All News articles – Page 1663
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Criminal procedure
Bail – Legitimate expectation – Reasonableness – Crown Prosecution Service R (on the application of Burns) (claimant) v Woolwich Crown Court (defendant) & Crown Prosecution Service (interested party): DC (Lord Justice Aikens, Mr Justice Openshaw): 14 January 2010 ...
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Recession fears leaves corporate and property lawyers overstretched
Corporate and property lawyers are being overstretched as firms remain fearful of a double-dip recession and refuse to recruit new staff to deal with an upturn in work, the Gazette has learned. At a national meeting of the Junior Lawyers Division (JLD), which represents lawyers from ...
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Conflicting interests
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is consulting upon relaxing the rules on conflicts of interest for solicitors (see [2010] Gazette, 21 January).
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MPs condemn 'serial litigant’ website
A website set up by an employment solicitor to enable lawyers to identify ‘serial litigants’ in employment cases has been ‘condemned’ in a parliamentary early day motion (EDM) signed by more than 40 MPs. The website, serial-litigants.com, uses records ...
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Firm launches website for 'undersettled’ coal miner compensation claims
A Yorkshire firm has set up a new website to gather claims from former coal miners who believe that solicitors undersettled their original government compensation claims. The site, Minerscompensationclaims.com, was launched in December by nine-partner firm Jordans. The website aims to gather previously settled claims from ...
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Probate: revocation of will by subsequent formation of civil partnership
Revocation of will by subsequent formation of civil partnership: Court and Others v Despallieres [2009] EWHC 3340 (Ch).Section 18B (1) of the Wills Act 1837 contains provisions with regard to the revocation of a prior will by the formation of a civil partnership, which parallel those contained in section 18 ...
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Firms feel the burden of SRA regulation
More than three-quarters of firms think the regulatory burden imposed on them by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority is excessive, research commissioned by the Law Society has shown. However, the study showed a high level of satisfaction with the SRA’s ethics helpline, and an understanding ...
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Trial bundles: why they are important and how to get them right
A well-prepared trial bundle, available in good time, gives you an advantage in negotiations and the prospect of making a favourable impression on the court. Let us consider paragraph 3 of the practice direction to Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) rule 39 for civil cases and the ...
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Watching brief
Readers may recall that Obiter recently reviewed the BBC’s entertaining 18th century courtroom drama, Garrow’s Law. The pioneering and passionate hero William Garrow made great strides in respect of the rights of defendants, coining the term ‘innocent until proven guilty’, and driving through the principle that defendants should have legal ...
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Website for blacklisted solicitors plans expansion
A website that blacklists solicitors and law firms is set to expand its capacity, with the number of visitors to the site now exceeding 1,000 a day, its owner claimed this week. Rick Kordowski, who runs solicitorsfromhell.co.uk, told the Gazette that he plans to expand the ...
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Conveyancing solicitors face higher bank charges over Registry portal
Conveyancing solicitors will face higher bank charges as a result of the Land Registry’s new electronic portal. On 31 March, Land Registry Direct, the means by which solicitors access the Land Registry’s e-business services, will be replaced by a new electronic platform. ...
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Unpalatable answer
If referral fees are such a smart idea, why don’t barristers, accountants or chartered tax advisers permit them? The answer is unpalatable. Collectively, they have integrity and intelligence. Solicitors do not.
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Britain’s fault-based divorce is anachronistic and in need of reform
by Edward Heatona senior solicitor at Mills & Reeve LLP With divorce enquiries reportedly at a 10-year high, pressure is growing from family law professionals – led by family law solicitors’ association Resolution – for reform of the existing ‘fault-based’ system to enable spouses to divorce ...
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West Ham United is sold and a flotation by Tiger Airways
Rights move: Magic circle firm Linklaters advised financial group UniCredit on a €4bn (£3.49bn) rights issue. US firm Shearman & Sterling advised Bank of America Merrill Lynch and UniCredit Bank as global coordinators and bookrunners, and a consortium of other banks as bookrunners ...
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Legal world comes to aid of Haitian survivors
Law firms around the world have offered financial and pro bono support to help survivors of the Haitian earthquake, while the Law Society has launched an appeal to gather donations. Chancery Lane has set up an online appeal which will aggregate money raised by the legal ...
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Lawyers unite to oppose further criminal legal aid cutbacks
The government has united solicitors and barristers in their opposition to proposals to make further cuts to criminal legal aid work. But as both sides seek a solution that protects their members’ interests, there are differences over the best way forward. The Bar Council and Criminal ...
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Defamation fees cap risks 'restricting access to justice’
Government proposals to limit lawyers’ fees in defamation cases risk ‘restricting access to justice’ according to claimant solicitors, while those representing defendants say they do not go far enough.
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Is media access to the family courts endangering children?
Ministry of Justice research published this week found that since access by the media to the family courts was widened last April, relatively few journalists had taken the opportunity to attend hearings.
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Data page for January 2010
The data page is financial rates and data compiled for the Law Society Gazette by Moneyfacts Group, the UK's largest supplier of savings and mortgage data. DownloadsDownload the data ...
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BRM Solicitors could repay up to £89,000 to former miners
Chesterfield firm BRM Solicitors could repay up to £89,000 to former miners after being taken to task by the Solicitors Regulation Authority for its handling of government compensation claims. BRM partner Peter James McGowan has appeared before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal after admitting a number of ...