Evidence of Bad Character
Project status: Complete
A review of the law of England and Wales as it relates to evidence of previous misconduct in criminal proceedings and the related trial process.
Projects
High Court’s Jurisdiction in Relation to Criminal Proceedings
Project status: Complete
The High Court has supervisory power over the Crown Court, but it is limited. It does not include “matters relating to trial on indictment”. The reason for this limitation is that it is in the interests of justice for trials to proceed without being delayed by appeals and applications to the High Court. The problem lies … Read more >
Execution of Deeds and Documents by or on behalf of Bodies Corporate
Project status: Complete
This project made recommendations for reforms designed to resolve a number of difficulties and inconsistencies thrown up by the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 and the Companies Act 1989.
Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings
Project status: Complete
Download the report Download the consultation The problem In a criminal trial, a jury or magistrates’ court is required to determine disputed factual issues. Experts in a relevant field are often called as witnesses to help the fact-finding body understand and interpret evidence with which that body is unfamiliar. The current judicial approach to the … Read more >
Easements, Covenants and Profits à Prendre
Project status: Complete
Download the report Download the report summary The problem There is a complex web of rights and obligations that link different parcels of land, and their owners, together. Three of those are easements, profits à prendre and covenants. Easements are rights enjoyed by a landowner over another person’s land. A positive easement (such as a … Read more >
Criminal Liability in Regulatory Contexts
Project status: Analysis of responses
The main recommendations we made in this project aimed to establish a principled basis for the creation of criminal law in regulatory contexts. We also considered particular doctrines of liability applicable to businesses and make proposals to ensure that they are fair to such bodies, in particular small businesses. The project A significant proportion of the new … Read more >
Damages for Personal Injury
The Law Commission undertook a review of the law of damages, particularly personal injury damages, as part of the 5th and 6th Programmes of Law Reform.
Data Sharing between Public Bodies
Project status: Complete
Data sharing affects us all. Public bodies report that they cannot always share the data they need to share and, as a result, miss out on opportunities to provide better services to citizens. At the same time, the protection of privacy is fundamental to any data sharing regime. The law surrounding data sharing is complex. … Read more >
Defamation and the Internet
Project status: Complete
A preliminary investigation to clarify the issues relating to defamation on the internet. We were asked to provide preliminary advice to Government on whether the existing law causes difficulties for online publishers, internet service providers, their customers or others, with a view to informing possible further work.
Publication of Local Authority Reports
Project status: Complete
In this project, we considered whether changes were needed in the law relating to inquiries undertaken by local authorities. In February 2000 Sir Ronald Waterhouse published the results of the inquiry he chaired into the abuse of children in council homes in North Wales. He was concerned there might be circumstances where local authorities might feel … Read more >