Junior judges face zero-hours working conditions, say lawyers – The Guardian

Posted July 1st, 2019 in budgets, courts, criminal justice, Crown Court, judiciary, news, part-time work by sally

‘Junior judges are being put on what are in effect zero-hours contracts as the criminal justice system succumbs to a fresh round of austerity and courtrooms are closed down, lawyers are warning.’

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The Guardian, 30th June 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Lord Chief Justice “to have veto” over extension of online courts – Legal Futures

Posted June 18th, 2019 in bills, courts, internet, news, veto by sally

‘The government is set to give the Lord Chief Justice the power of veto over what areas of law are moved into an online court system, it has emerged.’

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Legal Futures, 18th June 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Litigants will not be forced online, government pledges – Legal Futures

Posted June 12th, 2019 in bills, civil justice, civil procedure rules, courts, internet, news by sally

‘The government has no intention of making court processes exclusively online and so there is no need to give way to demands to guarantee this in primary legislation, peers were told this week.’

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Legal Futures, 12th June 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

High Court judges’ pay raised to £236,000 a year to fill vacancies having ‘serious impact’ on courts – The Independent

Posted June 6th, 2019 in courts, delay, judiciary, news, pensions, remuneration, statistics by sally

‘The government has increased the pay of High Court judges by 25 per cent to almost £240,000 a year in a bid to fill vacant posts.’

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The Independent, 5th June 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Chancellor of the High Court talks about the future on visit to Germany – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

‘On a two-day visit to Germany, the Chancellor of the High Court, Sir Geoffrey Vos, met with judges, lawyers and officials in Bavaria and Berlin to discuss Lawtech and the work of the Business and Property Courts. He spoke at the Palace of Justice in Munich on the position of English law and UK jurisdiction after Brexit to an audience of 120 judges, lawyers and business people, all members of the British Chamber of Commerce in Germany and the Munich Juridical Society.’

Full press release

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 21st May 2019

Court modernisation “undermining access to justice”, lawyers tell MPs – Legal Futures

‘Criminal and civil lawyers have spelt out to MPs on the justice select committee a catalogue of ways in which court modernisation is undermining access to justice.’

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Legal Futures, 22nd May 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Call for curbs on Lord Chancellor’s power over online rule committee – Legal Futures

‘A future Lord Chancellor could impose “quite radical changes” on the court system unless changes are made to the Courts and Tribunals (Online Procedure) Bill, peers have warned.’

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Legal Futures, 16th May 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Demand for commercial courts hits new peak as competition circles – Litigation Futures

Posted May 10th, 2019 in brexit, Commercial Court, courts, jurisdiction, London, news, statistics by sally

‘The number of commercial cases heard in London grew significantly last year, according to new research which highlights the difficulties for new international courts to challenge the UK’s position post-Brexit.’

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Litigation Futures, 8th May 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Impact of Brexit on UK courts “exaggerated”, judges say – Litigation Futures

Posted May 10th, 2019 in brexit, courts, dispute resolution, judges, jurisdiction, news by sally

‘The likely legal impact of Brexit on English law and the UK’s role in international dispute resolution, has been exaggerated, a Court of Appeal judge said yesterday.’

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Litigation Futures, 8th May 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court service starts another video hearing pilot running – Legal Futures

‘A pilot enabling domestic abuse victims to take part in hearings by video link from a computer in their solicitor’s office has begun running in Manchester.’

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Legal Futures, 10th May 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Barristers first in queue as court access scheme goes national – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 9th, 2019 in barristers, courts, news, pilot schemes by sally

‘A pilot scheme enabling legal professionals to enter courts and tribunals without the need to pass through security is to be rolled out across England and Wales – but only for barristers initially. The “professional-user access scheme” has already been piloted at 10 courts and will be extended to an additional five courts this month. HM Courts & Tribunals Service said it expects the service to be operating nationwide by next year. The five new courts will be; Manchester Minshull Street, York Crown Court, Reading Crown Court, Guildford Crown Court and Cardiff Crown Court.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 8th May 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Even more people set to benefit from online court reform – Ministry of Justice

‘New legislation making it even easier for court users to apply for small money claims or divorce online was unveiled in the House of Lords today (1 May 2019).’

Full press release

Ministry of Justice, 1st May 2019

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

Judges, police and lawyers warn MPs over court modernisation – Legal Futures

‘Judges, justice campaigners, academics and others have raised wide-ranging concerns about the government’s ambitious court reform programme in evidence submitted to MPs.’

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Legal Futures, 9th April 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Court reforms “must measure impact on vulnerable litigants” – Legal Futures

Posted March 12th, 2019 in civil justice, courts, dispute resolution, litigants in person, news by sally

‘A high-powered body of experts has called for more detailed evaluations of the government’s ambitious court modernisation programme, and complained about the lack of data on the impact of the reforms.’

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Legal Futures, 12th March 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Lord Chief Justice sets up advisory group on Artificial Intelligence – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted March 5th, 2019 in artificial intelligence, courts, judiciary, press releases by sally

‘To make sure the Judiciary of England and Wales is fully informed about developments in artificial intelligence (AI), the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Burnett of Maldon, has set up a new advisory body.’

Full press release

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 4th March 2019

Source: www.judiciary.uk

What is really being protected in the Linklaters case? – Legal Futures

‘The Linklaters v Mellish case has brought the issue of how law firms deal with sexual harassment, and how the courts deal with confidentiality, back into the spotlight.’

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Legal Futures, 7th February 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Lay users “must be at heart of court process”, says think tank – Litigation Futures

Posted January 28th, 2019 in courts, legal aid, litigants in person, news by sally

‘Greater efforts need to be made to put lay court users at the centre of the legal system so they understand the process, know what to expect, and can therefore participate fully, according to an influential justice think tank.’

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Litigation Futures, 28th January 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Half of magistrates courts in England and Wales closed since 2010 – The Guardian

Posted January 28th, 2019 in budgets, computer programs, courts, magistrates, news, statistics by sally

‘More than half of all magistrates courts in England and Wales have closed since 2010, forcing defendants, witnesses, police, lawyers and justices of the peace to travel sometimes more than 50 miles to access local justice.’

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The Guardian, 27th January 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Courts IT chaos prompts call for compensation and more funding – The Guardian

‘The computer network collapse that disrupted courts across England and Wales for days has prompted calls for compensation and improved funding for the beleaguered criminal justice system.’

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The Guardian, 23rd January 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Law courts in chaos as IT meltdown disrupts thousands of cases – The Guardian

Posted January 23rd, 2019 in courts, electronic filing, electronic mail, internet, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

‘Thousands of cases have been disrupted or delayed across England and Wales after the courts service’s main computer network repeatedly crashed, preventing lawyers and judges from working.’

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The Guardian, 23rd January 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com