Headlines – Page 1156
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Form guide
If ever there is a case for triple checking (what we sociologists call ‘triangulation’) what a client tells you, it is over the question of his criminal convictions, writes James Morton.
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Herbert Smith merger creates ‘truly global’ giant
International law firm Herbert Smith is to merge with Australian firm Freehills to create one of the world’s largest firms. The new firm, Herbert Smith Freehills will, subject to regulatory approval, launch on 1 October, Herbert Smith said today. It will have 2,800 lawyers, including ...
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LASPO: we are all in it together
Recently the number of requests from individuals in need of pro bono assistance seems to have rapidly risen. I hear from colleagues that the situation is similar for other pro bono projects, and there seems to be a general consensus within the sector that when the Legal Aid, Sentencing and ...
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Injustice and vulnerable defendants
Vulnerable defendants are not getting fair trials and should have the benefit of the sort of special measures available to vulnerable witnesses in criminal trials, the Prison Reform Trust (PRT) suggests today.
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Separate jurisdiction could leave Wales in slow lane, Society says
The Law Society has warned that creating a separate legal jurisdiction in Wales could ‘dilute some of the benefits’ which accrue to the country from its present alignment with England. Such a move would also raise questions relating to whether there needs to be a ...
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‘Inquisitorial’ hearings planned for family litigants-in-person
Judges will adopt an inquisitorial approach to family cases, limiting cross-examination by the parties themselves, to deal with the increasing number of litigants-in-person, the judge in charge of family court modernisation has indicated. Mr Justice Ryder also said that the use of experts will be limited, ...
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North-east firm is latest to gain ABS status
A limited company based in Stockton on Tees has become the eighth entity to be licensed as an alternative business structure by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. NAS Legal Limited’s successful application was announced by the SRA this morning. The company, which was incorporated in August ...
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PEP dips by a fifth at FFW as public sector contracts
Field Fisher Waterhouse has blamed the squeeze on public sector spending and investment in the firm’s German offices for a sharp fall in profits in the year to 30 April. Profit per equity partner dipped £100,000 on 2010/11, from £510,000 to £410,000, on revenues which rose ...
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Outside funding ‘compelling’ reason to take the ABS route
The Legal Services Act (LSA) has so far had ‘minimal’ impact on law firms, but the reforms have acted as a ‘catalyst for change’ and increasing numbers in the profession are keen to explore outside funding, two surveys have revealed. Since the Solicitors Regulation Authority was ...
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Competition and the provision of professional training
Brussels is an echo-chamber, which is a fortunate thing. A piece of news read by just a few people is soon bouncing around from contact to contact, giving it publicity. Just such an event happened this week, and I am further amplifying it by writing about it here. It is ...
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Cost disputes set to soar post-Jackson, survey predicts
Costs disputes between solicitors and their clients will become more common once the Jackson reforms are implemented, according to a survey of specialist costs lawyers published today. In a poll of 137 costs lawyers, 69% (95) expected to see an increase in disputes, once the recoverability ...
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Right message, wrong case?
Despite the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) defeat in the Upper Tribunal in FSA v Pottage (23rd April, 2012), senior management responsibility remains a key pillar to the enforcement agenda.
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Personal injury costs reform continues apace
Behind-the-scenes work on the implementation of Lord Justice Jackson’s reform of personal injury costs has stepped up a gear or three in the past few weeks. The government intends to make a ministerial statement on qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) on 19 July, which has injected some urgency into the ...
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Society in new drive for common PII proposal form
The Law Society today asked brokers and insurers to adopt a composite proposal form for professional indemnity insurance (PII) in an effort to simplify the process of obtaining multiple quotes. The Society said it had secured support for its composite proposal form amongst ‘some of ...
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The bell-curve tolls for government lawyers
The most interesting parts of Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude’s ‘Civil Service Reform Plan’ do not occupy much space in the 30-page document released this week. Controversial proposals on ‘managing poor performance’ are tucked away at the back, on the page before ‘delivering an Olympic ...
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Shoosmiths joins Caledonian procession
National firm Shoosmiths has announced it is to merge with medium-sized Scottish law firm Archibald Campbell & Harley. This is the fourth in a series of Anglo-Scottish tie-ups announced this year. The new business will be known in Scotland as ACH Shoosmiths, and subject to regulatory ...
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SRA moves to reassure firms hit by bank computer woes
Banks paralysed by computer problems have promised to indemnify solicitors against any losses caused by the breakdown, the Solicitors Regulation Authority said today. The regulator in turn promised that no disciplinary action would be taken against firms caught out by the system failures.
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Intellectual property
Validity - Novelty - Defendant holding patent concerned with therapeutic agents for treatment of range of diseases by preventing growth of associated blood vessels Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc v Genentech; Bayer Pharma AG v Genentech: ChD (Pat) (Mr Justice ...