Former lawyers convicted of providing illegal immigration advice – Legal Futures

‘A former solicitor and barrister have both been convicted and sentenced by magistrates for the providing unregulated immigration advice and services.’
Full story

Legal Futures, 20th August 2015

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Owner who ‘ripped out layers of history’ from listed house must pay £300,000 – The Guardian

Posted August 19th, 2015 in costs, fines, listed buildings, news, planning by sally

‘A property developer who illegally modernised the historic building behind the hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful has been told by a judge to pay out £300,000 or go to jail.’

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The Guardian, 18th August 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Refusal to demonstrate ability to pay costs is justified litigation tactic, High Court accepts – Litigation Futures

Posted August 18th, 2015 in budgets, civil procedure rules, costs, news by sally

‘A party’s refusal to demonstrate that it would have the means to pay costs is not in itself enough to make an order for security for costs because it could simply be a litigation tactic, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 17th August 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Couple found guilty over sex act at Hyde Park concert – BBC News

Posted August 13th, 2015 in costs, fines, news, public order by sally

‘A couple who had oral sex during a Paloma Faith concert in Hyde Park have been fined for outraging public decency.’

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BBC News, 12th August 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Panicked’ assistant solicitor fabricated counsel’s advice and expert reports – Legal Futures

An assistant solicitor has admitted to having “fabricated” advice from counsel, two expert reports and a series of letters on a medical negligence case because she felt “completely panicked and couldn’t see a way out”.
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Legal Futures, 11th August 2015

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Rule committee bids to ease burden of costs management – Litigation Futures

Posted August 11th, 2015 in children, civil procedure rules, costs, news, reports by sally

‘Cases relating to children are to be excluded from the scope of costs management, the Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) has decided, while there will be new provisions to encourage agreement of budgets.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 10th August 2015,

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

‘It did seem to be expensive’ – Nearly Legal

Posted August 11th, 2015 in appeals, costs, landlord & tenant, leases, news, rent, service charges, tribunals by sally

If a head leaseholder, or managing company passes on as a service charge, rent charged by a freeholder for property in order to provide services, does this amount to a variable service charge for the purposes of s.18 Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, and so only payable if the rent costs were reasonably incurred and if the services or works to which they relate were of a reasonable standard?

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Nearly Legal, 9th August 2015

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Costs budgeting rules to be lifted for child claims – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 7th, 2015 in budgets, case management, children, civil procedure rules, costs, news by tracey

‘Civil procedure rules are set to be changed to make cases relating to children exempt from costs management.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 6th August 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Court of Appeal: Tenants on small claims track can be ordered to pay more than costs of issue – Litigation Futures

‘County courts can order tenants on the small claims track (SCT) to pay more than the costs of issuing the claim, the Court of Appeal has ruled.’
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Litigation Futures, 6th August 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Claimant protected by QOCS despite earlier CFA, costs judge rules – Litigation Futures

Posted August 5th, 2015 in costs, fees, insurance, news, personal injuries by sally

‘A claimant is entitled to the protection of qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) even though she signed an earlier conditional fee agreement (CFA) for the same injury under the old rules, a regional costs judge has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 4th August 2015

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

‘Grossly excessive’ costs budget slashed by £400k – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 4th, 2015 in budgets, costs, news by sally

“A judge has slashed a costs budget by almost £400,000 after labelling the original estimate as ‘grossly excessive’.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 30th July 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Two-partner firm succeeds in striking out £8m professional negligence claim – Legal Futures

‘A two-partner central London law firm has succeeded in striking out a professional negligence claim for over £8m.’
Full story

Legal Futures, 3rd August 2015

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Man loses ‘right to be forgotten’ Google court bid – BBC News

‘A man involved in a £51m VAT scam has lost a legal bid to have news stories about him removed from Google under the so-called “right to be forgotten”.’
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BBC News, 30th July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Monkey gestures’ Middlesbrough fan found guilty – BBC News

Posted July 30th, 2015 in costs, disqualification, fines, news, public order, racism, sport by sally

‘A Middlesbrough fan who made “monkey gestures” towards three black footballers at a Championship match has been fined and given a banning order.’

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BBC News, 29th July 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Woman jailed for strangling dog using collar and wrapping muzzle in duct tape – Daily Telegraph

Posted July 30th, 2015 in animal cruelty, costs, disqualification, news, sentencing by sally

‘Hayley Cowan buries Staffordshire bull terrier in shallow grave in case described by RSPCA as ‘one of most harrowing and distressing cases to date’.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 29th July 2015

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Regina (Hunt) v North Somerset Council – WLR Daily

Regina (Hunt) v North Somerset Council [2015] UKSC 51; [2015] WLR (D) 331

‘Where a claimant for judicial review had sought a quashing order but not declaratory relief and the court, having found the defendant to have acted unlawfully, refused the quashing order due to the passage of time, it was not obliged of its own initiative to grant a declaration.’

WLR Daily, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Lawrence and others v Fen Tigers Ltd and others (No 3) (Secretary of State for Justice and others intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted July 30th, 2015 in appeals, costs, fees, insurance, law reports, Supreme Court by sally

Lawrence and others v Fen Tigers Ltd and others (No 3) (Secretary of State for Justice and others intervening) [2015] UKSC 50; [2015] WLR (D) 332

‘The costs regime in place between 1999 and 2013, which could require losing defendants to pay not only the claimants’ base costs but any success fee and after the event (“ATE”) insurance premium which they had paid as part of their conditional fee arrangement— even though the total costs were far in excess of the value of the claim— was not contrary to defendants’ rights to a fair trial and to the protection of their property under article 6 of, and article 1 of the First Protocol (“A1P1”) to, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.’

WLR Daily, 22nd July 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

‘I watched the man convicted of sexually abusing me as a child walk free from court with a fine’ – The Independent

‘A child sex abuse victim who was attacked by her sister’s fiancé when she was just 10 years old has started a campaign to change the legal system that saw her abuser walk free from court.’
Full story

The Independent, 29th July 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Service charges, the burden of proof and reasonableness of decisions – Park Square Barristers

‘Last week wrote an introductory article on a service charge case, The Gateway (Leeds) Management Ltd v Naghash and Shamsizadeh (citation above), a decision of Martin Rodger QC, Deputy President in the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber), in which I acted for the Defendants/Respondents. The facts are set out in that piece, and I do not propose to rehearse them here.’

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Park Square Barristers, 15th July 2015

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Late amendments – A new approach – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted July 28th, 2015 in amendments, appeals, costs, news, proportionality by sally

‘In CIP Properties (AITP) Limited v Galliford Try Infrastructure Limited Anors (No.3) [2015] EWHC 1345 (TCC) Coulson J reviewed the post-Jackson authorities governing amendments to statements of case. The judgment leaves little doubt that there is a new approach to applications to amend and that courts will be much more willing to consider questions of procedural prejudice when determining whether permission should be granted.’

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 10th June 2015

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk