Private Law for Public Law Practitioners

Reaching the injustices other public law remedies cannot reach, or,
When you have established that public authorities have got things wrong, what remedies could be used beyond those available in conventional public law?

PDF flyer which includes a printable booking form.

Book Online
and pay online for an extra 5% discount (you can do this usinbg any debit or credit card through the online booking form).

Morning session.  Chair: Kate Stone, Garden Court North Chambers

10.00 – 10.30
Opening Address:
Sir Anthony Hooper
If I were you I wouldn’t have started from here. So where do we go from here?

10.30 – 11.00
Funding in all shapes and sizes.
Martin Westgate QC, Doughty Street Chambers

11.00 – 11.20 break

11.20 11.50 Negligence claims against the police and prosecutorial authorities
Karon will present a review of recent case law, including the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision in Michael v Chief Constable of South Wales Police.
Karon Monaghan QC, Matrix Chambers

11.50 -13.00 Morning Breakout Sessions – choose one of three

Breakout 1: Mediation in public law
Varda Bondy, Essex University & Helen Curtis, Garden Court Chambers
This session will look at
– when to mediate, pre or post permission?
– what added value can mediation offer to complement litigation?
– how to propose mediation persuasively or deal with a refusal to mediate

Breakout 2: A two way street: Public law for private law practitioners
Tom de la Mare QC & Tom Hickman,  Blackstone Chambers and Cathryn Hopkins, Olswang LLP
This session will look at
– How public law can migrate to competition law, especially abuse of dominance to control power unaccountable to public law
– The private law use of Wednesbury unreasonableness and like concepts (e.g. in the law of trusts, fiduciaries, companies)
– The adoption of proportionality by private common law before common public la
– Public law shaping (or not) pure private law torts such as false imprisonment

Breakout 3: Making the Ombudsman remedies effective
Tim Baldwin and Felicity Williams, Garden Court Chambers
This session will look at ensuring the Ombudsman offers effective alternative remedies, with specific reference to the failures of the PHSO or ‘People’s Ombudsman’ and discuss how the Public Service Ombudsman Bill is proposed to reform and modernise the Public Service Ombudsman after the Gordon Review.

13.00 Lunch

Afternoon Session.  Chair: Phillip Rule, No5 Chambers

14.00 Extra-territorial accountability
Nikolaus Grubeck, Monckton Chambers

14.30 Afternoon Breakout Sessions – choose one of three

Breakout 4: Private law claims in immigration detention cases
Alison Pickup & Martha Spurrier, Doughty Street Chambers, Harriet Wistrich, Birnberg Pierce and Partners
This session will look at civil claims arising out of immigration detention, looking at practice and procedure, considering recent developments and exploring strategic questions and issues that might give rise to future challenges. Topics will include healthcare, the detained fast track, human rights, non-delegable duties of care, public law errors giving rise to private law liability and quantum of damages.

Breakout 5: Enforcing UK environmental law: Costs, remedies and access to information
Richard Moules, Landmark Chambers
This session will look at civil remedies to enforce UK environmental law with emphasis on private law claims (public and private nuisance, Rylands v Fletcher liability and negligence) and damages under the Human Rights Act 1998. It will also cover the impact of the Aarhus Convention on procedural issues relevant to private law environmental claims, including costs protection and access to environmental information.

Breakout 6: Protecting the vulnerable and investigating state failures
Heather Williams QC, Doughty Street Chambers and Jesse Nicholls, Garden Court Chambers
This session will explore how to use the protective and investigative obligations under HRA Articles 2 & 3 ECHR in private law claims to secure accountability where public authorities fail to protect people in their care (including victims of crime and abuse, vulnerable witnesses, and those in police, prison, immigration and mental health detention) or fail to investigate and protect people against risks posed by other private individuals. The session will also consider claims against public authorities for failing to investigate violations of the state’s duty to protect people from death and serious harm.

16.00 break

16.20 Rage against the machine – latest developments in protest law
 Anna – Louise Thwaites & Susie Labinjoh, Hodge Jones and Allen
Recent developments in protest law and remedies.  This will be a practical guide to the potential civil actions available as well as current and new threats to the right to protest.

17.00 Closing address:
Harriet Wistrich, Birnberg Pierce and partners, Liberty Human Rights Lawyer of the Year 2014

17.30 Close

PDF flyer with booking form.

The course is worth 6 CPD/BSB, the course code is PLPPRIVATEPUBLIC2 and PLP’s BSB provider code is 1749.

Please note that the prices shown below are for a limited period only and are at a 20% discount (and a further 5% discount for those paying online) and will be available until 5pm Friday 22nd May, from which time prices will go up to £200 full price, £120 discounted fee.

Full price delegates – private practice, public bodies: £200 + VAT
Discounted – voluntary sector, academic: £120 + VAT
Third delegates of any party of bookings mad e at the same time will receive a further 50% disount!

Those paying online will receive a further 5% discount on payment processing, on all the above discounts!

This conferecne is supported by Matrix Chambers and Freshfields Bruckhause Deringer