Last 3 months headlines – Page 1638
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Former bar chief questions wisdom of legal services reforms
The former chairman of the bar who led the profession when the legal services reforms were working their way through parliament has voiced strong reservations about the changes. Stephen Hockman QC (pictured), chairman of the bar in 2006, believes the public and not just the bar ...
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Children and young people facing legal advice ‘crisis’, charities warn
Four leading advice charities have today warned of a legal advice ‘crisis’ facing more than a million children and young people, as a report reveals they are not getting the legal advice they need. The JustRights campaign, which brings together the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, ...
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Government launches legal helpline for families of murder victims
The Ministry of Justice has launched a free telephone helpline to give legal advice and practical support to families bereaved by murder and manslaughter. The helpline is staffed by legal advisers who are specially trained to deal with bereaved families.
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Law Society Excellence Award winners announced
The Law Society announced the winners of the 2009 Excellence Awards last night at a ceremony attended by 550 at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London The winners were: Awards for individuals: ...
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What makes a good rainmaker, and does gender matter?
Princeton University defines a rainmaker as an ’executive who is very successful in bringing in business to his company or firm’.
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Banking and finance
Mortgage fraud – Recovery orders Serious Organised Crime Agency v Athos Thanos Pelekanos: QBD (Mr Justice Hamblen): 2 October 2009 The applicant agency applied for a recovery order under part ...
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Criminal law roundup: more than just the usual suspects
Many suspects now surrender themselves to the police when it is known that they are subject to an investigation. They attend the police station as volunteers. Police culture is still deeply committed to making an arrest at that point. However, every arrest must be justified under section 24 of the ...
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Outsourcing boasts many benefits, but it is not a quick fix in hard times
In these challenging economic times, even the most conservative law firms are looking at ways to remain competitive and profitable, often by reducing costs.
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Sweet plinth
Aspiring barrister Melanie Smith (pictured) has found a novel way of standing out from the crowd when it comes to pupillage applications. The bar vocational course student at London’s College of Law took to the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square to recite famous speeches, including the defence counsel’s closing speech ...
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Memory lane
Law Society’s Gazette, October 1919 Solicitor, practising in country market town, about to article his son (17) would ...
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Winter of our discontent
As any lawyer knows, statutes are not normally up there with a Dan Brown novel when it comes to page-turning over-the-top drama. Let’s face it, they tend to be pretty dull. But it turns out the law has not always been such a snore – it has simply lost its ...
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Supreme follies
Having spent the afternoon hearing how the British government is undermining the right to custodial legal advice by reducing lawyers’ fees, Clive Stafford Smith, director of Reprieve, took to the stage to cheer up delegates at the Law Society’s conference on legal advice at the police station last week.
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Woolf at the door
The ‘statutorily senile’ Lord Woolf, to quote his own words, entertained a capacity crowd last week with a lecture to the London Solicitors Litigation Association. The former lord chief justice was on fine form, Obiter is pleased to report. Spare no sympathy for criminal lawyers in portakabins, he said, referring ...
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Bumper bonuses are back, but don’t expect a return to business as usual
House prices have soared to a new record, bumper bonuses are back in the Square Mile and the stockmarket is booming. It’s deja vu all over again in London. After a painful bout of retrenchment quite without parallel, can the big City law firms expect a return to business as ...
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Diary of a redundancy (part three)
You punch in the number of the charity. ‘It’s a kind offer,’ you say into the telephone, and then hesitate. The charity has offered you a job as an adviser. The money is a third of what you were pulling in as a proper solicitor before those born-out-of-wedlock partners made ...
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Insurers plan advertising campaign for personal injury claims
A number of insurers are gearing up to launch advertising campaigns to persuade personal injury claimants in motor accidents to bypass solicitors and deal directly with the responsible party’s insurer, it is believed. The news comes as the Financial Services Authority confirmed that it does not ...
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Unregulated will writers failing clients, says Chancery Lane
Unregulated will writers are providing the public with unenforceable wills while charging for legal services they are not trained or regulated to provide, the Law Society claimed this week. Solicitors specialising in will writing told the Society they have been handed invalid wills drafted by unregulated ...
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Lord chief justice calls for rethink of court tradition
The operation of the traditional court needs to be rethought to take into account technological advances that have rapidly changed society and influenced jurors, the lord chief justice (pictured) said this week. Speaking a year after becoming head of the judiciary, Lord Judge said that the ...
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Boom time for litigation funding
Third-party litigation funding broker Calunius Capital has begun investing in its own cases, Gazette sister publication Litigation Funding will reveal this week, amid a flurry of activity in the litigation funding sector. Calunius said it is investing in litigation in conjunction with funders that ...