Nigel Edwards QC and his team representing Anoosheh Ashoori have been invited to the Foreign and Common Wealth Office to begin formal legal discussions relating to his continued arbitrary detention. Work with the FCO on the establishment of diplomatic protection of this elderly British national will be discussed and it is hoped progressed. The team are also undertaking discussions about possible legal options to address human rights violations before international bodies, including the United Nations. In relation to the latter Haydee Dijkstal and Rehana Popal will take this lead..

Andrew Kerr has been instructed to advise on a major football transfer deal from an English Premier League club.

Following the International Criminal Court Bar Association (ICCBA) General Assembly on 11 September 2020, Haydee Dijkstal was re-elected to the ICCBA's Executive Council and Victims Committee for the 2020-2021 term.  The ICCBA is a bar association established to serve as a collective voice for independent Counsel and Support Staff who represent victims, defendants and other parties before the ICC.  (https://www.iccba-abcpi.org/electionresults2020)

Haydee Dijkstal was instructed by two non-profit organisations, Antiquities Coalition and Blue Shield, for the submission of an amicus curiae brief before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case against Bosco Ntaganda. The brief, filed on 18 September, addressed the definition and scope of the term 'attack' under sources of international law, including international criminal, humanitarian and human rights law, in regards to the crime before the ICC of destruction of cultural heritage, and examined whether an 'attack' under this crime can occur outside the conduct of hositilities.  The brief was filed before the Appeals Chamber which is considering the Prosecution's appeal of the Trial Judgment and its dismissal of the charged crime of destruction of cultural heritage on this point.

Mohammed Saqib was able to secure another successful sentence for his client at Inner London Crown Court this week. The defendant had pleaded guilty to 1 count of an ABH in the lower court. The facts were that he had caused a nasty injury to his elderly, vulnerable mother by throwing an iron to her face. Mohammed was able to navigate his way through a challenging sentence, the Court directed a 8 month custodial sentence, which was suspended for 24 months. The defendant was further subject to completing 25 RAR days as part of the sentence.