Inefficient court system should be streamlined, Leveson says – BBC News

Posted January 23rd, 2015 in case management, civil justice, criminal justice, delay, juries, news by sally

‘A senior judge has set out plans to “streamline” the “inefficient, time consuming and… very expensive” justice system in England and Wales.’

Full story

BBC News, 23rd January 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Proposals for further reforms to court fees – Ministry of Justice

Posted January 20th, 2015 in civil justice, consultations, courts, fees, news, repossession by sally

‘In Part 1 of the Government response to the consultation ‘Court fees: proposals for reform’, we set out our decision to consider alternatives to the proposed fee increase for divorce.’

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 16th January 2015

Source: https://consult.justice.gov.uk

Enhanced court fees: the government response to part 2 of the consultation on reform of court fees – Ministry of Justice

‘The government response to part 2 of the consultation on reform of court fees and further proposals for consultation.’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 16th January 2015

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

Government set to hike general civil application fees – Litigation Futures

Posted January 19th, 2015 in budgets, civil justice, consultations, costs, courts, fees, Ministry of Justice, news by tracey

‘The government has dropped plans for “enhanced” court fees specifically for commercial cases, but is now targeting increased fees for the hundreds of thousands of general civil applications made each year.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 19th January 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court fees: Proposals for reform – Judicial responses – Judiciary of England and Wales

‘Responses of the Lord Chief Justice, senior judiciary and the Civil Justice Council to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Consultation on Court fees – enhanced charging.’

Full text

Judiciary of England and Wales, 16th January 2015

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Access To Justice Effective Remedy And Rule Of Law: The Adequacy Of Judicial Review – No. 5 Chambers

‘The ideal judge is a supremely intelligent woman. She is especially empathetic. She has limitless expertise in every field and infinite patience. We can trust her to do right. She is perfect justice. Lets place her on a pedestal.’

Full story (PDF)

No. 5 Chambers, 16th December 2014

Source: www.no5.com

Legal aid immigration case guidance ‘unlawful’ – BBC News

Posted December 15th, 2014 in appeals, budgets, civil justice, immigration, legal aid, news by tracey

‘Guidance on granting legal aid for exceptional immigration cases is “unlawful”, judges have ruled.’

Full story

BBC News, 15th December 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Lord Chief Justice’s Report 2014 – Judiciary of England and Wales

‘The Lord Chief Justice has today laid his annual report before Parliament. His report looks back at the past 12 months and explains how the judiciary have administered justice across all jurisdictions by focusing on key priorities.’

Full report

Judiciary of England and Wales, 15th December 2014

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Legal Voice conference report: Innovation in the delivery of legal services – LegalVoice

Posted December 12th, 2014 in civil justice, criminal justice, insurance, legal aid, news by sally

‘Roger Smith OBE made the case for 1% of the legal aid budget to be directed towards an ‘innovation fund’ to promote access to justice online. The former director of JUSTICE, who was delivering the keynote speech earlier this week at the 2014 Legal Voice conference, called upon Chris Grayling to ‘re-evaluate’ priorities and to deploy online help for initial advice.’

Full story

LegalVoice, 11th December 2014

Source: www.legalvoice.org.uk

Speech by Lord Chief Justice: Cardiff Business Club – Judiciary of England and Wales

Posted December 1st, 2014 in civil justice, courts, criminal justice, devolution, judiciary, legal aid, speeches, Wales by tracey

‘Speech by The Right Hon. The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales at the Cardiff Business Club on 3 November 2014.’

Full speech

Judiciary of England and Wales, 27th November 2014

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Wealth becoming key to justice, say 87% of lawyers – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 24th, 2014 in civil justice, legal aid, legal profession, news by sally

‘An overwhelming majority of lawyers believe that wealth is becoming a more important factor than it used to be in gaining access to justice.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 21st November 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Laughton v Shalaby – “Similar Fact Evidence” in Civil Cases – Admissibility of Evidence of Incompetence in Other Cases in a Clinical Negligence Claim – Zenith PI Blog

‘In Laughton v Shalaby [2014] EWCA Civ 1450, the claimant appealed a decision that the defendant surgeon had not acted negligently in the course of carrying out a hip operation.’

Full story

Zenith PI Blog, 17th November 2014

Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com

Necessity or Ideology? – London Review of Books

Posted October 30th, 2014 in civil justice, legal aid, news by sally

‘In the 12th and 13th centuries, judges would be sent out from Westminster every seven years to adjudicate on any disputes that had come about since their last sojourn. In 1292, in Shropshire, Alice Knotte complained that Thomas Champeneys ‘detaineth from her seven shillings in money and a surcoat of the value of three shillings’. ‘Alice can get no justice at all,’ she protested, ‘seeing that she is poor and that this Thomas is rich.’ She implored the judge: ‘I have none to help me save God and you.’’

Full story

London Review of Books, 6th November 2014

Source: www.lrb.co.uk

Commercial Litigation: The Post-Jackson World – Speech by Lord Justice Jackson

Posted October 22nd, 2014 in budgets, civil justice, costs, regulations, sanctions, speeches by sally

Commercial Litigation: The Post-Jackson World (PDF)

Speech by Lord Justice Jackson

Law Society Conference, 21st October 2014

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Speech by Lord Justice Jackson: Costs Law and Practice Conference – Judiciary of England and Wales

Posted October 1st, 2014 in civil justice, costs, patents, personal injuries, speeches by tracey

‘Keynote speech by Lord Justice Jackson at the Costs Law And Practice Conference on 30th September 2014.’

Full speech

Judiciary of England and Wales, 30th September 2014

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Simon Hughes: We want the best family justice – Ministry of Justice

Posted September 25th, 2014 in arbitration, civil justice, families, family courts, news by sally

‘The true sign of a civilised family justice system is to have more people resolve disputes outside the courts, Justice Minister Simon Hughes said today [24 September].’

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 24th September 2014

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

Bar Council report claims LASPO 2012 damages access to justice – The Bar Council

Posted September 18th, 2014 in barristers, civil justice, costs, delay, family courts, legal aid, litigants in person, reports by tracey

‘The Bar Council has today published a report, based on interviews and a survey of legal practitioners, assessing the impact of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) 2012 on our system of justice a year after implementation in April 2013.’

Full report

The Bar Council, 18th September 2014

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

Domestic Violence Update – the latest developments practitioners need to know about – Family Law Week

‘Mandip Ghai, solicitor and legal officer, with Rights of Women, updates practitioners on developments in the prevention of domestic violence.’

Full story

Family Law Week, 11th September 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Law careers from restorative justice, to legal ombudsman, to media – OUP Blog

‘What range of career options are out there for those attending law school? In this series of podcasts, Martin Partington talks to influential figures in the law about topics ranging from restorative justice to legal journalism.’

Full story

OUP Blog, 19th August 2014

Source: www.blog.oup.com

What’s happened since the Family Justice Review: a brighter future for family justice – Ministry of Justice

Posted August 21st, 2014 in civil justice, family courts, reports by tracey

‘This update from the government sets out the progress made since the family justice review was published in 2011.’

Full update

Ministry of Justice, 20th August 2014

Source: www.justice.gov.uk