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05 December 2019 / Neil Parpworth
Issue: 7867 / Categories: Features
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Seasons of change?

12477
The ‘Autumn Uprising’: a public assembly or assemblies? Neil Parpworth investigates
  • Roots of the Autumn Uprising: the Extinction Rebellion.
  • Legislative framework: the Public Order Act.
  • The decision: interpreting s 14 powers.

The common law recognises that the citizen has a right to protest and that such a right is closely entwined with freedom of speech: see, for example, the remarks of Lord Denning in Hubbard v Pitt [1976] QB 142, [1975] 3 All ER 1 [1975] 1 All ER 1056 and the decisions in R v Roberts [2019] 1 WLR 2577, [2018] All ER (D) 34 (Dec) and Redmond-Bate v DPP [2000] HRLR 249, [1999] All ER (D) 864. Since the enactment of the Human Rights Act 1998, the citizen has also been able to rely directly upon the Convention rights of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, as protected by Arts 10 and 11, before domestic courts. Where they have done so, judges have been quick to echo the sentiments of the Strasbourg court that such rights are hallmarks of a democratic state: see, for example the

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

Private wealth and tax team welcomes cross-border specialist as consultant

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

Freeths—Michelle Kirkland Elias

International hospitality and leisure specialist joins corporate team as partner

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

Firm appoints head of intellectual property to drive northern growth

NEWS
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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