Issue: Vol 157, Issue 7279

Plans to allow the media open access to family courts have been shelved by the government following consultation.

YL v Birmingham City Council and others [2007] UKHL 27, [2007] All ER (D) 207 (Jun)

New criminal provisions relating to under age alcohol sales could be ruinous for unwary licence holders, say Mark Conway and Natalie Ledgard

Suzanne Palmer discusses the clash between breach of contract claims and statutory grievance procedures

The LSC has shown a willingness to listen in key areas affecting legal aid provision, says Richard Miller

The Human Rights Act 1998 does not apply to people in private care homes whose places are funded by local councils, the House of Lords has ruled.
In YL v Birmingham City Council, the law lords rejected the argument that the Act should apply to an elderly Alzheimer’s sufferer because her care home place was being paid for by the local authority, which had a statutory duty to ensure she was cared for.

Sterling Developments (London) Ltd v Pagano [2007] All ER (D) 01 (May)

Survival of the fittest? Professor Michael Zander QC continues his analysis of why the Carter reforms were savaged by the Constitutional Affairs Committee