CPACD

Cases such as Charlie Gard and Alfie Evans highlight to the general public the fact that, where caring parents and doctors disagree over appropriate treatment for a child, the judges of the Family Division of the High Court are the ones entrusted with making the decision about what is in the child's "best interests."   The "best interests" test has recently been described by the Supreme Court as the "gold standard" and the court commented that, in this type of case, the test "needs to apply to them without qualification." These very difficult situations raise numerous legal and ethical questions.  This post takes a brief look at one alternative and controversial process for making such decisions although I do not advocate its adoption here. Senator Ted Cruz (Texas) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013.   He was a candidate for the Republican nomination for President of th...

Cambridge Magistrates' Court " Lay justice is a powerful expression of community participation in the regulation of society. " This week Criminal Law and Justice Weekly ceased publication.  For the last 182 years this "quiet" publication has recorded changes in the criminal justice arena.   It is noted for "quality" articles - e.g. Modern Slavery Act: Who bears the burden of proof? - and will be missed. John Cooper QC commented about the closure by saying- "The final demise of CL and J is perhaps a salutary lesson for many of us. I will predict that in some years time, may be even sooner, practitioners will ask “why isn’t there a weekly publication devoted to crime and the criminal justice system?” And comparisons will be made with other legal disciplines who have their own titles. Well let me answer that question now, before you ask it...... “ you had one, and you lost it." Interestingly, CL and J sprang from an earlier publicati...

The courts are called upon to make difficult decisions touching on all aspects of our human existence but the most profoundly difficult decisions are in those tragic cases where a child is in hospital with an incurable condition.  Alfie Evans was born on 9th May 2016 and is on venitlatory support at Alder Hey NHS Foundation Trust Hospital .  The Hospital Trust sought a declaration from the High Court that continuing the support was no longer in Alfie's best interests and that in the circumstances it is not lawful that such treatment continue. Alfie's parents (Tom Evans and Kate James) opposed the application.  Naturally, as loving parents, they hope that a cure can be found and that their beloved son will recover. Mr Justice Hayden heard 6 days of evidence and reached the conclusion that Alfie's brain had been "so corroded by neuro-degenerative disease that his life was futile."  Read Hayden J's judgment of February 2018 - Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundat...