Latest news – Page 642
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News
Six months to end 'indiscriminate' prisoner voting ban
Britain has six months to draft new laws to end its blanket ban on prisoners voting in elections or face penalties totalling millions of pounds, it has emerged following a ruling from Europe’s human rights court. The court ruled that Britain’s ‘automatic and indiscriminate’ disqualification of ...
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Judicial diversity must start with lawyers, says Goldring
Senior judges will reach out to the legal profession by mentoring those who feel excluded from high office. Speaking at a conference yesterday, Senior Presiding Judge Lord Justice Goldring revealed members of the profession previously put off because of their gender, race or sexuality will be ...
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Tomlinson judge appointed first chief coroner
The judge who presided at the 2011 inquest that returned a verdict of unlawful killing on newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson was today named as the first Chief Coroner of England & Wales. The Ministry of Justice said that Peter Thornton QC will improve the coronial system ...
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Social exclusivity ‘rife’ in profession
Social exclusivity is increasing in the legal profession, according to a new analysis of lawyers’ schooling published today. Legal recruiter Laurence Simons studied almost 50,000 professionals working in London using the networking site LinkedIn. It found that more than 15% of lawyers - more than 7,000 ...
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General training ‘failing’, consumer watchdog tells review
Regular re-accreditation and an end to the ‘general practitioner model’ of training are among the reforms called for by the Legal Services Consumer Panel in its submission to the Legal Education and Training Review (LETR) today. The consumer watchdog tells the review that the current system ...
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Trainee minimum abolition ‘will hit women’
Women will be disproportionately affected by the scrapping of the minimum salary for trainees, the Association of Women Solicitors (AWS) said today. The AWS has added its voice to mounting opposition to the decision taken last week by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. From August 2014, firms ...
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Trainee minimum dumped in 'partial deregulation'
Regulators have voted to partially deregulate the trainee solicitor minimum wage 30 years after it was introduced. The board of the Solicitors Regulation Authority made the decision to change the terms of the salary at its meeting today - with the change coming into effect in ...
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Criminal bar unfurls strike banner
Nine out of 10 criminal barristers are prepared to take direct action in protest against low and late payments, a survey by the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) has revealed as their leader for the first time sanctions ‘strike’ action. CBA chair Max Hill QC will ...
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Pro bono no substitute for legal aid - Wotton
Lawyers need to do more to bridge the gaps in access to justice caused by legal aid reforms, the Law Society president told an international conference in Russia. However he stressed that pro bono work is no substitute for a properly funded legal aid system. John ...
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News focus: progress report on legal profession
The Law Society’s 28th Annual Statistical Report might appear to be a rather desiccated agglomeration of facts, tables and bar charts. It is not an avowedly political document and, for that reason, raises more questions than it answers. As a snapshot of changing trends in the profession, however, the survey ...
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Giving hard-up graduates hope
I have read the various exchanges, following the initial open letter on the Gazette website from the (clearly desperate) Legal Practice Course graduates. The issue, from my perspective, is not the minimum wage applicable to trainee solicitors, but more the lack of training contracts compared with the number of ‘qualifying’ ...
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Doing the deed
Increasingly, original title deeds are disappearing and we are ever more dependent on obtaining copies from the Land Registry. Yet again this morning an office copy lease has arrived with the plans uncoloured and a power of attorney which had no relevance included as a page of the lease. I ...
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Naive strategy
The government intends to clamp down on compensation claims arising from road traffic accidents. Apparently, the government regards solicitors as the ‘bad guys’ and insurers as the ‘good guys’.
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The joy of tech
Young Mr McVeighty should take heart and embrace a laptop. Ten years ago, I thought that I would be able to retire without touching a computer. I am now a converted enthusiast.
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No quarter asked
In response to the letter ‘Advice warning’, may I add a fourth reason? That is the fact that your own client will complain bitterly if they see you giving quarter to the enemy.
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Criminal law solicitors' director: value of justice ‘deteriorating’
The ‘march of managerialism’ and a desire to speed up proceedings have led to a drop in the value put on justice by the government and society, according to the retiring director of the Criminal Law Solicitors Association. Rodney Warren (pictured) has announced that he will ...
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Society ponders non-solicitor representation
Admission of non-solicitors to the Law Society has returned to the agenda following conference speeches by the president and his successor-but-one.
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ALS interpreters contract facing renewed scrutiny
The deal between the Ministry of Justice and the private company contracted to provide court interpreters is to face scrutiny from parliamentary watchdogs, as cases continue to be disrupted by poor performance and non-attendance of interpreters.
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Sky targets new court filming rights
A TV executive campaigning to lift the ban on cameras in criminal courts has said the limited rights announced in last week’s Queen’s speech will not end the battle for access. ‘We’re obviously interested in discussing what extras we can do down the road,’ Simon Bucks, associate editor at Sky ...
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ABS applicants billed thousands for consultancy
Alternative business structure hopefuls are being invoiced thousands of pounds for consultants to handle the financial minutiae of their applications to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Gazette has learned. The SRA says it has hired specialists to supplement its 25-strong team dedicated to vetting ABS applications. ...