Recent & ongoing cases
- R (on the application of Fiona McBride) v Nursing and Midwifery Council; and
R (on the application of Lynn Benn) v Nursing and Midwifery Council, Fiona McBride and Lynn Benn, backed by the Royal College of Nursing, are bringing judicial review proceedings against the NMC for excessive delay in the prosecution of fitness to practise proceedings. In both cases it took the NMC more than four years to investigate the allegations, after which the Investigating Committee decided that there was no case to answer in either case. The Claimants claim that the NMC breached Article 32(3) of the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001, and Articles 6(1) and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. They are seeking declarations of the breaches and compensation. Katrine Sawyer, instructed by Deborah Gilbert and Gary O'Reilly of the Royal College of Nursing, is acting for the Claimants.
- Twibill v Pharmaceutical Society of NI [2010], David Pittaway QC and David Sharp (NI Bar) represented a pharmacist in an appeal against the imposition of a 15 year ban on applying for re-admission to the register following convictions for possession of indecent images.
- Khan v Solicitors Regulation Authority [DC, 20 May 2010], Jamie Carpenter successfully appealed against a decision of the SRA to refuse to issue a certificate of satisfaction to a Pakistani Advocate applying for admission to the Roll, because of a failure to declare two driving convictions when applying to take the Qualified Lawyers Transfer Test. This was the first ever appeal under new legislation directing appeals of this nature to the High Court rather than the Master of the Rolls.
- Saunders v Hearing Aid Council [2010] EWHC 629 (Admin), Jamie Carpenter successfully appealed against an order for erasure from the register and costs on behalf of a hearing aid dispenser who had stored pornographic images on a work computer. The order for erasure was replaced with a six month suspension and the costs order was quashed entirely.
- R (Kohn) v GDC [2009], Nicholas Peacock successfully sought permission for judicial review at an oral hearing against the General Dental Council's (GDC's) finding of Serious Professional Misconduct (SPM) against a general dental practitioner. Subsequently the GDC did not seek to challenge the Judicial Review and the finding of SPM was set aside by consent with the High Court's approval.
- GOC v Boots the Optician [2009], David Pittaway QC and Nicholas Peacock represented the respondent in a test case on the supervision of the sale of spectacles to children and other restricted persons.
- Hayward v NMC [2009], David Pittaway QC represented a nurse who carried out undercover filming for the BBC Panorama programme, in an appeal against the decision to remove her name from the register.
- NJ v Secretary of State for Health [2008], David Pittaway QC and Jamie Carpenter appeared at the Care Standards Tribunal for a care home manager who was appealing against a decision to prohibit him from working with vulnerable adults on the grounds that he had sexually assaulted a mentally handicapped adult in his care. The tribunal directed that NJ’s name should be removed from the POVA list.
