All News articles – Page 1583
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Law Society of Scotland members stage mass revolt
More than 160 members of the Law Society of Scotland have called for the body to be abolished in its present form, citing their ‘complete lack of confidence’ in its ability to represent the interests of the profession north of the border.
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Low marks for OPG review panel
It was with some optimism when, in September 2010, we learnt that the Office of the Public Guardian was reviewing its panel of deputies after 10 years. The aim, according to the OPG, was to revitalise the panel to ensure that it represented the many ...
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Misleading picture
The President’s Podium gave a very misleading impression of the position regarding the question of free choice of lawyer under a legal expenses insurance policy. The right of free choice, when it arises, was introduced by the 1987 European Directive and has nothing to do ...
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Time to challenge councils on mental health
‘I don't believe it!’ That was Victor Meldrew’s signature catchphrase. The irascible character played by Richard Wilson in the BBC sitcom One Foot in the Grave was, I concede, a past master at baffled indignation, but he was a mere tyro compared with me when ...
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Damages awarded in first UK Twitter libel action
A Welsh councillor has been ordered to pay damages in what is believed to be the first libel action resulting from comments posted on Twitter. The High Court in Cardiff last week ordered Caerphilly councillor Colin Elsbury to pay £3,000 in damages, after he used the ...
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Liberal Democrats call for legal aid impact assessments
Liberal Democrats have called for a properly funded legal aid system to be protected, as the government considers the responses to its controversial reform proposals. At their annual spring conference, the coalition partners backed plans to protect access to justice for the most vulnerable by ensuring ...
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Transport committee calls for referral arrangements to be published
Motor insurers should publish on their websites the names of law firms with which they have referral fee arrangements, and indicate the level of fees paid, a House of Commons inquiry has recommended. Policyholders should be sent this information with their insurance documents, and when claims ...
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Asbestos compensation judgment has profound implications
Following a groundbreaking move by the Supreme Court, in which the family of Dianne Willmore, who died of mesothelioma after she was exposed to asbestos, were found to be entitled to £240,000 compensation, Peter Bennett, partner at Dolmans, explores the implications of the judgment for victims of asbestos and for ...
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Ruling ‘sets precedent for thousands of asbestos cases’
A person exposed to even tiny amounts of asbestos who then contracts mesothelioma can claim compensation from those who caused the exposure, the Supreme Court has ruled. In Sienkiewicz v Greif and Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council v Willmore, all seven judges agreed that unless reasonable steps ...
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High time to investigate insurer delay
As the Ministry of Justice wades through stakeholders' views on proposed reforms to civil litigation, there is an imperative to investigate the critical, yet largely undocumented issue, of defendant behaviour in the personal injury claims process. So far, the debate about rising costs and delays has focused solely on claimant ...
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Why the SRA should be allowed to regulate ABSs
Profoundly important decisions are about to be taken that will determine the types of law firm that will be allowed to operate from October 2011 and how the profession will be regulated.
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Why firms would be foolish to ignore ABSs
I was pleased to see that your recent critique of our draft business plan and our aspirations for a vigorous and competitive legal services sector demanded action over rhetoric from the Legal Services Board. I agree and we have spent the last two years doing just that by ensuring the ...
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Overseas employees tribunal ruling could affect international firms
A Court of Appeal ruling on the right of overseas employees to bring tribunal claims in the UK could have implications for international law firms, an employment lawyer suggested this week. The court ruled that a group of British Airways air stewardesses who are based in ...
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Government to amend 'crucial error' in retirement age plans
The government has promised to amend a ‘crucial error’ in its transitional provisions for abolishing the default retirement age, following Law Society warnings that the current drafting could put employers at risk of unfair dismissal claims.
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Civil legal aid cuts will increase tribunal workload
Cuts to civil legal aid will leave people unable to pursue their rights and increase the workload of the tribunal system, the senior president of tribunals has warned. In his 2011 annual report, Robert Carnwath highlighted the likely effect of the proposed cuts on the ...
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Ideology explains legal aid cuts
Having read the letter from Dan O'Callaghan on the article by shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan MP, I cannot help feeling it is somewhat misguided. The Law Society and solicitors generally need all the support they can get, politically and otherwise, in respect of legal aid cuts. It matters not ...
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Two solicitors appointed to QC is no cause for pessimism
by Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, a solicitor member of the QC Selection Panel The results of the latest QC appointments competition have just been announced, and, once again, only a tiny number of the successful applicants are solicitors. The old system was widely seen as being unfair to ...
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An assault on rights of children with special needs?
The consultation paper on changes to special educational needs and disability arrived with an alarming headline proposal yesterday: that statements of special educational need (SEN) would no longer be legally enforceable.
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Local authority surveillance
In January, the Home Office published its long-awaited review of counter-terrorism and security powers. Amid all the headlines and controversy about control orders for suspected terrorists, it is easy to miss the proposed changes to local authorities’ powers to carry out surveillance under the Regulation of ...
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Pay up or stay behind bars
I refer to your Opinion ‘The unanswered question of fines’ . Like everybody else, apart from those who prefer not to pay, I am appalled at the sum unpaid.