All Law Gazette articles in Archive – Page 1422
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EU lawmakers warned over contract harmonisation
The government has told EU lawmakers that they should not legislate to harmonise European contract laws because there is a ‘paucity of evidence’ that a problem exists. In its response to a European Commission consultation on the issue, the Ministry of Justice said that the commission ...
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War of the words: how the government controls the debate with new legal lexicon
Ministers in the coalition government don’t talk about ‘fat cat lawyers’. This may be because policy-makers are moving on from an unhelpful cliche as they prepare to cut legal aid, or it could be because any focus on high rewards turns the public’s ...
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Uren v Corporate Leisure (UK) Ltd and Ministry of Defence
Mr Uren was a member of the RAF who suffered a spinal injury when taking part in a ‘health and fun day’, during which he dived head first into an inflatable pool containing water with a depth of 18 inches while competing to collect pieces of plastic fruit. ...
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Crippen yarn
A recent case where a husband was alleged to have given his wife sleeping tablets so that he could romp with his girlfriend reminded me of the Crippen murder, 100 years old last year, writes James Morton. In July 1910, a decayed body which was ...
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Crown Prosecution Service misdirection
The government has no money. Legal aid is under threat. The Law Society strategy for savings takes a broader view of the legal system than government is capable of doing because of departmental and executive agency demarcations. As a result, ...
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Rallying cry
Following last week’s Memory Lane item featuring a 1970s call to start a solicitors’ racing car club, it seems the profession still has an attraction to fast cars. Freeth Cartwright partner Paul Calladine writes: ‘I was interested to see the article "Memory Lane February 1971" and the prospect of a ...
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Fees in deep freeze
I long ago came to the conclusion that the last government did not like solicitors, presumably because we were the point of contact for members of the public who were dissatisfied with the actions of the executive and wished to turn to the judiciary for redress. ...
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Tenancy deposits
Since 6 April 2007, the well-worn road of disputes about the return of tenants’ deposits has taken a new turn with the statutory obligation on the landlord to protect the deposit within an authorised tenant deposit scheme (section 213 Housing Act 2004). ...
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Government's rhetoric on divorce mediation is far too simplistic
by Christina Blacklaws, senior partner at Blacklaws Davis Mediation works. I have practised as a mediator for 15 years now and am still shiny-eyed about it.
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Family law
Child abduction - Children’s welfare - Discretionary powers Re O (Children): CA (Civ Div) (Lords Justices Wilson, Pitchford, Black): 16 February 2011 The appellant mother (M) appealed against a decision ...
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Mediator shortage looms, says family lawyers' group
Separating couples may ‘escape’ the new requirement to consult a mediator before going to court because of a shortage of properly accredited mediators, family lawyers’ group Resolution has suggested. The group’s chair Dave Allison also warned there was a risk that members of the public may ...
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Name game
Solicitors will already be familiar with the term LeO to describe the Legal Ombudsman, which opened last October. But this could so easily have been a far more amusing acronym, as the ombudsman himself reveals in his blog. Adam Sampson says the complaints body considered various options before settling on ...
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Landmark judgment highlights retainer letter lapse
A High Court judge warned solicitors of the need to be clear in retainer letters, as he ruled that a firm had breached its contract by refusing to carry out further work for a client until he had paid his bills, in a ...
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Properly rewarding and promoting law support staff is overdue
The advent of ABS and the personal opportunities that will follow throw into focus the skills required to manage and promote a successful law firm. Over many years, firms have invested in a robust and in many cases excellent management team, bringing together a full range ...
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A professional menace
Paul Davidoff’s letter strikes a chord with me. The problem of poorly drafted wills (whether made by solicitors or unqualified individuals) is of general application. Where I differ from Mr Davidoff, however, is in his reference to Will Aid, where the implication is that these ...
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Smooth as Silk
For anyone who gets home from a long day of billable hours with a craving for even more law, a new BBC1 drama began last week. Silk, written by ex-barrister and Kavanagh QC creator Peter Moffat, focuses on two rival barristers seeking to be appointed as QCs. Martha Costello (pictured, ...
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Neuberger warns against mediation and defends legal aid and Jackson
The Master of the Rolls warned against mediation being used as a replacement for the courts, defended the cost of legal aid, and voiced strong support for Lord Justice Jackson’s civil justice reforms in a speech earlier this week. Giving the annual Bentham Lecture, Lord Neuberger ...
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What happens when politicians clash with courts over human rights?
‘Is X a good judge?’ one lawyer asked another. There was a pause while the second lawyer weighed his words. ‘There are only good judges and better judges,’ he replied at last. ‘And yes, X is a good judge.’ ...
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Disability hate crime victims ‘let down’ by system, says DPP
Victims and witnesses with disabilities have been let down by the criminal justice system, the Director of Public Prosecutions said this week as he called for a change in society’s attitude towards disability hate crime. Keir Starmer QC said victims and witnesses with disabilities ‘have not ...
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Some thoughts after the Arab revolutions
It has been interesting to see that lawyers have played a prominent role in the actions to overthrow dictatorships in the Arab world. In Tunisia, the overwhelming majority of lawyers went on strike rather early in the protests. The courthouse in Benghazi, Libya was apparently ...