Cross Examination

Tom looks with barrister Margherita Cornaglia and solicitor Sahil Kher at the law on climate change. What exactly is "climate change law" and what are its elements? If the issue is international, how do domestic legal systems cope; and is it right that UK courts have recently shown a greater willingness to scrutinise Governmental decisions on climate?

Tom explores how employment law is dealing with the gig economy. He listens with guests to the story of James Farrar, Uber driver turned campaigner, about the case he took to the Supreme Court to establish worker rights, considering it alongside the subsequent case involving Deliveroo which went the other way. Is the greater flexibility enjoyed by those working in the gig economy a good thing, and what is the still new Labour government going to do about it? 

Colin Leckey has been a Partner in Lewis Silkin's employment team since 2012. He advises employers from a wide range of industries on all matters under the employment law sun, but has a particularly keen interest in employment status issues and the rapid rise of the gig economy, and acts for a number of platforms, most notably Deliveroo. 

Paul Jennings is a Partner and the Head of employment at Bates Wells. Most of his time is spent advising employers and senior executives, but his team has been involved in a number of the leading gig economy cases, including successfully representing the test claimants against Uber in the Supreme Court. His recent work has involved cases involved AI and automated decision-making.

Tom and guests, Michael Brotherton and Emma Swann, discuss the law on school inspections.

In the wake of the terrible death of Ruth Perry, a headteacher who took her own life in January 2023 knowing that a report labelling her school “Inadequate” was going to be published, they reflect on where matters stand legally. 

They listen to a headteacher about his own experience of feeling powerless to challenge an inspectorate threatening to fail his school. 

And then ask how far the so-called “Big Listen” being undertaken by Ofsted in the wake of Ruth Perry’s death is capable of changing the legal and regulatory regimes applying to schools.

Michael Brotherton is a partner in the Education Team at leading law firm Stone King. He focusses predominantly on operational aspects of school life, including pupil/parent issues, equality act claims and governance, as well as acting on challenges against Ofsted.

Emma Swann is an Education partner and Head of Academies at HCR and has been advising schools on pastoral, governance and commercial matters for over 20 years. She is also a Trustee and sits on the Board of the Institute of School Business Leadership.

The timing of the Prime Minister’s announcement of the election last month took many people by surprise, but the conduct of parties, candidates and others may be turning out to be rather more predictable. The familiar accusation that the other party is “lying” has already been made with force; questions of misinformation (or disinformation) abound; and interest has been reinvigorated in the question – what can be done to challenge breaches of the rules? 

In this special episode, recorded in mid June 2024, Tom and guests answer head-on questions from members of the public about the law surrounding these and other issues. James Roochove is a solicitor and director at Astraea Linskills. He's a recognised expert in election law having represented countless MPs and other office-holders over the years. Suhan Rajkumar is a senior lawyer at Bates Wells, specialising in campaigning and election law. He represents the full range of political parties, candidates, charities, and other campaigners.

Tom talks to immigration experts Toufique Hossain and Roberta Haslam about the law on asylum. They listen to the story of "Mr A", a man who fled Sierra Leone having been captured and beaten by the rebels during the civil war but whose asylum claim in the UK failed, leading to two decades of unsettled status. They use his story to explain the nature of asylum, the process of seeking it, and what happens to those whose claims for asylum fail. And they look at the legal issues concerning the Safety of Rwanda Act, passed shortly before recording in April 2024. 

Toufique Hossain heads up the award-winning public law team at Duncan Lewis. He is top ranked in several fields and represented the lead individuals in the landmark Supreme Court case in relation to Rwanda.

Roberta Haslam is a Partner at Bindmans who has been practising in immigration since 2007, during which time she's worked on the widest possible range of asylum claims and appeals.For law people, lay people, and everyone in between. Follow and talk to us @crossexaminepod, www.crossexamination.co.uk

Adam Wagner and Francesca Cociani join Tom to discuss the law on protest. 

They explore how far a protestor accused of a crime may have a legal defence to an action which they believe is morally justified. They look at when, outside the criminal law, a court can prevent protest through so-called "protest injunctions". And they'll consider the story of Dr Sarah Benn, a GP suspended by a Medical Practitioner Tribunal for engaging in direct action outside an oil terminal, who believes that public confidence in the medical profession is only enhance by doctors taking such action.

Adam Wagner is a barrister specialising in human rights, public law, and public inquiries. He regularly acts for protestors including in leading cases during the pandemic, such as for the organisers of the Sarah Everard vigil in their successful judicial review of the Met Police. He has also acted in a number of leading cases on protest injunctions. 

Francesca Cociani is a Senior Associate in the criminal defence department at Hodge Jones & Allen. She is heavily involved in protest cases in both the magistrates and Crown Court. Recently she represented one of the defendants charged with criminal damage from the Just Stop Oil protest at the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield in 2023.

Dr Sarah Benn is a GP, retired but on the Register of Medical Practitioners, who protests in relation to climate change. She was the subject of fitness to practise proceedings in April 2024, receiving a suspension. She believes that governments are not doing enough - quickly enough - to mitigate the effects of global warming.  

Cross Examination is back.

As the General Election looms, leading UK barrister Tom Cross and expert guests look at how the law currently deals with society's biggest cultural, moral and ethical issues, from Protest, to Asylum, to School Inspections, and much more.

A podcast for law people, lay people, and everyone in between.

We want to hear from you. Get in touch on X, TikTok and YouTube Shorts at @crossexaminepod, or via the website: www.crossexamination.co.uk.

Max Hardy and Joanna Hardy-Susskind join Tom to examine miscarriages of criminal justice.

They’ll look at what can go wrong, and has gone wrong, with the criminal trial process, and the flaws in the systems designed to provide redress for those failings.

They’ll consider the case of Andy Malkinson, who spent 17 years in jail for a rape he did not commit, whether lessons from his case should lead to change, and if so what that change should be.

And James Burley, the investigator in the Malkinson case whose crucial work led to his exoneration, identifies what he believes are serious failings with the system.

This episode contains descriptions of sexual violence and rape.

Max Hardy was junior Counsel in Malkinson’s appeal having worked on the case since 2020. He is a former Chair of the Young Barristers’ Committee of the Bar Council and is a Trustee of the legal education charity the Kalisher Trust. He also helps the organisation Amicus train prospective interns to work on death penalty cases in America.

Joanna Hardy-Susskind is a criminal barrister at Red Lion Chambers who specialises in defending allegations of homicide and serious sexual offending. She is an experienced appellate lawyer and is described by the Legal 500 as an ‘absolute star’.

James Burley is an investigator at Appeal, a charity and law practice dedicated to fighting miscarriages of justice and demanding reform. He works on cases at the CCRC and Court of Appeal levels, as well as on evidence access challenges in the Administrative Court. It was his investigative work which ultimately led in 2023 to the exoneration of Andy Malkinson

Written and presented by Tom Cross. Produced by Jelena Sofronijevic. Music by Lennon Hutton.

Smita Jamdar and James Murray join Tom to examine the law’s protection for free speech in UK Universities, and how it’s currently being used.

They’ll discuss a change made to the law in May 2023 by which the Government hopes to strengthen free speech values. And Tom speaks to David Isaac CBE, formerly Chair of Stonewall and Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, about his take on free speech now as the Head of an Oxford college.

Smita Jamdar is a Partner and Head of Education at Shakespeare Martineau, and advises universities, colleges and independent providers on compliance with their free speech and academic freedom duties. She is involved in a sector group looking to produce practical guidance on compliance with the new Act.

James Murray is a senior lawyer at a leading London law firm and a Research Fellow at the University of Buckingham, and specialises in employment law, academic freedom and free speech on campus. He advises major higher education institutions and prominent academics, and writes and speaks widely on both international and UK free speech law.

Written and presented by Tom Cross. Produced by Jelena Sofronijevic. Music by Lennon Hutton.

Mark Stephens CBE and Jonathan Coad discuss with Tom how the law protects reputations from damage by the media - or how some think it fails to do so.

They look at both the regulatory and legal protections and explore how they differ across different forms of media, as well as considering the particular challenges faced by lawyers working on either side of the fence.

Tom also speaks to beauty therapist Danielle Hindley, an acknowledged victim of reputation damage by the Mail on Sunday.

Mark Stephens CBE was once described by the Law Society Gazette as “the patron solicitor of previously lost causes” and is today described by the Legal 500 as “an extremely experienced lawyer who is not afraid to roll up his sleeves, and who gives bold advice where needed”. He has been involved in numerous high profile cases including in relation to the media.

Jonathan Coad is a specialist media lawyer who for thirty years has acted for high profile media companies and individuals whose reputation and / or privacy is threatened by the media. He has also represented broadcasters and publishers of high public interest material in resisting what he would describe as ‘meritless’ claims against publication.
Danielle Hindley is a beauty therapist wrongly accused by the Mail on Sunday of performing botched treatments. She suffered the most severe impact on her health and her business. She succeeded in a complaint to press regulator IPSO but the newspapers refused to pay her damages until she obtained the help of a lawyer.