Latest news with #KCs
NZ Herald
31-05-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Polkinghorne's rule: Auckland's Northern Club proposes to suspend members charged with criminal offences or declared bankrupt
Two King's Counsel who are members of Auckland's elite Northern Club support a proposal to introduce a new temporary suspension clause, following Remuera eye doctor Philip Polkinghorne's murder trial. The KCs, who did not want to be identified, have coined it the 'Polkinghorne'
Scotsman
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Scotsman
Supreme Court fallout: How campaigners plan to take UK government to court over trans human rights
Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A legal campaign group is trying to force the UK government to change its equalities law on the back of the Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman. The Good Law Project has launched an online crowdfunder for £50,000, with the aim of taking UK equalities minister Bridget Phillipson to court, claiming the UK may now be in breach of human rights law. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad If the legal push was ultimately successful, it could lead to the Equality Act 2010 being declared 'incompatible' with human rights, which would exert pressure on the UK government to change the act. A demonstration for trans rights outside the UK Government Office at Queen Elizabeth House in Edinburgh in 2023 | Press Association. The campaign comes after the Supreme Court ruled the terms 'woman' and 'sex' in the Equality Act 2010 refers to biological sex. The judges also said the Scottish Government was 'incorrect' in its guidance which suggested trans women could be classed as women for some pieces of legislation. However, the Good Law Project said the court's decision, along with comments made by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Ms Phillipson, would 'shamefully deny the reality of trans existence and will lead to daily humiliation for trans people and for cis people who choose not to dress 'normally'.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The campaign group said: 'We believe that the Supreme Court ... has placed or revealed the United Kingdom in breach of its obligations under the Human Rights Act.' The group said it had a legal team of KCs and 'at least one trans barrister' ready to lead the legal challenge, stressing they will be supported by 'heavyweight policy experts in equality law'. Should the crowdfunder be successful, the Good Law Project is not seeking to overturn last week's Supreme Court ruling, but have the Equality Act 2010, as it relates to trans people, declared incompatible with human rights. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We believe the UK is now in breach of its obligations under the Human Rights Act and the European Convention on Human Rights and we plan to ask the High Court for a declaration of incompatibility,' the group said. 'We believe the legal arguments are strong, but we must also point out that the Supreme Court has revealed a readiness on the part of our courts to disapply, in the case of trans people, normal legal and procedural safeguards.' Professor David Cabrelli, an expert in labour law at Edinburgh University, said the project had 'a good chance' of bringing forward legal action if the crowdfunder was successful. He said: 'What often happens is if someone thinks the wording of a piece of legislation is A, and a court decides no, it is B, you can essentially mount a human rights argument because of the Human Rights Act 1998, which incorporates the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'They will argue the UK, as a member state of the Council of Europe, is failing to abide by its obligations to have laws on trans equality which are consistent with European human rights laws.' Prof Cabrelli said the lawyers would use Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights to say the Equality Act 2010, following the Supreme Court ruling last week, discriminates against the trans community. He said: 'They want what is called a declaration of incompatibility. It is not trying to overturn [the Supreme Court verdict] because it is attacking a completely different legislative point. 'The human rights angle was not discussed at last week's verdict. It was just what does the word 'sex' mean in the Equality Act, is it to be interpreted in a biological or in a certificated way. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Rather than overturning the verdict, it wants to say the law is in breach of human rights law. 'It is not to say the meaning of sex as biological is unlawful, it is to say the meaning is incompatible and then it would be over to the Westminster Parliament to change the wording of the Act so it is not incompatible. 'It would be up to the government to change the law so the trans community is protected.'
The National
25-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Good Law Project to challenge Supreme Court's gender judgment
The legal campaign group, which is known for its high-profile court cases against the Westminster government, said the court's decision alongside comments made by the Prime Minister and equalities minister Bridget Phillipson will "shamefully deny the reality of trans existence and will lead to daily humiliation for trans people and for cis people who choose not to dress 'normally'". The group's Crowdfunder goal is £50,000 and in small print it states: "Funds raised will support our legal case against equalities minister, Bridget Phillipson." READ MORE: 'A woman is an adult female': Keir Starmer breaks Supreme Court silence A legal team involving several KCs and at least one trans barrister has been put together, with support from policy specialists in equalities law. The legal documents in the case will be published, the group said, as "they become available and as the law permits". On the Crowdfunder page, the group states: "After the Supreme Court case, our so-called Equalities Minister, Bridget Phillipson, said 'the ruling was clear that provisions and services should be accessed on the basis of biological sex', and the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said he no longer believes that trans women are women: 'A woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear.' "The decision and these statements shamefully deny the reality of trans existence and will lead to daily humiliation for trans people and for cis people who choose not to dress 'normally'. And they will not make anyone safer, cis or trans. "To use single sex services, trans people and 'non-conforming' cis men and women will be required to 'prove' their 'biological sex': goodness knows how. Trans women, and cis women who don't abide by gender norms, will be 'frisked' by men. Trans men will be forced to identify themselves to everyone as trans by using female services. Younger trans people will be humiliated at school and at university." The group further compared Labour's policy to the Nazis treatment of LGBT+ people who were forced to wear pink triangles. READ MORE: Claim trans people 'asked for ID at Scottish train toilets' dismissed The added: "We believe the UK is now in breach of its obligations under the Human Rights Act and the European Convention of Human Rights and we plan to ask the High Court for a declaration of incompatibility. We believe the legal arguments are strong – but we must also point out that the Supreme Court has revealed a readiness on the part of our courts to disapply, in the case of trans people, normal legal and procedural safeguards. "This is no small undertaking – but, for the trans community in Britain, it is literally existential." The Good Law Project has been well-known for a string of well-known legal cases against the UK Government, including the Covid 'VIP' lane for PPE contracts, partygate and the 2019 prorogation of Parliament.
The National
25-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Good Law Project to challenge Supreme Court's judgment
The legal campaign group, which is known for its high-profile court cases against the Westminster government, said the court's decision alongside comments made by the Prime Minister and equalities minister Bridget Phillipson will "shamefully deny the reality of trans existence and will lead to daily humiliation for trans people and for cis people who choose not to dress 'normally'". The group's Crowdfunder goal is £50,000 and in small print it states: "Funds raised will support our legal case against equalities minister, Bridget Phillipson." READ MORE: 'A woman is an adult female': Keir Starmer breaks Supreme Court silence A legal team involving several KCs and at least one trans barrister has been put together, with support from policy specialists in equalities law. The legal documents in the case will be published, the group said, as "they become available and as the law permits". On the Crowdfunder page, the group states: "After the Supreme Court case, our so-called Equalities Minister, Bridget Phillipson, said 'the ruling was clear that provisions and services should be accessed on the basis of biological sex', and the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said he no longer believes that trans women are women: 'A woman is an adult female, and the court has made that absolutely clear.' "The decision and these statements shamefully deny the reality of trans existence and will lead to daily humiliation for trans people and for cis people who choose not to dress 'normally'. And they will not make anyone safer, cis or trans. "To use single sex services, trans people and 'non-conforming' cis men and women will be required to 'prove' their 'biological sex': goodness knows how. Trans women, and cis women who don't abide by gender norms, will be 'frisked' by men. Trans men will be forced to identify themselves to everyone as trans by using female services. Younger trans people will be humiliated at school and at university." The group further compared Labour's policy to the Nazis treatment of LGBT+ people who were forced to wear pink triangles. READ MORE: Claim trans people 'asked for ID at Scottish train toilets' dismissed The added: "We believe the UK is now in breach of its obligations under the Human Rights Act and the European Convention of Human Rights and we plan to ask the High Court for a declaration of incompatibility. We believe the legal arguments are strong – but we must also point out that the Supreme Court has revealed a readiness on the part of our courts to disapply, in the case of trans people, normal legal and procedural safeguards. "This is no small undertaking – but, for the trans community in Britain, it is literally existential." The Good Law Project has been well-known for a string of well-known legal cases against the UK Government, including the Covid 'VIP' lane for PPE contracts, partygate and the 2019 prorogation of Parliament.
BBC News
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Headlines: Trans rights and fantastic nights
Our pick of local website stories Hundreds of people attended a protest on Bristol's College Green in support of trans rights following the recent Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman, Bristol 24/7 At First Sight participant Ella Morgan was among the residents are talking a trip down memory lane after Gloucestershire Live asked them which defunct night clubs they would like to revisit for just one more in Cheltenham and KCs in Gloucester were among the venues clubbers miss the father of a girl with a rare genetic condition who wants an upcoming show from right-wing commentator Katie Hopkins at the Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare to be cancelled speaks to the Weston Hopkins recently posted a video mocking people with limb fire that destroyed the World War One-era hangar at Old Sarum airfield features heavily in the Salisbury Journal.A new bakery in Burnham-on-Sea had a sell-out first day, according to the town's news site. The former premises of the Crusty Cob has reopened after being taken on by the owners of nearby bakery Maisey's. Our top three from yesterday Student launches site to match flatmates using AI Demolishing millionaire's 'man cave' cost taxpayer £220k EE worker is seen carrying cat by scruff of neck What to watch on social media The mess left in Bristol's Castle Park following the annual "420" celebration in support of cannabis consumption has caused shock and anger online.A new mural on the side of the former Debenhams store in Swindon by graffiti artist HazardOne is popular and has been praised for bringing a bit of colour to the area.A claim that a van dweller parked on Clifton Downs walking a "big aggressive dog" punched a passer-by has garnered a lot of attention on Reddit.
