Headlines – Page 1263
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Keep cameras away from court
I read with interest that John Ryley, head of Sky News, wrote to justice secretary Kenneth Clarke calling for court proceedings to be televised. While Mr Ryley is to be applauded for his concern for our justice system, to what extent the demands placed on him ...
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A costly word
All firms must by 6 October alter their paper and all else to state ‘authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority’, we are reminded by Charles Plant in the Gazette of 8 September. How many hours did this decision consume? How many hours will be ...
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Distorted portrayal
The Gazette report of my speech last week to the Westminster Legal Policy Forum was a distorted portrayal of the views I expressed. I was not referring to ‘ABS licensing’ as a shambles, and nor were my remarks directed specifically at the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
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Shaggy dog stories
Helen Mahy, group company secretary and general counsel at the National Grid, has another string to her bow. She writes children’s stories that feature the adventures of Basil, a black and white spaniel. Basil is based on Mahy’s own dog of the same name and ...
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Going backwards and moving forward
Almost as irritating as the upward inflexion at the end of every sentence uttered by young folk (which turns every statement into a question), is the proliferation of the term ‘going/moving forward’. This has crept into business jargon like bindweed, it pains Obiter to relate, and deserves to be trampled ...
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O tempora, o mores
Being a crusty old soul, Obiter abhors change. Having grudgingly accepted that outcomes-focused regulation is going to happen, however, we popped into the SRA’s London roadshow, held over the river at Glaziers Hall, Southwark, hoping for an enlightening crash course.
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Caught out
Cricketing solicitor Pete Dodd has been back in touch to say that he was not, as he had thought, the only member of the profession to play in the British team in the Lawyers Cricket World Cup in Barbados. Andrew Bretherton, a partner at Edwin ...
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Clarke likens ABS revolution to financial ‘Big Bang’ of 1986
Justice secretary Kenneth Clarke has predicted that the advent of alternative business structures could have as dramatic an impact on legal services as the so-called ‘Big Bang’ of 1986 had on the financial sector. Speaking this morning at a conference on promoting UK legal services ...
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Flaws in the quality assurance scheme for advocates threaten the criminal justice system
It is over five years since a single, late, unconsulted, unevidenced sentence in Lord Carter’s report on legal aid recommended that there should be a quality assurance scheme for advocates. Since then, groups from the bar, Law Society, judiciary and the Legal Services Commission have been arguing about exactly what ...
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Bid to exempt Trafigura-type claims from reform fails
Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs have rejected an amendment to legislation that would exempt claims brought by foreigners against UK multinationals from civil litigation reforms. The Public Bill Committee debated the amendment to the Legal Aid, Punishment of Offenders and Sentencing Bill, tabled by Labour ...
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Why was Jack Straw unable to move against referral fees when in office?
Did Jack Straw’s late intervention spell the end for personal injury referral fees? That the government changed its view last week is a good thing. Even many lawyers who gained instructions via such arrangements remained deeply discomfited by their existence. So ...
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Straw in line of fire over referral fee bill
Lawyers and medical experts have hit back at Jack Straw over comments he made yesterday while seeking to persuade MPs to criminalise PI referral fees. The former justice secretary introduced a ten-minute rule bill outlining proposals to make offering referral fees for victims’ details a criminal ...
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Decision to allow television broadcasting in court is not backed by sufficient research
by Paul Lambert, a lecturer in law at the National University of Ireland, Galway The government’s plan to overturn the ban on cameras in the courtroom was broadly (if sometimes cautiously) welcomed, but it is problematic.
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Chancery Lane strikes new deal for cheaper indemnity insurance
Firms with Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) and Lexcel accreditation will be able to take advantage of reduced professional indemnity insurance premiums, following a deal agreed between the Law Society and broker Hera Indemnity. Law Society chief executive Des Hudson said: ‘There has been anecdotal evidence that Lexcel can reduce ...
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Commons rejects Brussels proposal for EU-wide rights for suspects
MPs have voted against a proposal to safeguard the rights of suspects detained at police stations across Europe to have access to lawyer. Justice secretary Kenneth Clarke tabled a motion last week recommending that the UK should not opt into a draft European Union directive that ...
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Practising law in a ‘mafia state’
He practises law in a country that is said to be even more dangerous than Colombia. He has received death threats, someone tried to kill him by sabotaging his car and he fears for the lives of his wife and children. His ...
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Government to ban referral fees in personal injury cases
The government has today announced that it will ban the payment of referral fees in personal injury cases. The Ministry of Justice said the current arrangements have led to high costs, encouraged a ‘compensation culture’ and led to the growth of an industry which pursues claimants ...
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Riots - ‘swift justice’ should be the rule, minister tells police
Outlining plans to increase the efficiency of the criminal justice process today, Nick Herbert said the response to the recent riots showed how the process could be improved. He wants to extend the use of virtual courts and digitise the system, saving time and money.
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Plan to publish family court judgments online may be reviewed amid cost-benefit concerns
The Ministry of Justice may scale back plans to publish family court judgments online, after a review of the pilot project questioned whether there was any ‘real benefit’ in reporting every case. The pilot tested the feasibility of issuing written judgments in certain types of family ...
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Third-party funding of litigation - views from the US and Australia
The recondite topic of third-party funding of litigation has been in the news over the summer. The Gazette reported last month that the Civil Justice Council is on the verge of agreeing a code of conduct for third-party funders, and that an association for funders will be set up.