a recommendation to that effect is made to the Lord Chancellor. It need not be the Law Commission which carries out the recommendation, and indeed the Law Commission could not carry out a project purely of its own initiative.

18. Freedom of expression

2020 ◽  
pp. 451-481
Author(s):  
Neil Parpworth
Keyword(s):  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Search And Seizure ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Court Proceedings ◽  
The Uk

This chapter focuses on some of the laws relating to freedom of expression in the UK. Freedom of expression is widely considered to be a necessary feature in any democratic state. The chapter considers the extent to which restrictions are placed on the freedom of expression in the UK in two particular contexts. It considers laws for the control of obscenity and indecency, the publication of obscene matter, the test of obscenity, defences, powers of search and seizure, and the possession of pornographic images. The discussion also considers that part of the law of contempt of court which relates to restricting the ability of the media to report court proceedings. This chapter is confined to the law relating to obscenity and indecency and contempt of court on the basis that they share the important characteristic of being regulated by both statute and the common law.

9. Inchoate offences

2020 ◽  
pp. 106-115
Author(s):  
Jonathan Herring
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Essential Information ◽  
Serious Crime ◽  
Commission Report ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Law Commission

Each Concentrate revision guide is packed with essential information, key cases, revision tips, exam Q&As, and more. Concentrates show you what to expect in a law exam, what examiners are looking for, and how to achieve extra marks. This chapter discusses inchoate offences. Inchoate offences are where the full offence is not completed. The reason that the law fixes liability on defendants who have not fulfilled the full offence is to punish those who are willing to be involved in criminality even where the full offence is not, for one reason or another, completed. The law governing all inchoate offences is in a state of flux; the common law offence of incitement was replaced with new offences under the Serious Crime Act 2007. The law governing conspiracy and attempts was the subject of a Law Commission Report in December 2009.

21. Defamation and Injurious Falsehood

2019 ◽  
pp. 623-694
Author(s):  
Simon Deakin ◽  
Zoe Adams
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Communication Technology ◽  
Digital Communication ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Passing Off ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Historic Origin

Defamation, a tort that protects a claimant’s reputation, has been the subject of much debate in recent years, culminating in the passing of the Defamation Act in 2013. A tort of historic origin, defamation raises novel challenges in an age of internet and digital communication technology, particularly given increasing concerns about freedom of expression, and the protection of privacy. Like many aspects of the law discussed in this book, moreover, defamation has not been left untouched by human rights developments. The chapter begins with an introduction to defamation, covering the meaning of ‘defamatory’ and libel and slander. It then discusses elements of liability, both in the common law, and under the Defamation Act 2013; defences; damages; mitigation of damage; and injurious falsehoods and passing off.

6. Liability of Occupiers and Builders

2019 ◽  
pp. 243-277
Author(s):  
Simon Deakin ◽  
Zoe Adams
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Present Form ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Law Commission

Occupier’s liability is, essentially, part of the law of negligence, although it takes statutory form. Its present form is, moreover, the product of various successive legislative accretions. As such, prime importance must be attached to the wording of the statutes, assisted wherever necessary by reference to the preparatory publications of the Law Commission. This chapter will discuss the Occupiers’ Liability Act of 1957, which deals with the liability of Occupiers towards persons (‘visitors’) permitted to be on the Occupier’s land; the Occupiers’ Liability Act of 1984, that deals with the liability of Occupiers towards trespassers; and the liability of non-occupiers, such as vendors, landlords, and builders. It will also explore the relationship between the statutory regime, and the common law of negligence.

scholarly journals A Question of Seduction: The Case of MacMillan v. Brownlee

1969 ◽  
pp. 447
Author(s):  
Thomas Thorner ◽  
G. N. Reddekopp
Keyword(s):  
Social History ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Detailed Account ◽  
Legal Issue ◽  
Privy Council ◽  
Administration Of Justice ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law

In a detailed account of the action for seduction involving a former premier of Alberta and his stenographer, the authors review the decisions of the courts from trial level to Privy Council The common law and the effect of statute are discussed in an explanation and analysis of the law of seduction. By reviewing newspaper accounts of public reac tion to the lawsuit, the authors are able to provide both an interesting perspective on Alberta's social history and also a glimpse at an important yet often neglected legal issue: the public's perception of the administration of justice.

13. Hearsay admissible by statute in civil proceedings

2020 ◽  
pp. 412-432
Author(s):  
Adrian Keane ◽  
Paul McKeown
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
Civil Justice ◽  
Civil Proceedings ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Hearsay Rule ◽  
Oral Evidence ◽  
Law Commission

Under the common law rule against hearsay, any assertion, other than one made by a person while giving oral evidence in the proceedings, was inadmissible if tendered as evidence of the facts asserted. The Civil Evidence Act 1968 constituted a major assault upon the common law rule in civil proceedings by making provisions for the admissibility of both oral and written hearsay subject to certain conditions. In June 1988 the Civil Justice Review recommended an inquiry by a law reform agency into the usefulness of the hearsay rule in civil proceedings and the machinery for rendering it admissible. The subsequent recommendations of the Law Commission were put into effect by the Civil Evidence Act 1995. This chapter discusses the admissibility of hearsay under the Civil Evidence Act 1995; safeguards; proof of statements contained in documents; evidence formerly admissible at common law; and Ogden tables.

23. Cohabitation and Finance

2019 ◽  
pp. 227-236
Author(s):  
Jane Sendall ◽  
Roiya Hodgson
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Legal Rights ◽  
Legal Remedies ◽  
The Family ◽  
Cohabiting Couples ◽  
Legal Position ◽  
The Common ◽  
Family Home ◽  
The Law ◽  
Law Commission

Cohabiting couples do not have any intrinsic legal rights by simply cohabiting. The ‘common law wife/husband’ does not exist in law, despite many believing that it does. This chapter discusses the legal position of cohabitants and financial remedies. This includes the Law Commission Proposals in order to try and allow cohabitants to gain some financial relief in certain circumstances. The legal remedies available to separating cohabitants including establishing legal title and a beneficial interest, is outlined. This also includes resulting and constructive trusts. Finally, the position of cohabitants in relation to the family home and Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act is discussed.

18. Freedom of expression

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Parpworth
Keyword(s):  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Search And Seizure ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Court Proceedings ◽  
The Uk

This chapter focuses on laws governing freedom of expression in the UK. Freedom of expression is widely considered to be a necessary feature in any democratic state. The chapter considers the extent to which restrictions are placed on the freedom of expression in the UK. It considers laws for the control of obscenity and indecency, the publication of obscene matter, the test of obscenity, defences, powers of search and seizure, and the possession of pornographic images. The discussion also considers that part of the law of contempt of court which relates to restricting the ability of the media to report court proceedings. This chapter is confined to the law relating to obscenity and indecency and contempt of court on the basis that they share the important characteristic of being regulated by both statute and the common law.

9. Inchoate offences

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Herring
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Essential Information ◽  
Serious Crime ◽  
Commission Report ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Law ◽  
Law Commission

Each Concentrate revision guide is packed with essential information, key cases, revision tips, exam Q&As, and more. Concentrates show you what to expect in a law exam, what examiners are looking for, and how to achieve extra marks. This chapter discusses inchoate offences. Inchoate offences are where the full offence is not completed. The reason that the law fixes liability on defendants who have not fulfilled the full offence is to punish those who are willing to be involved in criminality even where the full offence is not, for one reason or another, completed. The law governing all inchoate offences is in a state of flux; the common law offence of incitement was replaced with new offences under the Serious Crime Act 2007. The law governing conspiracy and attempts was the subject of a Law Commission Report in December 2009.

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