All Law Gazette articles in Archive – Page 1423
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College of Law launches part-time BPTC programme
The College of Law in Birmingham is to offer a part-time Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) beginning September 2011. BPTC course leader Paul Shoulders said: ‘The new part-time course, subject to validation by the Bar Standards Board, will open up the potential rewards of a career ...
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Firms make ‘initial contact’ with external investors
More than two-thirds of law firms would be ‘comfortable’ securing funding from an external investor when Alternative Business Structures are introduced in October, and 30% have already made initial contact with potential investors, according to research released today. A survey of 200 solicitors carried out for ...
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Failure to manage your data could be criminal
The way a law firm handles information could represent a ticking time bomb. Every document you file carries legal, financial and practical implications for your business. It is vital to understand these implications, and the actions required to protect the business and its clients.
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‘More needs to be done’ to address inequality in the profession
The Law Society is ‘making strides’ to promote equality and equal practice in the legal profession, Law Society president Linda Lee said today as the Society marks the global centenary of International Women’s Day. Lee, who will host a roundtable discussion on women in the ...
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Disbursement? VAT depends…
A common query posed to VAT advisers is: can a particular cost be recharged without VAT as a disbursement? Well, that depends. The recent case of Barratt, Goff & Tomlinson (BGT) [MAN/2009/0219] highlights just how muddy the issue of disbursements has become. The appellant was ...
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Leading judge was libelled
A Court of Appeal judge has today received a libel apology and damages from a daily newspaper. Lord Justice Sedley, represented by London firm Bindmans, has accepted an apology and damages, which will be paid to charities, from the ...
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Why the SRA should be allowed to regulate ABSs
Profoundly important decisions are about to be taken that will determine the types of law firm that will be allowed to operate from October 2011 and how the profession will be regulated.
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Why firms would be foolish to ignore ABSs
I was pleased to see that your recent critique of our draft business plan and our aspirations for a vigorous and competitive legal services sector demanded action over rhetoric from the Legal Services Board. I agree and we have spent the last two years doing just that by ensuring the ...
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Overseas employees tribunal ruling could affect international firms
A Court of Appeal ruling on the right of overseas employees to bring tribunal claims in the UK could have implications for international law firms, an employment lawyer suggested this week. The court ruled that a group of British Airways air stewardesses who are based in ...
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Government to amend 'crucial error' in retirement age plans
The government has promised to amend a ‘crucial error’ in its transitional provisions for abolishing the default retirement age, following Law Society warnings that the current drafting could put employers at risk of unfair dismissal claims.
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Civil legal aid cuts will increase tribunal workload
Cuts to civil legal aid will leave people unable to pursue their rights and increase the workload of the tribunal system, the senior president of tribunals has warned. In his 2011 annual report, Robert Carnwath highlighted the likely effect of the proposed cuts on the ...
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Ideology explains legal aid cuts
Having read the letter from Dan O'Callaghan on the article by shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan MP, I cannot help feeling it is somewhat misguided. The Law Society and solicitors generally need all the support they can get, politically and otherwise, in respect of legal aid cuts. It matters not ...
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Two solicitors appointed to QC is no cause for pessimism
by Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, a solicitor member of the QC Selection Panel The results of the latest QC appointments competition have just been announced, and, once again, only a tiny number of the successful applicants are solicitors. The old system was widely seen as being unfair to ...
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An assault on rights of children with special needs?
The consultation paper on changes to special educational needs and disability arrived with an alarming headline proposal yesterday: that statements of special educational need (SEN) would no longer be legally enforceable.
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Local authority surveillance
In January, the Home Office published its long-awaited review of counter-terrorism and security powers. Amid all the headlines and controversy about control orders for suspected terrorists, it is easy to miss the proposed changes to local authorities’ powers to carry out surveillance under the Regulation of ...
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Pay up or stay behind bars
I refer to your Opinion ‘The unanswered question of fines’ . Like everybody else, apart from those who prefer not to pay, I am appalled at the sum unpaid.
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Women still half as likely as men to become partners in private practice
Forty years on from the Equal Pay Act, the Law Society and Legal Services Board continue to highlight gender differences as a significant category of career disadvantage. The raw data remains extremely dispiriting; although the proportion of women admitted as solicitors continues to increase, pressing issues remain concerning retention, progression, ...
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New 'behaviour committee' to police RTA portal
Disputes between solicitors and insurers over alleged abuses of the new road traffic accident (RTA) claims portal are to be dealt with by a special ‘behaviour committee’. The RTA Portal Company, a collaboration of representatives from the insurance and legal industries that oversee the portal’s operation, ...
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Women lawyers believe they are paid less than male peers
Most women lawyers believe their male colleagues earn more than they do, research has suggested. A survey of 200 UK lawyers by jobs board twosteps showed that 61% of women lawyers thought they earned less than men, while 100% of those earning £95,000 or more ...
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Web redefines relationship between journalism and the law
Write an article for publication these days and the chances are that it will attract ill-informed comments. No longer content with sending in a letter to the editor and waiting to see if it is printed, readers now demand an instant right of reply on the publisher’s website. ...