In light of the planned reduction from 50 to 30 minutes for claimant commitment appointments, Public Law Project’s Legal Director Alison Pickup has written to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to ask what best practice is being developed to ensure that claimants are aware of the adjustments that can be made to
All of us at the Public Law Project are delighted to welcome Professor Iyiola Solanke as our newest patron. Professor Solanke is a socio-legal scholar, with an expertise in EU and equality law. She is Chair of EU Law and Social Justice in the School of Law at the University of Leeds where she researches
Public Law Project has written to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Dr Thérèse Coffey MP to urge the Government to extend the suspension of Universal Credit work requirements for at least another three months beyond 30 June. In light of the extra pressures the benefits system is enduring as a result of
The Ministry of Justice has ‘temporarily paused’ the review of the legal aid means test which the Government had planned to complete by Summer 2020. Justice Minister Alex Chalk said in response to a parliamentary written question this week: “the impact of the Covid-19 crisis has meant this work has been temporarily paused and a
In the High Court on Tuesday 9th June, Public Law Project (PLP) acted in a challenge to the Legal Aid Agency’s (LAA) decision not to grant legal aid for family proceedings to a woman who had given an account of domestic violence at the hands of her ex-partner. The Today Programme 09/06/20 (37 minutes) Legal
Our research team has published a two-part blog on Admininstrative Law in the Common Law World on the use of remote hearings for judicial review. Part 1 looks at how the process of judicial review is operating following the Administrative Court’s rapid shift from traditional to remote hearings. Part 2 looks at litigation patterns and
Here is the Public Law Project’s (PLP’s) briefing ahead of the second reading on Monday 18 May in the House of Commons on the Immigration and Social Security Bill (‘the Bill’). In this briefing on the Bill, we have two key recommendations: The delegated powers as drafted in the Bill must be narrowed in order
Today a Divisional Court has held that the Home Office’s No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) scheme as it relates to parents on the ten-year route to settlement is unlawful as it breaches Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the prohibition on inhuman and degrading treatment). The High Court is yet to
The COVID-19 pandemic is exacerbating existing problems in unfair systems which disproportionately impact on poor and marginalised groups. Since the start of the pandemic, PLP has been providing public law support to frontline organisations that are attempting to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on disadvantaged groups. Two issues that PLP has worked with civil
PLP has written to the Lord Chancellor to request changes to the Exceptional Case Funding (ECF) scheme during the COVID 19 pandemic, to ensure that ECF remains a safety net to those most in need. The requested changes recognise the additional pressures on the legal aid sector under present circumstances, the significant changes to proceedings
While much of UK life ground to a halt in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the government sought to keep the wheels of justice turning. To achieve this while also ensuring compliance with public health guidance on social distancing and associated legal restrictions, HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has relied extensively on remote hearings,
To help Universal Credit claimants to make better sense of what could be expected of them during the Covid 19 period, PLP has added a short series of FAQs to our www.claimantcommitments.co.uk microsite. As of early April, roughly one million people have claimed Universal Credit due to the coronavirus outbreak. The DWP has not currently suspended sanctions, so