Costs budgeting is not inevitable – Charlie Cory-Wright QC – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted August 27th, 2019 in budgets, civil procedure rules, costs, news, personal injuries by sally

‘Generally speaking, we lawyers dislike procedural change. While we may well understand that a particular change is necessary and we will certainly recognise that we need to adapt to it when it comes, such changes nonetheless tend to make us feel ignorant and highly uncomfortable. We have to treat any new procedural regime as a known unknown, which presents pitfalls for the unwary, at least until we become familiar with it. And in the meantime, a culture of half-knowledge develops, an uncertain and dangerous combination of a little learning, anecdote, and false assumptions. This very often leads to negative over-simplification.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, August 2019

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Drink drivers escaping prosecution as officers have to drive more than an hour to police station – Daily Telegraph

‘Drink drivers are getting away with breaking the law because police are having to drive them up to an hour and 45 minutes to the nearest custody cells, it has been warned.’

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Daily Telegraph, 18th August 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Cost of outside legal advice doubles at 42 councils – BBC News

Posted August 16th, 2019 in budgets, contracting out, legal services, local government, news by sally

‘A doubling of spending on outside legal advice by more than 40 local councils has been labelled “ridiculous” by people fighting funding cuts. Figures from 270 of the 408 councils asked by the BBC showed £322m was spent last year on in-house legal teams and £142m on external legal services.’

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BBC News, 16th August 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judge rejects court action against Boris Johnson over £350m Brexit claim – The Guardian

‘An attempt to bring a private prosecution against Boris Johnson for allegedly telling lies during the 2016 referendum campaign appears to have been dealt a fatal blow with the rejection of an application to take the case to the supreme court.’

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The Guardian, 14th August 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Number of people dealt with by criminal justice system falls to lowest level since records began – The Independent

‘The number of people prosecuted or handed penalties for crimes in England and Wales has fallen to a record low as offences rise. Statistics released by the Ministry of Justice showed the figure dropped by 2 per cent to 1.59 million people in the year to March.’

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The Independent, 15th August 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Sentencing review to look at most dangerous and prolific offenders – Ministry of Justice

‘The work, which begins immediately, will focus on whether violent and sexual offenders are serving sentences that truly reflect the severity of their crimes. It will consider whether changes in legislation are needed to lock criminals up for longer – by not letting them out automatically part-way through a sentence. It will also look at how to break the cycle of repeat offending.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 12th August 2019

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

£100 million crackdown on crime in prison – Ministry of Justice

‘Airport-style security and cutting-edge technology to crack down on criminal activity in prisons.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 13th August 2019

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Law and order: Extra £85m for CPS to tackle violent crime – BBC News

Posted August 12th, 2019 in budgets, Crown Prosecution Service, news, prosecutions, violence by sally

‘The Crown Prosecution Service will receive an extra £85m over the next two years, to help deal with a rise in violent crime in England and Wales. It comes as Boris Johnson launches a review of sentencing of some dangerous and prolific offenders.’

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BBC News, 12th August 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

PM to create 10,000 new prison places and extend stop-and-search – BBC News

Posted August 12th, 2019 in budgets, news, police, prisons, statistics, stop and search by sally

‘An extra 10,000 new prison places will be created and stop-and-search powers expanded, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised.’

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BBC News, 11th August 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

UK’s top judge calls for donations to legal support charity – The Guardian

Posted July 29th, 2019 in budgets, charities, family courts, judges, legal aid, legal representation, news by sally

‘The UK’s most senior judge has appealed for people to give money to a charity whose volunteers support those who become embroiled in civil court cases but cannot afford a lawyer.’

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The Guardian, 28th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Employment tribunal claims taking eight months to be heard – The Guardian

Posted July 29th, 2019 in budgets, complaints, delay, employment tribunals, news by sally

‘Employment tribunal claims in the UK are taking an average of eight months to be heard, as the system struggles under government funding cuts and a surge in complaints.’

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The Guardian, 29th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Clergy Discipline – Rebuke administered in “an unusual case” – Law & Religion UK

‘On 14 May 2019, the Bishop’s Disciplinary Tribunal for the Diocese of Carlisle heard a complaint against the Revd Canon Cameron Butland by the Archdeacon of Westmoreland and Furness, alleging that the Respondent had been neglectful or inefficient in the performance of his duties. Since the misconduct was admitted, the only issue before the Tribunal was that of penalty. The Tribunal determined that the appropriate penalty was one of rebuke.’

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Law & Religion UK, 23rd July 2019

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

New Act – legislation.gov.uk

Posted July 22nd, 2019 in budgets, legislation by sally

Supply and Appropriation (Main Estimates) Act 2019

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

Brexit activist Darren Grimes wins appeal against £20,000 Electoral Commission fine – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 22nd, 2019 in brexit, budgets, EC law, fines, news, ombudsmen, referendums, statutory interpretation by sally

‘Brexit activist Darren Grimes has won an appeal against a £20,000 fine imposed by the Electoral Commission for his activity during the 2016 Brexit referendum.’

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Daily Telegraph, 19th July 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Justice secretary urges evidence-led approach to cut crime – Ministry of Justice

‘Justice Secretary David Gauke today called for an “evidence-led” approach to tackling reoffending in order to crack down on crime and reduce the number of victims.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 18th July 2019

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Home Office outsourcing immigration operations ‘on the cheap’ due to funding shortages and lack of ministerial interest, says chief inspector – The Independent

Posted July 15th, 2019 in budgets, contracting out, immigration, news by sally

‘The Home Office has been outsourcing immigration operations “on the cheap” because of funding shortages and a lack of interest from ministers, the government’s own chief inspector of borders has admitted.’

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The Independent, 15th July 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Legal advice centres in England and Wales halved since 2013-14 – The Guardian

‘Half of all law centres and not-for-profit legal advice services in England and Wales have closed over the past six years, according to government figures.’

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The Guardian, 15th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police force takes legal action over policy requiring new officers to have a degree – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 12th, 2019 in budgets, education, judicial review, news, police, universities by sally

‘A police force is taking legal action over the controversial policy requiring all new officers to have a degree qualification.’

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Daily Telegraph, 11th July 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Employment tribunals “suffering from lack of resources” – Litigation Futures

Posted July 4th, 2019 in budgets, delay, employment tribunals, fees, news by sally

‘The employment tribunal system is still not coping with the increased demands on it since fees were abolished in 2017, with lawyers reporting that delays have worsened from an already parlous state a year ago.’

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Litigation Futures, 1st July 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Family courts ‘running up a down escalator’ due to increase in cases – The Guardian

Posted July 3rd, 2019 in budgets, family courts, legal aid, litigants in person, news by sally

‘Family courts are having to “run up a down escalator” to keep pace with unprecedented increases in childcare cases, the most senior family judge in England and Wales has said.’

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The Guardian, 3rd July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com