The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal over whether a charitable housing association’s arrangements for allocating housing, which amount to direct discrimination on the ground of religion, were lawful.

The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead and Adopt Berkshire directly discriminated against a couple of Sikh Indian heritage in the provision of adoption services, on the grounds of race, a County Court judge has ruled.

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a dispute over empty commercial properties and whether councils are owed more than £10m in business rates arrears.

Hampshire County Council has been fined £1.4m after a six-year-old girl playing on an unsecured street bollard suffered a life-changing head injury.

A trafficked Vietnamese woman has lost a judicial review against two councils over her age assessment, though the judge involved criticised both authorities for failing to resolve the matter earlier.

A school in Trafford has issued a legal challenge to regulator Ofsted in a bid to overturn being rated as ‘inadequate’.

The Supreme Court will next week (11 December) hand down a key judgment on village green registration where publically accessible land is held by public authorities pursuant to statutory powers.

A working group seeking solutions to the dearth of medical experts willing to work in the family courts has made 22 recommendations for change including a simpler process for payment and allowing courts work to be part of employment contracts.

The Court of Appeal had dismissed as academic a case brought against the London Borough of Islington over its discretionary housing payments (DHP) policy and a requirement for a claimant to make a contribution to a shortfall in rent.

Shropshire Council has obtained an injunction to secure affordable housing provision on a housing development site, it has been reported.

Cumbria County Council has defeated a statutory challenge to a traffic regulation order (“TRO”) made in respect of an unadopted highway in Carlisle city centre.

Local authorities and housing associations could face having to refund millions of pounds to tenants after a council lost a test case in the High Court on water re-selling, it has been claimed.

Camden Council has submitted claims to the High Court to recover costs from the contractor PFIC (Partners for Improvement in Camden) and its principal subcontractors, who previously had responsibility for refurbishment and maintenance of the Chalcots Estate, under a private finance initiative agreement.

Premises used to accommodate a 15-year-old girl became "secure accommodation" within the meaning of s.25(1) of the Children Act 1989, even though they were not designed as such, because of the use to which they were put in her case, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

A gliding club’s successful challenge to approval of a residential barn conversion under the GPDO may have potentially significant implications under the Human Rights Act, writes Jenny Wigley.

The Court of Appeal has this week heard an appeal by Wakefield City Council over the High Court’s decision to quash the authority’s decision fixing licensing fees for private hire vehicles and taxis.

Lord Justice Baker has given permission for two judgments he made in the Family Court to be published in full, except for identification of the child involved, following the end of criminal proceedings against the parents.

A district judge has ruled that two roads are of so little use to the public that the London Borough of Barnet need not adopt them.

The Metropolitan Police has agreed to delete information relating to a referral of a primary school age child under the government’s Prevent programme, and other referring authorities have also agreed to correct and delete the relevant records.

A resident of a housing association in London has failed in a Court of Appeal challenge over an injunction restraining him from committing anti-social behaviour.

A children's legal rights charity has launched an information hub to help professionals and community organisations challenge unfair school exclusions in England.

The Court of Appeal has given a local resident permission to appeal a High Court ruling on the lawfulness of a decision by the Cabinet at Birmingham City Council to fund – at a cost of £19m – the retro-fitting of sprinkler systems to all the tower blocks it owns.

The University of London has lost an appeal over whether the Upper Tribunal has power under the Electronic Communications Code to impose on the occupier of a building an agreement permitting access by an operator to determine whether that building is suitable for the installation of electronic communications apparatus.

­­The Planning Board at the Royal Borough of Greenwich has removed a clause from a s106 agreement that was intended to restrict future occupants of a housing development from pursuing claims for nuisance or damages over noise, after receiving legal advice suggesting it was unlawful.

Injunctions restricting street protests over an infant and junior school’s teaching of “LGBT issues” should remain in place, a High Court judge has ruled.

Employment and discrimination specialist Thomas Linden QC of Matrix Chambers has been appointed as a High Court judge, assigned to the Queen’s Bench Division.

A borough council has failed to persuade the Planning Court that a planning inspector, when granting permission for a 55-dwelling scheme, erred in affording significant rather than full weight to the conflict between the proposed development and policies in the development plan restricting development outside settlement limits.

The Supreme Court will next week hear a county council’s appeal over whether it misapplied part of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) when considering mineral extraction in the Green Belt.

The Law Society has issued an updated practice note on legal professional privilege (LPP) to reflect recent developments in case law.