The Journal is linked with kind permission: https://www.thelegaldiary.co.uk/edward-fennells-legal-diary-30/
TOPIC: The Supreme Court’s ruling on Tesco’s ‘Fire and Re-Hire’ Strategy
COMMENT BY: James Townsend, partner and employment law specialist Payne Hicks Beach
“Although in this case Tesco found themselves the subject of a restraining injunction, fire and rehire, done fairly and in accordance with legal requirements, remains a useful tool for employers seeking to change employment terms and conditions where employees unreasonably refuse to vary their terms and conditions of employment.”
TOPIC: The Renters’ Rights Bill
COMMENT BY: Scott Goldstein, partner and property disputes specialist, Payne Hicks Beach
“The elephant in the room is the lack of any reform of the court system, which will surely become (even more?) unfit for purpose once judges have to deal with the increased caseload resulting from an increase in possession cases.
“Another, perhaps less appreciated, point is the impact on local authorities of the significant increase in their regulatory burden stemming from this legislation. Any legal system is only as good as the smooth functioning of its enforcement mechanisms.”
TOPIC: The strengthening of the Online Safety Act to crack down on revenge porn
COMMENT BY: Mark Jones, partner, Payne Hicks Beach
“The government has signalled its intention to make social media platforms be pro-active, rather than re-active, to the most serious types of online harms. The move to make platforms be pro-active, and prevent illegal content from appearing, is a positive move.
“The threat of large fines underlines the seriousness of the issue. The intention is to “drive behaviour change” within platforms and to shift the burden of preventing material appearing on their platforms in the first place.
“This is quite a tall order for platforms who will be required, it seems, to have procedures in place to detect and remove harmful content. The Online Safety Act already created criminal offences for those who post harmful content but it could go much further as there are numerous loopholes.
“The new proposed legislation is encouraging, but how and when it will be implemented and the interplay with Ofcom are going to be relevant matters in assessing whether or not this is to be a success.”
