Catherine Baksi
FeatureIt’s a small world after all
The ‘fuller life experience’ of qualifying with a small firm is a solid foundation for a fulfilling career. How well do new paths to qualification support that? Catherine Baksi reports.
FeatureTrials and tribulation
Crown courts are in crisis, reports Catherine Baksi. The backlog continues to climb, the estate is crumbling and there aren’t enough lawyers. So what’s the plan?
NewsNeuberger defies calls to quit Hong Kong court
Former Supreme Court president says he will continue to sit for ‘as long as I can do good by being there’.
NewsJudges failed postmasters, says former DPP
Sir David Calvert-Smith was instructed by the Post Office to lead a review in 2020 of over 900 prosecutions.
FeatureGrowing your own
The advent of the SQE has made it easier to train within an in-house legal department. Will more aspiring solicitors eschew the private practice route to qualification? Catherine Baksi reports.
NewsSanctions bite as UK courts lose out on Russian cases
London's international appeal remains strong, with record numbers of foreign litigants.
FeatureOpening the door
For 20 years the Law Society’s Diversity Access Scheme has helped aspiring solicitors from disadvantaged backgrounds become solicitors. Catherine Baksi discovers that it has never been more needed.
NewsExclusive: judges take action to improve court security
Group of senior judges and HM Courts & Tribunals Service officials set up in response to assault on Judge Perusko last year.
OpinionBar watchdog in the red
Bar Standards Board accepts performance review findings and vows to raise its game.
NewsSolicitors furious over ‘heavy-handed’ pat-downs
London Criminal Courts Solicitors' Association complains to HM Courts & Tribunals Service about ’invasive’ searches.
NewsFree advocacy for alleged victims of rape among Labour's justice plans
Shadow lord chancellor sets out ideas - but cannot promise more money for legal aid.
FeatureCrowded house
The bedrock of our criminal justice system, the magistrates’ courts, is in crisis. So is it time to consider a radical overhaul? Catherine Baksi reports.
FeatureUnfinished business?
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act transformed the criminal justice process. As it turns 40, Catherine Baksi canvasses opinion on whether the legislation is showing its age.
FeatureOccupational hazards
Employment lawyers are braced for the reintroduction of fees at a time when tribunals continue to struggle with the volume of claims. Fresh legislative upheaval will also have a profound effect on how they work, writes Catherine Baksi.
OpinionTrial by television got juries all wrong
Channel 4's 'The Jury: Murder Trial' was more like Big Brother than a serious docudrama.
FeatureLife in limbo
Indeterminate sentences of ‘imprisonment for public protection’ are thoroughly discredited. So is the end of this manifestation of ‘state-sponsored psychological harm’ in sight at last? Catherine Baksi reports.
FeatureDeal or no deal
The number of corporate scalps amassed by US regulators, driven by controversial ‘plea deals’, is envied by other jurisdictions. As Catherine Baksi reports, the UK has had deferred prosecution agreements since 2014 – so why have there been so few?
FeatureApproaching difference
Are neurodivergent children and young people getting a fair hearing in the criminal justice system? Catherine Baksi reports.
FeatureVoice of reason
The House of Commons justice committee turns an unflinching eye on the perceived shortcomings of the justice system and government policy. Under the chairmanship of Sir Bob Neill, its influence has grown rapidly.
FeatureJudgment days
The SRA’s latest power grab could turn the regulator into prosecutor, judge and jury, experts warn. Meanwhile the SDT, whose workload is already shrinking, would shrivel still further, reports Catherine Baksi.