All Law Gazette articles in Archive – Page 1296
-
News
Fee freedom
Three cheers for recent letters setting out the case for liberation from referral fees. Our firm takes the same position; we also refuse to advertise.
-
News
Notary frustration
I am an English solicitor practising on the Costa Blanca in Spain. I read Gill Mather’s article on the archaic practices of Spanish notaries (see [2009] Gazette, 19 November, 11) immediately after returning from a 200-mile round-trip to a notary’s office to execute a deed on behalf of a client ...
-
News
Good points well made?
In response to Mr Moore's letter 'What is the point?' I am sorry he sees little point in his job as a solicitor – I love mine and see a great deal of point to it. I am not motivated however, to work in an ivory tower of the 'only ...
-
News
Lessons of the recession
That well-known source of reliable information, Wikipedia, helpfully says that there is no generally accepted definition of the word ‘recession’. However, I think it reasonable to accept that it is a sustained period of economic downturn.
-
News
Missing the point
I was saddened to read the letter from Trevor Moore, ‘What is the point?’ (see [2009] Gazette, 3 December, 11). This is not the profession I practise or recognise.
-
News
SRA to overhaul regulation and scrap ‘unjustified’ rules
The Solicitors Code of Conduct is to be rewritten and a swath of detailed conduct rules are likely to scrapped under plans being discussed today by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The SRA intends to fundamentally reform the way it regulates, moving from the current ‘box-ticking’ system ...
-
News
Sentencing
Conspiracy – Counts – Sentence length – Supply of drugs R v David Sangster: R v Robert Burnell: R v Martyn Leslie Jackson: CA (Crim Div) (Lord Justice Maurice Kay, Mr Justice Sweeney, Mr Justice Slade): 2 December ...
-
News
Ditch cheques – go on, you know you want to
Are you offering your clients a bill payment method that is in ‘terminal decline’? That is how the board of the UK Payments Council this week described cheque transactions. No, I’d never heard of the UK Payments Council either, but apparently they can dictate how we pay for stuff...
-
News
Jersey wills and grants for people domiciled outside Jersey
If a person dies domiciled outside Jersey owning assets in Jersey in their sole name, article 19(1) of the Probate (Jersey) Law 1998 provides that a Jersey grant must be obtained. Article 19(2) of the 1998 law provides that a Jersey grant is not required if ...
-
News
What is in store for Europe’s lawyers in 2010?
It is that time of the year when newspapers and magazines run retrospectives on the year that has passed – in 2009, even on the decade that has passed – and give prophecies for the future.
-
News
The BVT pilot decision could spell trouble for the LSC
It is telling that last week’s announcement to scrap the best-value tendering pilots in Manchester and Avon and Somerset came from the Ministry of Justice, not the Legal Services Commission. At a time when the two bodies seem to be increasingly at odds, the MoJ has decided to step in ...
-
News
Trainee solicitors face debts of more than £10,000
More than half of trainee solicitors have racked up debts of more than £10,000 before qualifying, according to an annual survey published by law student forum TraineeSolicitor.co.uk. The survey of around 200 trainees revealed that 55% had debts in excess of £10,000, while 35% were more ...
-
News
Self-defence is no defence
Pre-election promises aren’t worth the ballot paper they are written on, so don’t take too seriously the sinister spectacle of Labour and the Tories espousing the same populist cause.The populist knee-jerk of the moment is the old chestnut of how far a householder can legally go to protect his property ...
-
News
Reform group publishes plans to change HIP rules
A group of property professionals released a ‘white paper’ today putting forward proposals to reform the controversial home information packs in a bid to speed up transactions and reduce abortive sales. The HIP Reform Group, established in November 2009, said the packs should be retained rather ...
-
News
IT failure at LSC delays legal aid payments
Technical problems at the Legal Services Commission have delayed all payments due to be made to legal aid solicitors today. The LSC is set to issue an e-alert later updating the profession on the situation. Payment systems at the LSC apparently ...
-
News
Get connected or get out of the kitchen
This year will see a significant change in the supply of legal services to domestic and SME business. I’ll make a prediction here that I’ll review this time in 2011. There will emerge two types of solicitors firms by the end of the year: those that have fully adopted IT ...
-
News
Five solicitors suspended following more than 100 client complaints
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has intervened in a Cheshire firm and suspended the practising certificates of five of its solicitors following allegations of dishonesty involving hundreds of thousands of pounds of clients’ money. The SRA is investigating suspected dishonesty and breaches of accounting rules at Wolstenholmes, ...
-
News
Politically, access to justice is as important as health and education
Last month I mentioned how those abroad observe our work, paying particular attention to the independence of our profession and to the perceived balance and fairness found in our legal system, both criminal and civil. Their perception is built on the outstanding reputation of the judiciary, the trusted skills and ...
-
News
Family mediation pilot achieves mixed results
A pilot scheme making family mediation available at court to legally aided parties in disputes involving children has cost more than expected and achieved modest settlement rates, the Gazette has learned.
-
News
Various groups of solicitors represented disproportionately in SRA actions
Various groups of solicitors are disproportionately represented in actions taken by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, but there is no clear pattern, research has found. White solicitors are more likely to face complaints of professional misconduct, for example, while black and minority ethnic (BME) solicitors are more ...