All News articles – Page 1475
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News
Twitter ban in Redknapp trial
The judge in the trial of Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has banned the use of Twitter from inside the courtroom. Judge Leonard ordered the ban for both the press and members of the public attending the trial of Redknapp (pictured) and former Portsmouth chairman Milan ...
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A blow for case management?
The Gazette reported last week on a case in which former firm Bevan Ashford faces legal action over advice given free of charge by a newly qualified solicitor. Given the number of firms out there offering a free half-hour of advice to new clients, it’s no wonder that so many ...
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Lord Chancellor’s incorrect statement
The Lord Chancellor Kenneth Clarke gave evidence to the Joint Select Committee on Privacy and Injunctions on 16 January 2012 (uncorrected evidence published on 23 January 2012). In answer to a question by Lord Boateng, Clarke said:
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Your personal new year financial review
In his November Autumn Statement, chancellor George Osborne confirmed the difficulties the economy faces and effectively emphasised the need for partners to reappraise their financial planning and the tax-efficiency of their finances. There is no better time to do this than at the start of the new year! Here are ...
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A Directive that you will not be able to put down
Don’t surprise me by saying that Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications is not on your bedside-table, to be consulted when you need to be entertained in the middle of the night. It is right up there with Stephen King and JK Rowling, a masterpiece in horror and ...
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News
Jailing of internet contempt juror sends ‘important message’ - Grieve
A juror who carried out internet research on a defendant has been jailed for six months. The Divisional Court, headed by the lord chief justice Lord Judge, today found university lecturer Theodora Dallas (pictured) guilty of contempt of court, following a case brought by the attorney ...
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Firm leaves Conveyancing Quality Scheme
A Manchester firm has withdrawn from the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) after going into the insurance assigned risks pool (ARP). GLP Crumpsall is the first firm to leave the accreditation scheme, which opened in January 2011. It withdrew voluntarily after informing the ...
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Data delinquents and the money-go-round
You know the ritual. A laptop computer, smartphone or memory stick goes missing and, a few weeks or months later, some shamefaced public body admits that the device contained sensitive personal data. Over the past year, however, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has started getting ...
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Management priorities
As we look forward to 2012 and the challenges that solicitors’ firms face I would suggest they need to think carefully about their management priorities for the coming year. Direct competition for the domestic, small business and corporate client groups will become more visible as new businesses (alternative business structures ...
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News
Management priorities
As we look forward to 2012 and the challenges that solicitors’ firms face I would suggest they need to think carefully about their management priorities for the coming year. Direct competition for the domestic, small business and corporate client groups will become more visible as new businesses (alternative business structures ...
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News
Kudos to trainee minimum wage
I’d like to say I became a journalist through a lifelong obsession with Woodward and Bernstein, a duty to inform and passion for the English language. In truth my career path probably owes more to a computer program named Kudos, which filtered your hobbies and dislikes to find your perfect ...
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News
Reprieve on special needs is first concession on legal aid bill
The government has made its first tiny concession in the House of Lords debate on proposed legal aid reforms, agreeing to table a ‘technical amendment’ to ensure all special educational needs (SEN) cases remain in scope. But justice minister Lord McNally gave little hope that ...
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Pinsent Masons in Anglo-Scottish merger talks
Top 20 London firm Pinsent Masons has confirmed it is in cross-border merger talks with Edinburgh-based McGrigors. If successful, the merger would create a business with a turnover of more than £300m, headquartered in London and with six offices across Asia. In ...
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Society contacts Cable over HSBC as Nationwide culls 'dormant' firms
The Law Society has today written an open letter to solicitors outlining its strategy and guidance for addressing HSBC’s highly controversial decision to introduce a conveyancing panel comprising just 43 firms. President John Wotton has already complained to business secretary Vince Cable, while talks took place on Wednesday this week ...
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Jackson urges caution over contingency fee cap
Lord Justice Jackson yesterday urged caution over setting limits on the percentage of damages that lawyers will be able to take in commercial cases under his reforms. The Court of Appeal judge also acknowledged that his wide-ranging changes to civil justice may not come into force ...
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City solicitor jailed for perverting the course of justice
A former partner of City firm Macfarlanes who claimed he was the victim of a kidnap to avoid being arrested for drink driving was today sentenced to 12 months in prison. Francis Bridgeman, 43, from Wards Lane, Wadhurst, East Sussex, was found guilty of perverting the ...
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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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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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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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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 ...