Latest news – Page 864
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Lawyers to advise professions group
An official body set up to advise the chancellor of the exchequer on future challenges facing the professional services sector is looking for input from lawyers. Michael Snyder, chairman of the professional services global competitiveness group, said last week that he would ‘welcome ideas from any of the legal professions’ ...
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Oil and gas deal
City firm Speechly Bircham advised corporate financiers and brokers Ambrian Partners on the reverse takeover of oil and gas exploration group BPC by Falkland Gold and Minerals, and the admission of the enlarged share capital to AIM. BPC was advised by City firm Norton Rose, national firm McGrigors, Jersey firm ...
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Revisiting the issue of pay
The Public Guardian has failed to address a catastrophic decline in the income of Court of Protection visitors. All practitioners involved in Court of Protection work will warmly welcome new Public Guardian Martin John’s initiative in reviewing serious problems arising from the new lasting power of ...
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Standards sliding on good grammar
I was interested to read the article by Martin Cutts concerning the increasing number of errors, both grammatical and semantic, appearing in letters and other legal documents (see [2008] Gazette, 4 September, 8).
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Registry fraud: we told you so
I read with interest and some despair your item ‘Registry fraud payouts soar’ (see [2008] Gazette, 4 September, 3). Some years ago, when it was proposed that land/charge certificates were to be abandoned with the move to e-conveyancing, I attended a seminar at the York District Land Registry. All the ...
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'Partial account' of constitutional bill
James Dean’s article ‘Call to divide AG’s dual role’ (see [2008] Gazette,, 7 August, 4) unfortunately gave only a very partial account of a substantial piece of work by the Joint Committee on the Draft Constitutional Renewal Bill, which I chaired. In fairness to your readers, I would like to ...
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Virtual court pilot in jeopardy over fees
A pilot scheme that could see defendants sentenced via video-link within hours of being arrested could be derailed as three leading practitioner groups consider withdrawing their support over pay, the Gazette has learned.
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New charity funding boost for pro bono lawyers
A national charity is to be launched next month to distribute a new stream of income for pro bono legal advice services, the Gazette can reveal. The Access to Justice Foundation is a major cross-profession initiative backed by the Law Society, Bar Council, Institute of Legal ...
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SRA backtracks over higher rights accreditation scheme
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has backtracked on ambitious plans to introduce a voluntary accreditation scheme for solicitors appearing in the higher courts following opposition from top judges and others. In what was described at its meeting in Birmingham last week as a ‘pragmatic’ decision, the ...
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Mediation nod for PI
Mediation is just as suitable for settling personal injury (PI) cases as it is for other disputes, the former vice-president of the Court of Appeal’s civil division has said. Speaking at a conference for personal injury lawyers this week, Sir Henry Brooke, who chairs the Civil ...
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NSPCC backs child care cost challenge
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is backing a legal challenge mounted by four local authorities which claim the government’s decision to force councils to bear the full cost of child care cases is unlawful, the Gazette can reveal. Since May, ...
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Firm ditches mental health law over rates
A London firm specialising in mental health law is to slash its caseload in protest at the ‘punitive’ rates paid under the government’s fixed-fees scheme. Kaim Todner said this week it had given notice to the Legal Services Commission on 1 September that it would ...
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Lawyers risk action over rogue advisers
Solicitors who allow dishonest immigration advisers to work in their practices will not be allowed to claim ignorance as a defence, the immigration advisers’ regulator has warned. Immigration services commissioner Suzanne McCarthy told the Gazette that her office is working closely with the Solicitors Regulation ...
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LCS seeks miners pledge
The Legal Complaints Service (LCS) has written to 817 firms asking them to confirm in writing that they have not – and will not – take deductions from miners’ compensation payouts for unions, claims-handlers or themselves, the Gazette has learned. The letter, signed by LCS chief ...
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Victims wary of orders
A change in the law has put women ‘at risk’ as domestic violence victims do not want partners who breach non-molestation orders to be jailed, practitioners have warned. Family lawyers claim the number of applications for non-molestation orders has ‘fallen significantly’ since the law was changed ...
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'Put council notices online'
The law should be changed to give statutory notices posted on the internet the same legal status as those in local newspapers, according to the founder of a new website. Andrew Bullen, managing director of Public Notices UK, aims to secure the support of a Conservative ...
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Law firms eye up Syrian market
Law firms, financial services providers and insurance companies are sizing up the Syrian business market as the government makes moves to open up to foreign investment, the Gazette has learned.
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Fujitsu starts £700m claim against NHS
Formal moves have begun in the largest single claim for compensation ever made against the NHS, a computer contractor revealed last week. Fujitsu Services said it had issued a procedure initiation notice to the IT agency NHS Connecting for Health following the termination of a ...
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Sports
London firm Couchman Harrington Associates advised AIM-listed sports services group Essentially on its £325,000 acquisition of Arundel Promotions, set up by ex-England cricketer Alec Stewart and football manager Alan Smith. Arundel was advised by London firm Gregory Rowcliffe Milners. ...
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Outrageous fortunes
The public need to be convinced that solicitors often offer a cheaper service than other providers. Over the last couple of years, I have become increasingly concerned about the level of fees charged by some new entrants into the legal market.