A motion for an interlocutory injunction was brought to prevent the City of Toronto from enforcing its By-law that prohibited camping and erecting tents, structures, and shelters in City parks, City of Toronto Municipal Code, c. 608. The applicants did not challenge the validity of the By-law but sought an order to have it suspended …Read more

The applicants appealed a decision affirming the constitutionality of Brian’s Law (Mental Health Legislative Reform), 2000, S.O. 2000, c. 9. (“Brian’s Law”), which was enacted by the Ontario legislature in 2000. Brian’s Law amended the Mental Health Act (“MHA”), adding provisions that expanded criteria for involuntary committal in a psychiatric hospital and introduced community treatment …Read more

The applicants’ claim was based on s. 27(1)(b) of the Constitution – the right to sufficient food and water, which they submitted found further expression in the provisions of the Water Services Act 108 of 1997 (“WSA”). Their complaint argued that farm occupiers and labour tenants, especially the applicants, lacked “access to sufficient water, basic …Read more

The applicant, Mr. Slavko Krajnc, was a professional truck driver in Celje, Slovenia. On September 29, 2003, Krajnc was deemed to have “category III work-related disability” as a result of his epilepsy, which rendered him unable to work as a truck driver. Accordingly, he had the right to be assigned to a different, more suitable …Read more

Ms. Boyle brought a claim against her employer, SCA Packaging, under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (the 1995 Act). Ms. Boyle had been employed by SCA Packaging as a buyer/stock controller since 1969. In 1974, she consulted an ENT specialist about constant hoarseness in her throat. She was diagnosed with nodules on her vocal cords. …Read more

Jean Smith brought an action for damages against her employee, Northamptonshire Council, under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, for injuries she suffered in her employment. Ms. Smith was employed by the council as a driver and a carer. Her duties included picking up Mrs. Cotter, who was confined to a wheelchair, …Read more

M was Zimbabwean citizen diagnosed as HIV positive, who was living in the United Kingdom while his appeal of a decision to return him to Zimbabwe was ongoing. Because of his illness, he applied to the local health authority to assess his needs for accommodation. The authority declined to provide accommodation to M. It determined …Read more

In July 2004 CS was being treated as a detained patient at Runwell Hospital under the Mental Health Act. She absconded and went on to commit suicide by throwing herself in front of a train. A public inquest was held and concluded that the precautions in place at the hospital were inadequate. S, the daughter …Read more

W faced two charges of murder in Missouri, United States of America (USA). He was arrested in the United Kingdom (UK) and the USA requested his extradition. In Missouri, the mandatory sentence was death or life without parole, except by the discretion of the Governor. The prosecutor vowed not to seek the death penalty. W …Read more

YL was an 84-year old woman suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, who was entitled to free accommodation provided by the Birmingham City Council under s 21 of the National Assistance Act 1948 (the 1948 Act). The council, with the power given to it by s 26 of the same Act, contracted a private health service provider …Read more

A group of employees brought an action in negligence for damages against their employer, Chemical & Insulating Co, for exposure to asbestos in the course of their employment. The employees had been negligently exposed to asbestos and had as a consequence developed pleural plaques. This was the thickening of a layer of fibers on the …Read more

This case was brought as a test case to examine the scope of an exception in tort law causation rules. In Fairchild v. Glenhaven Funeral Services Ltd [2002] UKHL 22 (Fairchild), the House of Lords created an exception in to the normal law of causation in torts for workers who had been exposed to asbestos dust …Read more

The House of Lords tried two asylum appeals together in this case: Secretary of State for the Home Department v. K (FC), and Fornah (FC) v. Secretary of State for the Home Department. The second case involved Fornah, a 15-year old girl from Sierra Leone who sought asylum in the United Kingdom on the grounds …Read more

N, a Ugandan woman, came to London in Mach 1998 seeking asylum. Her application for asylum was rejected and the Secretary of State proposed to expel her. N was suffering from advanced HIV/AIDS, but had achieved a stable condition due to the extensive medical treatment and medication she had been receiving in the UK. If …Read more

JD and MAK, parents of children with severe medical conditions, were wrongly suspected of child abuse through the misdiagnosis of their children by doctors. The ensuing investigation was conducted negligently. Each parent in consequence suffered psychiatric disorder and their family life was disrupted and they issued proceedings against the respective health authorities and individual doctors …Read more

K, the local authority initiated care proceedings to remove a child, E, from her parents, G and X. However, they were persuaded to agree to a short period of assessment at a specialist hospital and an interim care order was duly made under s 38(1)[1] of the Children Act 1989 (‘the Act’), including directions as …Read more

Section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 (‘the Act’) authorized the Home Secretary to provide or arrange for the provision of support for asylum-seekers and their dependents who appeared to be destitute, as defined, or likely to become so within a prescribed period. L, A and T, from Angola, Ethiopia and the Sudan …Read more

Colonel Munjaz sought judicial review of Mersey Care NHS Trust’s (Mersey Care) policy on the seclusion of patients detained at the hospital. He claimed that the policy violated both domestic law and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as incorporated into United Kingdom law by the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). Colonel Munjaz was …Read more

H challenged the provision of the Mental Health Act 1983 under which she was detained as incompatible with her right to liberty and security under Human Rights Act 1998. H was a 32-year old woman who was severely disabled by Down’s syndrome. H’s mother intensely distrusted health and social services, and refused on many occasions …Read more

Mr. Gregg consulted Dr. Scott, his general practitioner about a lump under his arm. Dr. Scott diagnosed the lump wrongfully as being benign. However, it was later discovered that the tumor was cancerous and had spread to various other parts of Mr. Gregg’s body. As a consequence of the Dr. Scott’s misdiagnosis, treatment for Mr. …Read more

Mrs. Porter, a 62 year old Romany gypsy, lived in a mobile home on a plot of land that she purchased in 1985. Her occupation of the site was unauthorized from the beginning. The home provided the appearance of a “permanent dwelling” but was in violation of the local Council’s planning control that did not …Read more

Carole Ogilvy Chester made a claim of medical negligence against her surgeon Fari Afshar and sought damages. Ms. Chester suffered from severe backaches for a considerable amount of time, and was referred to Dr. Afshar who was a renowned consultant neurosurgeon. Dr. Afshar advised her to go in for surgery, which she did. The surgery …Read more

The Secretary of State sought to appeal a decision which held that removing Mr. Razgar from the United Kingdom would be a violation of his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Mr. Razgar was an asylum seeker from Iraq who initially sought asylum in Germany, where he claimed to have been detained, …Read more

Susan Archibald claimed that her employer, Fife Council, had discriminated against her on the grounds of her disability under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (the Act). Fife Council had employed Ms. Archibald as a road sweeper since 1997. She underwent a minor surgery in April 1999, which due to a rare complication left her virtually …Read more

H, a young woman who suffered from Down’s syndrome and was severely mentally disabled, lived with her mother, BL, who was deeply distrustful of the health authorities. When her BL fell ill and H’s behaviour became increasingly disturbed H was formally admitted to hospital for assessment under section 2 (allowing mandatory commitment for mentally ill …Read more

The applicant, a U.K. national, alleged that section 2(1) of the Suicide Act 1961, which contained an offence of aiding and abetting suicide under English law, violated her rights under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (the Convention), in particular Articles 2 (right to life), 3 (freedom from torture …Read more

In July 1998, the European Parliament and the Council created and enacted a Council Directive (“directive”) to ban all forms of advertising or sponsorship that directly or indirectly promoted a tobacco product in the Community. In December 1998, the UK government announced its intention to implement the directive by banning tobacco advertising, as permitted by …Read more

Hutchison Reid, the respondent, was convicted of culpable homicide in 1967. He was made the subject of a hospital order and a restriction order without any time limit under the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1955 (the Criminal Procedure Act). A restriction order under the Criminal Procedure Act could only be made if the person posed …Read more

Mr. L was a mentally retarded person who was incapable of consenting to medical treatment. From the age of 13, he had been a resident at the Bournewood Hospital which was governed by the appellant, NHS Trust. Mr. L was discharged from the hospital on a trial basis into the community with paid carers, though …Read more

Michael Barry was an 81-year-old man who suffered from a number of disabilities and lived alone within the Gloucestershire County Council (the Council). Barry was originally assessed as requiring a number of home care services, but after budgetary cuts the Council informed Barry that they would no longer be able to perform cleaning and laundry …Read more

Mr. Beckwith was a 75 year old resident of the George Potter Home, which was one of the four residential care homes for the elderly in the London Borough of Wandsworth. The borough’s council (the Council) had decided to transfer the other three homes into private ownership and to close down George Potter Home altogether. …Read more

Mr. Bland was in the care of the health authority, and had been in a persistent vegetative state for three and a half years due to a severe crushed chest injury, which had caused devastating and permanent damage to the higher functions of his brain. He was being fed artificially by a tube inserted through …Read more

F was a 36 year old adult woman who suffered from a disability that left her with the mental capacity of a young child.  She had been a voluntary in-patient at a mental hospital since the age of 14, where she received treatment and enjoyed a great degree of freedom of movement. Although the facility …Read more

The Department of Health and Social Security (DHSS) issued a memorandum of guidance to local health authorities that stated that, inter alia, “consultations between doctors and patients are confidential,” even for children less than 16. The memorandum noted that while “it would be most unusual,” a doctor could advise the child regarding contraception without parental …Read more