All News articles – Page 1436
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News
Competition
Merger - Substantial lessening of competition Claimant airline seeking to purchase 30% share in second respondent airline Ryanair Holdings plc v Office of Fair Trading and another: CA (Civ Div) (Lord Justices Lloyd, Elias and Kitchin): 21 December 2011 ...
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‘Insurers to blame’ for PI premium hike
The Law Society has said the insurance industry must take the blame for the rising cost of motor premiums, in a high-profile row over personal injury claims. The Commons transport select committee last week said the rising number of personal injury claims was the ‘main reason’ ...
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Mediation, unreasonable behaviour and costs
Mediation as an effective dispute resolution method for civil disputes is well established. Therefore it was not surprising that Lord Justice Jackson reinforced the important role of mediation in chapter 36 of his Review of Civil Litigation Costs Final Report: ‘The most important form of ADR… is mediation. The reason ...
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HSBC panel ‘backlash’
The Law Society is considering ‘all possible options’ in response to what some practitioners are describing as an unprecedented backlash by high street firms over HSBC’s decision to replace its open conveyancing panel with a panel comprising just 43 firms.
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Hundreds of court posts axed
More than 1,200 posts were cut by HM Courts and Tribunals Service last year, just as it faced an upsurge in workload caused by rising numbers of litigants in person. A response to a Freedom of Information (FoI) request by the Gazette discloses that full-time equivalent ...
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Local authority
Library - Public library - Duty of library authority R (on the application of Bailey and others) v Brent London Borough Council: Court of Appeal, Civil Division (Lord Justices Pill, Richards and Davis): 19 December 2011 ...
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ATE insurer enters solicitors PII market
A leading after-the-event insurer has confirmed it will enter the solicitors professional indemnity insurance market this year. Elite Insurance will open a book of £3m for smaller, niche firms it has worked with in the past.
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Court of Appeal orders retrial over Bevan Ashford ‘negligence’ case
A case concerning the standard of advice expected from a newly qualified solicitor in a brief, free, consultation with a distressed client is set for a retrial following an appeal court decision. In Padden v Bevan Ashford, the Court of Appeal overruled a trial judge’s ...
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Law Society to launch Advocacy Section
The Law Society will next week launch a dedicated advocacy section to build a ‘community’ of solicitor-advocates to match the level of support barristers receive from the Inns of Court. The Advocacy Section will provide mentoring, training and networking opportunities at circuit and national level, the ...
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Judge slams quality of mental health advocacy
A judge has fiercely criticised the quality of advocacy in mental health review tribunals (MHRT) as calls intensify across the profession for the compulsory accreditation of practitioners appearing for mentally ill clients. The judiciary, regulators and bodies representing mental health lawyers are all calling for membership ...
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Litigants in person could struggle to secure access to justice
The prospect of a huge increase in litigants fighting their cases themselves in the face of legal aid cutbacks has prompted dire warnings from judges, magistrates, practitioners and support groups about the impact this will have on access to justice. They also fear that HM Courts and Tribunals Service’s plans ...
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HSBC's 43-strong conveyancing panel sets alarming precedent
by Jonathan Smithers, chair of the Law Society Conveyancing and Land Law Committee HSBC’s decision to create an unusually small mortgage lender panel of just 43 to serve the whole of the UK raises deep concerns for conveyancing solicitors and a wider issue for the public, ...
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Hungarian government forces 200 judges to retire
Judicial independence in Hungary is facing its biggest threat since the country’s 1989 revolution, following the government’s decision to force 200 judges into retirement and replace them with nominees of a single politically appointed individual. This development is one of several legislative changes introduced by prime ...
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The usual suspects? (Victim of crime - part 2)
It had taken three months and 11 days to get there - a room in a police station looking at individual mugshots of nine villainous-looking young men on a flat screen computer. It was Friday 13 January 2012 and the moment of truth was upon us. ...
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Bar applications up 18%
Applications for the Bar Professional Training Course have risen despite the continued fall in the number of pupillages, the bar’s annual report to the profession reveals. The annual Bar Barometer report, prepared by Dr Jennifer Sauboorah for the Bar Council and Bar Standards Board, shows there ...
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QualitySolicitors recruits in run-up to £15m ad campaign
Law firm network QualitySolicitors has announced the recruitment of two senior executives as it prepares a multi-million-pound ‘John Lewis-style’ television advertising campaign. Lee Ellis, formerly head of commercial finance at retailer Halfords, has been appointed as finance director. Claire Smith (pictured), a former partner ...
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Health and safety guru warns of political misuse
The architect of the government’s health and safety strategy has raised concerns that his report could be ‘misused’ for political purposes.
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Joint enterprise law ‘unacceptable’, says justice committee
MPs have called for ‘immediate steps’ to reform the ‘complex’ and ‘confusing’ law on joint enterprise. The cross party Justice Committee says the doctrine is being applied ‘inconsistently’ and that legislation is needed to ensure justice for victims and defendants and to cut the high number ...
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Society intervenes in landmark PII case
The Law Society and Solicitors Regulation Authority have been granted leave to intervene in a case that could have a major impact on professional indemnity insurance for law firms.