Coronavirus

The backlog of criminal trials which has built up during the COVID-19 crisis totals roughly half of the number of cases typically heard in a year, according to reports. Chief Justice Frank Clarke announced last week that criminal jury trials are set to resume in the Central Criminal Court this month

The UK government has named the 10 sites which will host so-called "Nightingale courts" to alleviate the pressure on courts and tribunals resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The sites including Middlesbrough Town Hall, the Knights’ Chamber within the grounds of Peterborough Cathedral, and th

The rent freeze and eviction moratorium introduced in response to the COVID-19 crisis is set to be extended again, ministers have said. The Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 prohibits rent increases and evictions during the "emergency period", which is currently due to en

Immigration permissions have been extended for a third and final time in response to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Permissions due to expire between 20 July and 20 August 2020 are set to be automatically extended for one month, including for people in Ireland on short stay visas and those whose permi

Personal injury cases have restarted at the High Court following a four-month absence as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The backlog of cases that has accrued since mid-March is believed to be 300, the Irish Examiner reports.

Criminal jury trials are set to resume in the Central Criminal Court later this month and in Circuit Courts by late August as the courts aim to increase the number of hearings following the COVID-19 crisis, Chief Justice Frank Clarke has announced. In a statement issued over the weekend, Ireland's t

Global law firm Dentons will not open its new Dublin office until September as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The firm announced its expansion into Ireland in January with the appointment of two partners from William Fry and Matheson.

The visa waiver programme allowing people visiting the UK on short stay visas to travel to Ireland has been temporarily suspended because of a "divergence in approach" to the COVID-19 pandemic. The measure, announced today by Justice Minister Helen McEntee, will affect nationals from 17 countries, i

More than 70 legal, campaigning and civil society organisations are calling for an urgent public inquiry into the UK government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Between 43,000 and 65,000 people have died in the UK so far as a result of coronavirus - the figure represents one of the high

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has granted full sick pay to outsourced staff with COVID-19 symptoms, three months after the death of one of its cleaners. Outsourced cleaners who have already self-isolated due to COVID-19 symptoms will also receive a back payment from 1 April 2020.

Physical prison visits will resume in Northern Ireland later this month, Justice Minister Naomi Long has confirmed. Under new guidance, physical visits will be allowed to take place from 27 July, but virtual visits will remain "the preferred option".

Lisa Bryson, partner and head of employment at Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast, considers the impact of COVID-19 on businesses in Northern Ireland. In some ways, it seems that the introduction of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme or the ‘Furlough’ scheme as its more commonly referred

Global experts in law and human rights have contributed to a new online publication about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19, Law and Human Rights: Essex Dialogues, published today by the University of Essex, includes expert analysis on issues including emergency powers legislation, healt

The first tranche of legacy inquests due to be heard as part of a five-year plan may begin to be heard in October in unprecedented "hybrid" hearings following delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The presiding coroner for Northern Ireland, Mrs Justice Siobhan Keegan, who will soon be succeeded in

The UK government should act immediately to deal with a "pandemic of misinformation" that poses an existential threat to our democracy and way of life, according to a report of the Lords' Committee on Democracy and Digital Technologies. The committee said online platforms are not "inherently ungover