All News articles – Page 1281
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News
Expert witness ruling a blow to children, Society warns
Children involved in family law cases will face extra uncertainty following a High Court ruling on the funding of expert witnesses, the Law Society has warned. The Society reacted with disappointment to the ruling that the Legal Aid Agency, formerly the Legal Services Commission (LSC), is ...
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Barrister loses DIY tax scheme case
A former London tax barrister who designed his own tax avoidance scheme has lost his tribunal appeal against HM Revenue & Customs. He was attempting to avoid paying £190,000 in tax. Rex Bretten QC designed a complex scheme which entailed setting up trusts and investing £500,000 ...
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CoA backs Law Society on disbursement liability
Solicitors who help their clients by funding the cost of disbursements should not be liable for costs if a case fails, the Court of Appeal has ruled. The ruling came after an intervention by the Law Society in the case of Flatman v Germany published today ...
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Solicitor gets Met Police damages over assault
A criminal solicitor has received ‘substantial damages’ from the Metropolitan Police after settling a claim that she was assaulted in an East London police station as she sought to represent her 13-year-old client. Catriona Sheehan, a solicitor with 20 years’ experience, started a civil action ...
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Army law: uniform instructions
Some press reports estimate that up to one in four of the army’s lawyers face being cut. And the overall picture for the army is one of drastically reduced headcount – the Ministry of Defence’s Future Force 2020 plans will see the army cut 20,000 regular soldiers by 2020, with ...
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Family law scheme aims to limit conflict
Family lawyers have set up a scheme to help separating parents who do not qualify for legal aid to work together to minimise conflict and put their children first after the breakdown of their relationship. Resolution has been given more than £650,000 by the Department for ...
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Legal aid: exceptional circumstances
The legal framework From 1 April, the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) overhauled the statutory framework for legal aid in England and Wales. The areas of law that remain ...
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Legal aid ‘deserts’ warning
There could be job losses for close to a third of legal aid lawyers and advisers as firms close or cut services, creating ‘advice deserts’ across the country in the wake of the legal aid cuts, according to a report published today. According to an online ...
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Criminal legal aid: what now?
The government’s latest consultation paper on legal aid makes grim reading for any solicitor who undertakes criminal defence work and, indeed, for many providers of other legally aided work. The headlines have majored on the Daily Mail-pleasing stories of taking much prison work out ...
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Age diversity
I was very interested to see the report on the roundtable discussion on diversity (see 18 March), and disappointed in equal measure – although not particularly surprised – to see no mention of age diversity. When I was at law school, there was a student social ...
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Lord Sugar’s court victory cue for campaign against employment laws
Business leader Lord Sugar has vowed to fight in the House of Lords against a ‘new wave of claim culture’ after seeing off a claim from a former winner of The Apprentice. Stella English lost her claim for constructive dismissal after a tribunal rejected her argument ...
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Ealing process begins after cuts
A not-for-profit law centre in London opened last week, the day after wide-ranging civil legal aid cuts came into force. Ealing Law Centre will provide specialist housing and immigration support. A small group of volunteers (pictured) has built up the centre since October 2011 with ...
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Law firm ABS ventures for insurer Admiral
Insurance giant Admiral Group has confirmed two joint ventures with law firms. The UK motor insurance giant has joined with national firm Lyons Davidson and Cardiff firm Cordner Lewis to create Admiral Law and BDE Law. The insurer confirmed in a ...
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No ABSs in Scotland until ‘end of 2013’
Alternative business structures will not be introduced in Scotland until the end of the year at the earliest. The Scottish government wants more time to review the Law Society of Scotland’s application to be an approved regulator. The Society – the only ...
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Cyber threat warning to UK’s top 100
The security services have advised the UK’s largest law firms to take urgent action against cyber attacks, the Gazette can reveal. Partners from 40 top firms attended a private briefing last month with officials from the government’s Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure and ...
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Treatment of whistleblowers
Children’s heart surgery is something I have a close interest in as a parent – till she had an operation at the hands of a world-leading surgeon, my daughter had a rather large hole where four distinct chambers should be. And I’ve known more than my fair share of children ...
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Court interpreter service getting worse, new figures show
The company contracted to provide court interpreters has failed to reach its performance target after a year, new statistics have revealed, leading to delay in thousands of court cases. Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that the performance got worse in the first month ...