Dear All,

As the adage goes, one waits for ages for a case on the operation of the illegality defence in English Law, and then two come along at once.

So yesterday the Court of Appeal decided Patel v Mirza [2014] EWCA Civ 1047 http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2014/1047.html on locus poenitentiae, offering observations on Tinsley v Milligan. But that case has been somewhat gazumped by today's Supreme Court decision in Hounga v Allen [2014] UKSC 47 which concerns race discrimination and human trafficking http://supremecourt.uk/decided-cases/docs/UKSC_2012_0188_Judgment.pdf, with important reflections on how public policy influences the defence. Hounga contains the most significant comments on the defence at the highest English level since 2009 (when Gray and Moore Stephens were decided).

Best wishes,
James


--
James Lee
Senior Lecturer and Director of Admissions
Birmingham Law School, room 235
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT, United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0)121 414 3629
E-mail: j.s.f.lee@bham.ac.uk<mailto:j.s.f.lee@bham.ac.uk>


Web: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/law/lee-james.aspx

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