Last 3 months headlines – Page 1663
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News
Penalties for maintenance defaulters ‘draconian’
Civil liberties lawyers have dismissed as ‘disproportionate’ and draconian new powers to confiscate without a court order the driving licences and passports of parents who default on child maintenance. The Welfare Reform Bill, in the House of Commons committee stage this week, will allow the ...
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Firms face lobbying scrutiny
UK law firms of all sizes risk being dragged into the debate surrounding parliamentary lobbying, as pressure to make consultancy agreements more transparent was stepped up this week. UK law firms engage 15 Lords and four MPs as consultants a Gazette investigation has found. A number ...
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Real estate, hair products and energy efficiency
Heathrow hub: Birmingham firm Wragge & Co advised international real estate group Goodman on its £17m acquisition of a 220-acre site near Heathrow airport from Argent, the property development company. Goodman says it plans to develop a rail freight distribution hub on the ...
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Immigration
Human rights - Confidentiality - Deportation orders - Terrorism Z v (1) Secretary of State for the Home Department (2) Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs; and 11 other cases against (1) and (2) brought by ...
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Graduate recruiters buck jobs trend
Law firms top the league for graduate starting salaries and are predicted to recruit more graduates this year than in 2008 - bucking the national trend. These are among the key findings of the bi-annual survey of the jobs market by the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR).
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Property search chief quits after just six months
Mervyn Pilley has resigned as chief executive of the Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) after only six months in the post. The trade organisation for the property search industry said the resignation followed a series of discussions in the new year between Pilley and the ...
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Ormerod to head Law Commission
The Law Commission has appointed Mark Ormerod as its new chief executive. Ormerod, who is currently director of access to justice policy at the Ministry of Justice, will take up his new position on 2 March, replacing William Arnold, who has been acting chief executive ...
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LDPs to go live on 31 March
The ‘go live’ date for legal disciplinary practices (LDPs) has been put back a month, to 31 March, at the instigation of justice minister Bridget Prentice. In a statement today, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) said it will be able to regulate the new business ...
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Land Registry asks private firms to build property chain matrix
The Land Registry has announced it will support commercial IT companies to develop ‘Chain Matrix’ systems to make conveyancing more transparent. The Registry shelved its own prototype system in 2007 after spending £15m in partnership with IBM. This announcement was the result ...
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Taxing problem for solicitors
Paying tax has been identified as the number one concern of solicitors hit by the credit crunch. Late incoming payments from third parties are making the problem worse, according to an online survey by the Law Society. Most firms said private clients were not paying their bills on time, which ...
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Watchdog wins appeal over ‘boiler room’ scam
The Financial Services Authority today (17 February) won an appeal against Leeds legal firm Fox Hayes over its failure to take reasonable steps to prevent a $21m (£14.7m) ‘boiler room’ fraud that hit 670 UK investors.
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How the Mortgage Arrears Protocol affects mortgage proceedings
With mortgage repossessions increasing, the government is stepping in with advice to mortgage lenders. As sources of mortgage finance dry up, families can find themselves facing higher mortgage costs, as well as other budgetary pressures. Their predicament has been exacerbated by the tough attitude of ...
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Human rights
Constitutional law - Aliens - Constitutional reform - EC law - Right to free elections - Sark R (on the application of Barclay & Ors) v Secretary of State for Justice & Ors: CA (Civ Div) (Lords Justice Pill, ...
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Legal advice
Conditional fee agreements - Legal costs insurance - Solicitors’ powers Kier Tankard (appellant) v John Fredricks Plastics Ltd (respondent); (1) Fawcett Old Ltd (2) Michael Jane Hair & Beauty (appellants) v Yvonne Hibberd (respondent); Mark Jones (appellant) v Karl ...
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Legal profession
Barristers’ fees - Comparators - Funding arrangements Lord Chancellor v John Charles Rees & ors: QBD (Sir Charles Gray): 19 December 2008 The appellant Lord Chancellor appealed against the decision ...
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Legal advice
Breach of contract - Conditional fee arrangements - Costs - Retainers (1) Bray Walker Solicitors (a firm) (2) Bevans Bray Walkers Ltd (t/a Bevans) v Carlo Moise Silvera: QBD (Mr Justice Blake): 18 December 2008 ...
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Human rights
Sentencing - EC law - Foreign travel - Notification - Sex offenders R (on the application of F) v Secretary of State for Justice: R (on the application of Angus Aubrey Thompson) v Secretary of State for Justice: DC ...
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Local government
Planning - Human rights - Change of use - Mobile homes (1) Theo Langton (2) Ruth McGill v (1) Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (2) West Dorset District Council: QBD (Admin) (Judge Gilbart QC): 7 January ...
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Human rights
Bicycles - Exemptions - Notification - Processions Kay v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis: HL (Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, Lord Rodger of Earlsferry, Baroness Hale of Richmond, Lord Carswell, Lord Brown of Eaton-under-Heywood): 26 November 2008 ...