Project status: Pre-project
Projects
Compulsory purchase
Reviewing outdated compulsory purchase laws to support a faster, fairer and more accessible land acquisition process The problem Compulsory purchase is a legal mechanism by which certain bodies can acquire land without the consent of the owner. The ability to purchase land using compulsory powers is essential to the implementation of large-scale projects to improve … Read more >
Conflict of laws and emerging technology
Project status: Pre-consultation
> See the latest updates on the project page Digital Assets: Which Law, Which Court?
Criminal appeals
Project status: Pre-consultation
The Law Commission has been asked by the Government to review the law governing appeals in criminal cases, including appeals against conviction and sentence, with a view to ensuring that courts have powers that enable the effective, efficient and appropriate resolution of appeals. Documents View the press release announcing the project here. View the full … Read more >
Aviation autonomy
Project status: Pre-consultation
Documents View the press release announcing the project here. Background The Law Commission has been asked by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Department for Transport (DfT) to review the law around autonomous flight, in order to support the safe development of rapidly advancing technology. The two-year review is funded by UK Research & Innovation … Read more >
Contempt of court
Project status: Pre-project
Documents Terms of reference The problem “Contempt of court” refers to a wide variety of conduct that may impede or interfere with a court case or the administration of justice. Examples include deliberately breaching a court order, refusing to answer the court’s questions if called as a witness, or releasing photographs or publicly commenting on … Read more >
Remote driving
Project status: The consultation period is now closed. The response period for this project recently closed. The team will now move onto analysing the responses. We propose to publish our advice regarding reform options for remote driving to Government in early 2023. Documents Summary of remote driving issues paper Remote driving issues paper View the … Read more >
Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (DAOs)
Project status: Pre-consultation
The Government asked the Law Commission to produce a scoping paper which examines the description and legal status of DAOs – a new type of collective organisational structure that often uses blockchain, smart contracts or similar technology. > Read our call for evidence paper here. > Respond to our call for evidence paper here. What … Read more >
Immigration Consolidation
Project status: Pre-project
The Windrush Lessons Learned Review, which was published in March 2020, drew attention to the complexity of immigration and nationality law and included this recommendation: Reduce the complexity of immigration and nationality law, immigration rules and guidance Recommendation 21 – Building on the Law Commission’s review of the Immigration Rules the Home Secretary should request … Read more >
Evidence in Sexual Offence Prosecutions
Project status: Pre-consultation
Documents Terms of reference Background paper The problem The Government’s End to End Rape Review found that the prevalence of rape and sexual violence has remained steady in the last five years but there has been a sharp decrease in the number of prosecutions since 2016/2017. There are many complex reasons for the decline in … Read more >