Blog entries

More than just car insurance !

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 04:41:11 +0100

On 1 March 2011 the Court of Justice of the European Union (EUCJ) decided Case C-236/09; a preliminary reference case dealing with equal treatment in the insurance industry. Maybe I am mistaken, if so, whoever reads this article is free to correct me, but it seems to have come across in the media as a blow to women who are now going to have to pay higher car insurance premiums. Women may have been charged less insurance premium, prior to this judgement, because they were regarRead More...

Workings of the House of Representatives Select Committee on re-codification and consolidation ...

kevin.aquilina@statecareandmore.eu — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 21:48:06 +0100

In this brief note, I want to update the readers of statecareandmore.eu on the developments taking place in the House of Representatives with regard to re-codification and consolidation of Maltese Law.

1. Establishment, Composition and Terms of Reference of the Select Committee

The House of Representatives’ Select Committee on the Re-Codification and Consolidation of Laws was established by Motion 114 which was approved by the House of RepresentativeRead More...

A good tool in the wrong hands!

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 15:19:35 +0100

The Maltese Parliament at the moment is passing a new law on Restorative Justice (Bill No. 73). This Bill, once made law, will introduce parole to Malta for the first time. In my opinion, it is an interesting and challenging law, which I hope will yield the desired results, in the interests of all of Maltese society.

Apart from the fact that the implementation of this Bill, after it becomes law, should bring with it a certain amount of reform in prison, I am partRead More...

The interests of the child

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 17:53:27 +0100

At the moment, Maltese authorities are – amongst other things - considering whether to allow the freezing of embryos, and whether or not to introduce divorce. Arguments in favour and against, rage back and forth. Pro-family, pro-marriage, pro-life, pro-Roman Catholicism, etc., etc. Hard decisions to take, the more so in a traditionally conservative country.

As I follow the pro- and anti- arguments in both debates one phrase keeps echoing in my head: ‘the interests of the cRead More...

Enacting truly effective measures

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 15:23:02 +0100

Professor Kevin Aquilina’s article ‘What’s so special about the Special Prosecutor’ was delayed by the temporary suspension of updates to this e-journal. In the meantime, the world obviously kept on turning and events kept happening, amongst them the civil uprising in Tunisia. By sheer coincidence, minutes after I re-read Prof Aquilina’s article with a view to posting it online, I came across an article oRead More...

What's so special about the Special Prosecutor? (by Prof. Kevin Aquilina)

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 15:11:09 +0100

Bill No 57 entitled the Permanent Commission Against Corruption (Amendment) Bill is intended to amend the Commission for Corruption Act, chapter 326 of the Laws of Malta. It was published in The Malta Government Gazette on 8 October 2010. Amongst other things, this Bill proposes the appointment of a Special Prosecutor. After having read this provision I conclude that the term ‘Prosecutor’ is nothing but a legal misnomer and the Special Prosecutor is not a ProsecutoRead More...

Temporary suspension of updates

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 03:03:22 +0100

26 November 2010. Regrettably, owing to other pressing professional commitments, this e-journal will not be updated for the time being.

I hope to get back to updating the website, with the help of articles contributed by colleagues and friends, in a few weeks time, after, amongst other things, I return from an overseas seminar. Very importantly, I have to also finish preparing the rest of the lectures on Ombudsman Legislation (University of Malta, LLB 3rd Read More...

The Whistleblower Bill - a good idea?

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 01:39:26 +0100

Australia’s first saint to be canonised, Sr MacKillop (1842-1909), was briefly excommunicated in 1871 for denouncing a paedophile priest. More recently, in 1998, Paul van Buitenen’s whistle blowing contributed to the resignation en masse of the EU Commission presided by Jacques Santer. Paul van Buitenen paid a heavy price for it at the time, in terms of his career. These examples seem to justify calls for whistleblowing legislation: such civic-minded people should Read More...

Internal developments

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 03:18:33 +0100

Another summer has passed in a flash; as the Courts of Justice commence a new forensic year, the StateCareAndMore.eu e-journal is resuming its work too. Like the Honourable Members of the Maltese Judiciary, we never really stopped over the summer months; as the judgements written over the summer are handed down this month, we are happy to present the fruit of our own summer work, namely a new section called 'Court Library'. This section was made possible firstlyRead More...

StateCareAndMore.eu developments

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 02:25:17 +0100

StateCareAndMore.eu has teamed up with a young but very professional estate agent to help any of its readers who may be interested in buying or leasing property.

If you are in the market for property, you are invited to click on the new banner on our front page, fill in and send the form. No obligations and no fees will be incurred as a result of this. Your personal details will be retained as fully confidential, apart from tRead More...

A brief explanation

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 15:43:51 +0100

Last week StateCareAndMore.eu carried an article about a person who successfully challenged a clause in a contract, that a deposit was ‘not refundable’ (‘The right to have a non-refundable deposit returned’). Maybe some of our readers wondered how come the inclusion of such a report, on an e-journal dedicated to citizens’ rights and the State’s duty to care for its citizens?

The answer to this simply thRead More...

Bill No 48: The Ombudsman (Amendment) Act

kevin.aquilina@statecareandmore.eu — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 04:35:30 +0100

1. Object and Reasons of the Bill

On 12 March 2010, a Bill was published in The Malta Government Gazette. I am here referring to Bill No. 48 which is intended, if approved, to amend the Ombudsman Act, Chapter 385 of the Laws of Malta.

The long title of the Bill reads as follows: “An Act to empower the Ombudsman to provide administrative and investigative services to specialized Commissioners for Read More...

Notice (updated)

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Mon, 17 May 2010 00:53:57 +0100

25 May 2010. The StateCareAndMore.eu Team advises Visitors and Members that, due to other professional commitments, there will be no more updates to this e-journal until 8th June 2010. Any inconvenience is regretted.

A brief remark on the Polish air tragedy

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 05:06:02 +0100

On Saturday 10th April the Polish presidential plane crashed over Russia killing all on board. This left 'a huge gap in public life in Poland... the most important people are dead' (CNN news report). One factor caught my attention.

All news reports I went through made reference to the fact that the plane was carrying, apart from the President and his wife, the Governor of the Central Bank, 'leading historians', the Army Chief, the Deputy Foreign Minister,Read More...

A tribute to a worthy colleague

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 02:42:10 +0100

On Friday 9th April I was very lucky to be offered an invitation to attend the launch of Migrant Smugglling by Sea by Dr Patricia Mallia, who graduated in law in my year and also went on to read for a PhD. Dr Mallia has now converted her PhD dissertation into what is already recognised as a literary work of international acclaim.

This is in no way intended as an advert for Dr Mallia's book. On the other hand I felt that the event was worth aRead More...

Abolition of Toy Guns: Back to Square One? (Prof. Kevin Aquilina)

kevin.aquilina@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 03:41:32 +0100

Clause 64 of Bill No 45, the Various Laws (Criminal Matters) (Amendment) Act, 2010 – published in The Malta Government Gazette of 12 February 2010 – is proposing the addition of a new provision to the Arms Act. It deals with toys in the shape of guns. The new provision, article 55A, if adopted by the House of Representatives, will read as follows:

'55A. (1) No person shall sell, or offer for sale, toys in the shape of firearms, arms proper, ammunition or knuckle dusters.Read More...

EU over-protecting data ‘roamers’?

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 02:45:01 +0100

I travel abroad a number of times a year, and practically always take my laptop with me. I also have a mobile internet subscription, which allows me access to the web practically anywhere. Except that when I leave Malta I incur steep charges, presently listed on the website of my service provider at 5 Euro per megabyte! Correction, let me state that ‘I risk incurring steep charges’ because in reality my set up is such that overseas internet roamRead More...

An appeal from StateCareAndMore.eu

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 13:54:03 +0100

We appreciate your taking the time to read this article.

The StateCareAndMore.eu e-journal has been available for some months now, and we are happy to say that feedback has been generally positive: the initiative was welcomed, the information found useful, the style and professional approach commended. We are working hard and are happy with our modest achievements. Readership is increasing, and also the number of registered memberRead More...

Finland Ombudsman jubilee publication

ivan.mifsud@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 13:33:03 +0100

In February 2010, the Finnish Ombudsman institution turned 90. To mark the occasion, amongst other things, the Finnish Ombudsman pubished a collection of essays, in Finnish, English and Swedish. They were written by the Ombudsman, Deputy Ombudsman and legal advisors. Some are general, such as Observations on the Ombudsman's powers and Criticism of the Parliamentary Ombudsman-punishment or guidance?. Others are more specific, such as Oversight of Legality in Healthcare and PrisRead More...

The Right to a Fair Hearing and Compulsory Arbitration: Two incompatible procedures? (Prof. ...

kevin.aquilina@statecareandmore.eu — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 02:16:27 +0100

The House of Representatives will soon start to debate Bill No. 41, a Bill to amend the Arbitration Act and the Mediation Act. The Bill was published in The Malta Government Gazette on 1 December 2009. The amendments to the Mediation Act are prompted by E.U. exigencies intended to transpose into Maltese law the provisions of Council Directive 2008/52/EC of 21 May 2008 regarding mediation in cross-borderRead More...