Scotland and the United Kingdom

Recently the UK Supreme Court decided the question of whether Scotland could hold a referendum concerning Scottish independence from the United Kingdom without the approval of the UK parliament. Their answer was no. The video of the judgment summary in that case can be found here. 13 min., more or less correct subtitles available. It is read by Lord Reed, current president of the Supreme Court who is from Scotland.

In 2019, as part of a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court, Lord Reed gave a lecture about the Supreme Court and Scotland which can be found here.  50 min., full transcript available.

Videos of the two days of hearings on the case can be found here. The introduction on the first morning by Lord Reed is particularly helpful.

 UK Supreme Court Says Uber Drivers Are "Workers"

The UK Supreme Court unanimously ruled on 19 January that Uber drivers are "workers", not independent contractors, and therefore have rights to be paid at least the national minimum wage, to receive annual paid leave and to benefit from certain other protections. You can find the video of Lord Leggatt reading the judgment summary (8 min. 21 sec.) here. 

The main page for the case has links to the judgment appealed, the recorded hearings (two days worth) and the Supreme Court judgment in full as well as the judgment summary and the press summary, nearly a transcript of the judgment summary by Lord Leggatt.

Judges - Enemies of the People??

You can see Joshua Rozenberg (host of the BBC's Law in Action) talk about his latest book Enemies of the People? How Judges Shape Society with James Libson,  managing partner at the law firm Mischon de Reya, here . 15 min., transcript available.

Brexit at the UK Supreme Court

The announcement of results of the Supreme Court case can be found here. Parliament 1 - PM 0. 15 min., subtitles available (but problems with prorogue, prorogation, proroguing etc.). The written text of the summary read by Lady Hale can be found here.
And a video from the BBC with key moments after the decision :

Brexit in the UK Supreme Court

At the start of the first day’s hearing, the Court's President, Lady Hale, presented the issue before the court in two appeals, one from Scotland (Cherry v Advocate General of Scotland) and the other from England (Miller v The Prime Minister) which addressed the same question: whether it was lawful for the Prime Minister to advise Her Majesty to authorise the prorogation of Parliament by Order in Council.
Since the answer to the question given by senior judges in Scotland was not the same as that given by those in England, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, sitting for this purpose in a formation of 11 of the 12 justices of the Court, must decide the question.
The Court makes available videos of hearings on its website. You can see Tuesday morning’s here, Tuesday afternoon’s here. Presumably, Wednesday’s will be posted soon. Livestreaming of Thursday’s session will be found here.
Although watching all three days proceedings (sometimes described as 'slow-moving') might be reserved for passionate students of the Brexit question, more casual observers can still enjoy listening to how the very best legal minds talk about the question.
The BBC's legal correspondent, Clive Coleman, has a simple presentation of the matter you can watch below.

Law in Action Is Coming Back

The first episode of the new series of Law in Action with Joshua Rozenberg will examine the UK Supreme Court. It will be available shortly after it airs on February 26. The programme begins with a discussion of the new crime of coercive and controlling behaviour in an intimate or family relationship.

The UK Supreme Court Recruits

Lady Hale, President of the UK Supreme Court, appears in a short recruitement video. There will be three vacancies in the Court at the beginning of next year and she explains the qualities required of candidates and how to apply. Careful: you must apply by Friday March 1 at midday.

More Cakes and Gay Rights

A baker in Northern Ireland refused to make a cake with the message "Support Gay Mariage" for a gay man and the UK Supreme Court has just ruled that the bakery has the right to do so. The announcement of the judgment of October 10, 2018 can be found here. 8 min 52 sec, no transcript. The Supreme Court website has a written summary of the judgment and links to videos of the court hearing oral arguments in May of this year. The BBC’s coverage of the case contains several short videos and a history of this legal battle.
The U.S. Supreme Court decided a case about a wedding cake for a gay mariage in June of this year. This blog's posts about the case before it was decided can be found here. Some reports of the June decision can be found here and here.

UK Supreme Court on the Gig Economy

The UK Supreme Court recently handed down a decision in a case about employment law. Was Mr. Smith, a plumber sent by Pimlico Plumbers (24/7 service), an employee or was he a self-employed contractor? If he was an employee, he had rights to paid annual leave, etc. You can hear an explanation of the decision of the court here (5 min 24 sec, no transcript). The press summary of the decision can be found here. You can see a report on Channel 4 News, with an interview with the Pimlico Plumbers chief executive and an economist, here (11 min., no transcript).

Ceremony in the UK Supreme Court

The UK Supreme Court on October 2 held a swearing-in ceremony for the new President (Lady Brenda Hale), Deputy President (Lord Jonathan Mance) and three new justices, including the second woman to serve on this court. Lots of fancy judicial robes, no wigs. 30 min, no transcript.

UK Supreme Court Ruling on Pension Rights for Same-Sex Married Couples

In the case of Walker v Innospec Limited, the UK Supreme Court "disapplied" part of the Equality Act which allowed Walker’s former employer to refuse to pay a pension on his death to his husband on the grounds that the act was incompatible with European Union law. You can hear the judgment summary (judgment of 12 July) read by Lord Kerr here. 6 min 34 sec, no transcript, but a two-page press summary is available here.

Testamentary Freedom in the UK

In the case of Ilott v. The Blue Cross before the UK Supreme Court, a daughter had contested her mother’s will which left her nothing and everything to several charities, invoking the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act. A good summary of the case can be found here.
The UK Supreme Court handed down a judgment March 15. You can watch the judgment summary delivered by Lord Hughes here. The press summary prepared by the court can be found here. The full judgment can be found here. You can even watch the morning and afternoon sessions of the hearing of 12 December.

UK Supreme Court --Wheelchairs vs Buggies and -- Brexit

The UK Supreme Court has decided a case involving the rights of wheelchair users on buses. You can watch the judgment summary being read here. 6 minutes, no transcript, but a press summary is available here. You can also watch the case being argued - the morning (about 3 hours) and the afternoon (about 90 minutes) hearings. No transcripts. A BBC story with the wheelchair users’ point of view about this ruling can be found here.
The court has announced that its judgment on the Brexit case will be given Tuesday 24 January. It will be streamed live beginning at 9:45.
The video of the reading of the judgment can be found here.

Brexit before the UK Supreme Court - 5-8 December

The UK Supreme Court has set aside four days, 5 - 8 December, for the appeal hearing about who, after the referendum to leave the European Union, has the power to trigger Article 50. You will be able to watch the hearing live here. All eleven justices will sit on the panel considering this appeal which will be chaired by Lord Neuberger, President of the Supreme Court. For more information about this case you can visit the UK Supreme Court’s internet site news page.

The Privy Council

The UK Supreme Court has just posted an animated history of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. 5 min 55 sec, no transcript.

U.K. Supreme Court Now Offers Video on Demand

The U.K. Supreme Court has had a live streaming service for some time which enables those interested to see what’s happening while it happens. But if you missed the « live » moment, it was gone. The court announced May 5 that it is now providing video on demand, available for approximately one year, for past hearings and judgments delivered. For copyright reasons, downloading the footage for longterm storage or editing is not allowed.

Judges as Humans

The U.K. Supreme Court held an event - "The Humanity of Judging" - on November 19, part of the Being Human festival. A video of the event has just been posted. Included are remarks from a judge and several academics, including one who discussed images of judges and another the importance of diversity in the backgrounds of judges. 53 min, no transcript.

U.K. Supreme Court

The U.K. Supreme Court has produced a short video, available on The Guardian site, explaining its role and workings.
8 min 51, no transcript

Law in Action Is Back

BBC Radio 4's Law in Action, with Joshua Rozenberg, began an new series of programmes on 19 February. The first is "Whistleblowing, forgotten children and the legal future of Wales"; the second "Drones, street art and more immigration law". The third will be about the U.K. Supreme Court, with an interview with its President Lord Neuberger.

U.K. Supreme Court Judgment Summaries on YouTube

The U.K. Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will release videos of judgment summaries made when judgments are announced. The court describes the purpose of these summaries - they "… aim to explain briefly the background to the appeal in hand, the decision the court has reached, and the reasons for that decision." So far, the three judgments published Wednesday and 25 from the last legal term (October-December 2012) can be found on YouTube's UK Supreme Court channel.  The announcements are 5 to 10 minutes long, no transcript available.