All News articles – Page 1569
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Clarke urges European Court to have more regard for domestic decisions
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) should have greater regard for the decisions of domestic courts, justice secretary Kenneth Clarke told a European ministerial conference today.
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Learning about our brothers and sisters in law
I was in Budapest last week. The Hungarian Presidency of the EU held a conference on e-Justice, and I spoke about the CCBE’s Find-A-Lawyer project. I was on a panel covering the legal professions. On the coach from the hotel to ...
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Adding insult to injury
Labour justice minister Andy Slaughter raised a laugh at a predictably bellicose annual conference of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers last week (Lord Justice Jackson’s ears must have been burning, let’s put it that way).
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Advertising age discrimination
I read Ivan Sanders’ letter, in which he pointed out the failure of many firms of solicitors to comply with equality legislation, with particular regard to age discrimination. I too have noticed for some time that many advertisements do not comply.
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Advocacy Training Council calls for vulnerable witness support
Criminal and family advocates should be specially trained and certified to handle vulnerable people in court proceedings, the Advocacy Training Council has recommended. In a report published this week, it said evidence suggests that vulnerable witnesses and defendants ‘frequently face almost insurmountable barriers to justice’ and ...
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Firm wins injunction against Solicitors from Hell
A Thames Valley firm has been awarded an interim injunction against the owner of website Solicitors from Hell, which blacklists law firms and lawyers. Gabbitas Robins, and one of the firm’s partners, Stephen Robins, won the injunction last week prohibiting site owner Rick Kordowski from ...
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IT errors costly for legal aid firms
Two law firms have lost High Court actions against the Legal Services Commission after IT errors at the firms caused them to send blank documents when submitting tenders for legal aid work. The firms had claimed that the LSC should have informed them that some of ...
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Amendments to Civil Procedure Rules
There were four sets of amendment rules in 2010 and there has already been one set in 2011. Previous articles have dealt with the Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2010 (SI 2010/621) – which accompanied the Pre-Action Protocol for Low Value Personal Injury Claims in ...
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Shadow justice minister attacks Jackson costs reforms
Shadow justice minister Andy Slaughter (pictured) called on personal injury lawyers to get their clients involved in the fight to amend the government’s proposals on civil litigation costs. Solicitors have until 30 June to respond, and the Labour MP for Hammersmith stressed how difficult it is ...
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Naked attempt to slash debt
In response to a letter from my MP concerning the proposed legal aid cuts, I received a reply from justice minister Jonathan Djanogly. This stated: ‘The government wants to discourage people from resorting to lawyers whenever they face a problem...’ This ...
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Solicitors Regulation Authority launches review of CPD rules
The Solicitors Regulation Authority will today launch the first review of solicitors’ continuing professional development obligations for more than 25 years, to create a new scheme designed to improve solicitors’ competence and ethical conduct. The review will form part of important changes to education and training ...
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Basis of ban on courtroom photographs is outdated in modern world
Lord Neuberger is bidding to become the thinking lawyer’s judge, a worthy successor to the late and lamented Lord Bingham. He is proceeding through lectures at a canter: the Robert Alexander memorial lecture this month, the Judicial Studies Board last. ...
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City lawyers warn over EU boardroom plans
EU proposals to improve diversity in the boardroom and ensure transparency around a company’s ‘risk appetite’ depart from current UK thinking, City lawyers have warned. A consultation on a framework for EU corporate governance published earlier this month asked whether more non-nationals should be represented on ...
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Still time to build on splendid idea of setting up solicitors' building society
I saw the letter from Edwin Lee, reminding us of that splendid idea of setting up a solicitors’ building society. It was a good idea in 1984 and it is still a good idea. The loss of so many building societies ...
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Changing legal specialism
For some it is redundancy. For others the hallowed path towards partnership appears strewn with potholes. It may simply be a question of lifestyle. Whatever the motive, many lawyers are reshaping their careers, either by switching specialism, leaving private practice ...
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Civil procedure
Intellectual property - Cross-undertakings - Ex turpi causa - Illegality (1) Les Laboratoires Servier (2) Servier Laboratories Ltd v (1) Apotex Inc (2) Apotex Pharmachem Inc (3) Apotex Europe Ltd (4) Apotex UK Ltd: Ch D (Patents Ct) (Mr ...
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Government has cocked a deaf ear to the 'claimant lobby'
They did a U-turn on selling off the forests; they called a temporary halt to the root-and-branch restructuring of the National Health Service. Might the coalition be prevailed upon to reappraise its proposals for the reform of civil litigation costs, even at this late stage?
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SRA publishes strategy for combating conveyancing fraud
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has published a draft supervision and enforcement strategy, setting out how it plans to work with conveyancing firms to combat fraud and money laundering. The strategy forms part of a package of measures designed to address problems in this ...
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Company law
Equitable charges - Pledges - Security - Shareholders Enviroco Ltd v Farstad Supply A/S: SC (Lords Hope (deputy president), Rodger, Mance, Collins, Clarke): 6 April 2011 The appellant Scottish company ...
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News focus: council lawyers face up to government cuts
Local government solicitors at last weekend’s three-day training event in Exeter were in a curiously upbeat mood for a group facing ‘salami-slicing’ cuts of 10% or more to their legal departments’ headcounts.