News in brief: week beginning 20 October 2014

DEFAMATION

Tweeting lies: The UK has seen a 23 per cent increase in the number of reported defamation cases in the last year, according to research carried out by Thomson Reuters. The growth in the number of reported defamation cases, up from 70 to 86, is partly due to a sharp rise in claims brought over defamatory material published online. The number of cases relating to ‘new media’ in 2013/14, such as internet-only news services, social media, text messages and online review sites, more than quadrupled, rising from
six to 26.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Fraudulent lawsuit: Facebook is suing US law firms DLA Piper and Milberg, as well as Paul Argentieri & Associates and Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman, alleging they knowingly represented a fraudster who claimed to be owed Facebook shares. The complaint, submitted to the supreme court of the state of New York, alleges the firms representing Paul D Ceglia conspired to file and prosecute “a fraudulent lawsuit”. Ceglia was an internet entrepreneur who claimed that Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, had promised him a 50 per cent stake in the social media giant. A federal court dismissed that case and a grand jury has indicted Ceglia for that fraud. DLA Piper say the suit is “entirely baseless”.

FAMILY

Radical reform: The president of the Family Division, Sir James Munby, has publicly questioned whether divorce should remain subject to judicial supervision.  At the Legal Wales Conference  in Bangor, Sir James said that ‘radical’ reform is necessary to address the effects of legal aid cuts: “May the time not come when we should at least consider whether the process of divorce still needs to be subject to judicial supervision?” On the subject of cohabitants’ rights, he commented: “Reform is desperately needed – has been desperately needed for at least 40 years. Thus far governments have failed to act. Reform is inevitable. It is inconceivable that society  will not right this injustice in due course.”

LEGISLATION 

Medical innovation: The government has given its backing to the controversial ‘Saatchi Bill’ following its latest amendments. The Medical Innovation Bill, proposed by Lord Saatchi, aims to give legal protection to doctors who try innovative or experimental treatments for cancer. The proposed legislation continues to be divisive in the legal and medical communities, with many concerned about what might happen if doctors are allowed to ‘experiment’ on vulnerable patients. The Bill has been through all stages in parliament and is awaiting royal assent.

CRIME

Illegal cartoons: Japanese anime fan, Robul Hoque, has been convicted of having illegal pictures of cartoon children. In 2013, police discovered a stash of explicit manga-style pictures on his computer. Despite being cartoons, they were classified as prohibited images as they depicted young girls either exposing themselves or taking part in sexual activity. He was charged with 20 offences of possessing prohibited images of children. Hoque pleaded guilty to 10 specimen charges. The other 10 were left to lie on the court file. His barrister, Richard Bennett of Fountain Chambers, said the case would act as a warning to “thousands” of other anime fans across the UK.

EUROPE

Pension exemption: The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has supported a 2009 decision made by the European Commission and ordered BT to make repayments of over £16m resulting from exemptions the company received from pension rules. The UK government introduced the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) in 2004 and granted an exemption to BT, which the European Commission ruled constituted state aid and was therefore illegal. BT has said that it is disappointed by the court’s dismissal of the appeal, but has accepted the decision.

PRIVATE CLIENT

Probate services: The chartered accountancy firm Hope Shaw has become the first sole practitioner to be authorised to conduct probate work by  a non-legal regulatory body,  the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). Hope Shaw provides fixed-fee general accounting services for local businesses and private clients, and is based in Dorset. 

COMMERCIAL

Anti-competitive behaviour: The number of allegations of anti-competitive behaviour made to the competition watchdog has plummeted to less than half the level seen last year, according to commercial law firm EMW. The firm suggests the sharp fall from 2,165 complaints in 2012 to just 975 in 2013 means grievances sent to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which replaced the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), over anti-competitive behaviour has now returned to pre-credit crunch levels.

PERSONAL INJURY