The Rise of Statutory Wills and the Limits of Best Interests Decision‐Making in Inheritance

This article addresses ‘statutory wills’ executed under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) for persons with impaired mental capacity. The article provides an overview of the historical development of statutory wills, before exploring their rising contemporary significance. It considers the shift from the previous ‘hypothetical substituted judgment’ test to the contemporary ‘best interests’ orientation of the MCA. The article assesses the problems that the best interests approach raises in this area, and its (in)compatibility with the right to equal recognition before the law under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, arguing that the pervasive reach of best interests in contemporary mental capacity law requires reconsideration. The paper concludes by suggesting that a more limited framing of the power to execute statutory wills is required in order to appropriately balance the rights of individuals with disabilities with practical considerations around the distribution of assets on death.     

Beyond the Gaze and Well Beyond Wolfenden: The Practices and Rationalities of Regulating and Policing Sex Work in the Digital Age

Drawing on the largest study of the United Kingdom online market in sexual labour to date, this article examines the legal and regulatory consequences as aspects of sex work increasingly take place within an online environment. Our research shows that while governmental policy has not kept abreast of these changes, the application of current laws (which have, since the 1950s, focused on public nuisance and, more recently, trafficking and modern slavery) are pernicious to sex workers and unsuited to recognizing and responding to the abuses and exploitation in online markets in sexual labour. These injustices are likely to be exacerbated if policies and policing do not better align with the realities of these markets in the twenty‐first century. This demands a more nuanced regulatory approach which recognizes that people may engage in sex work of their own volition, but which also addresses conditions of labour and criminal exploitation.     

Crossroads: The Intersection of Immigrant Enforcement and the Child Welfare System

Diana's children were placed in foster care when they were one‐ and three‐year‐olds. Their mother was arrested when she fought back to defend herself against an attack by her abusive boyfriend, Thomas. Thomas assaulted her in her apartment when she tried to end their relationship. A neighbor heard screams and called the police. When officers arrived, Thomas told his version of the events, but Diana was not able to communicate with the officers, since they did not speak Spanish and did not obtain the assistance of interpreters. The officers saw scratches on Thomas and a possible bite mark, in addition to bruises and scratches on Diana, arrested both of them, and called Child Protective Services (CPS) to take the children. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) soon issued a detainer when they obtained a copy of Diana's fingerprints through the Secure Communities program ¹ in effect in her local jurisdiction. Upon further review of the circumstances, the prosecutor decided to drop the charges against Diana; however, ICE took custody of her. She was subsequently transferred to a different immigrant detention center 300 miles away. The CPS caseworker placed Diana's children in temporary foster care with foster parents who did not speak Spanish, instead of with a willing aunt who had undocumented immigration status. Diana's children, born in the United States, are U.S. citizens. As the months passed, the children were no longer learning Spanish. The children did not visit with or talk with their mother for over six months because the CPS caseworker was unsure of Diana's whereabouts and how to communicate with her, despite that the original case plan called for reunification. As a result, the goal of the case plan was revised to pursue the termination of parental rights instead of family reunification.