Speech by the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales at the Dinner for Her Majesty’s Judges, 5 July 2017 – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted July 7th, 2017 in courts, judges, judiciary, jurisdiction, legal profession, London, speeches by tracey

‘Speech by the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales at the Dinner for Her Majesty’s Judges, 5 July 2017.’

Full speech

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 6th July 2017

Media litigators unhappy with procedure and costs budgeting – Litigation Futures

‘Lawyers and other users of the new media and communications list are unhappy with how the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) apply to the field, and particularly costs budgeting, according to the outcome of a consultation launched by Mr Justice Warby.’

Full Story

Law & Religion UK, 3rd July 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

“Weak competition” and legal culture behind lack of external investment through ABS, says LSB report – Legal Futures

‘The low level of external investment in law firms since alternative business structures (ABSs) were allowed more than five years ago “may be a symptom of weak competition in the market overall”, a Legal Services Board (LSB) report has suggested.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 15th June 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Fair share – Counsel

‘All members should feel that chambers is doing their best for them. But how can you check work is being allocated fairly, and how can clerks demonstrate the fact of fairness? Rachel Crasnow QC reports from a seminar addressing these concerns.’

Full Story

Counsel, June 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Lawyers make the grade in BAME ‘power lists’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted June 1st, 2017 in diversity, equality, law firms, legal profession, news, solicitors by sally

‘Eight lawyers including six magic circle partners have been named in a power list celebrating the best BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) business leaders.’

Full Story

Law Society's Gazette, 30th May 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Outcry over proposals for late night and early morning court sittings – The Guardian

Posted June 1st, 2017 in barristers, courts, legal profession, news, pilot schemes, solicitors by sally

‘Plans to launch a pilot programme of flexible early morning and evening courts from next month are encountering growing opposition from lawyers.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 31st May 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

LPP: handle with care – New Law Journal

Posted May 30th, 2017 in appeals, legal profession, news, privilege by sally

‘Erosion of privilege—are we at the thin end of the wedge, asks David Owen.’

Full Story

New Law Journal, 19th May 2017

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Are LQCs independent (and do they want to be?) – UK Police Law Blog

‘A recent decision from the High Court in Chief Constable of Thames Valley v Police Misconduct Panel [2017] EWHC 923 (Admin) says that misconduct panels can now be judicially reviewed by Chief Constables – but gives rise to a number of new and potentially awkward questions.’

Full story

UK Police Law Blog, 22nd May 2017

Source: www.ukpolicelawblog.com

A new understanding of ‘professionalism’ – Legal Voice

‘Many lawyers are in denial about the toll traumatic cases can take on them and their work. Time to drop the stiff upper lip, says Lee Moore.’

Full story

Legal Voice, 11th May 2017

Source: www.legalvoice.org.uk

Here comes Billy, the robot junior clerk – Legal Futures

‘Innovative chambers Clerksroom is building Billy.Bot, a ‘robot junior clerk’ that will do the work of a traditional barristers’ clerk and also provide basic legal information to online users, Legal Futures can reveal.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 13th April 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Anuja Dhir becomes first non-white circuit judge at Old Bailey – The Guardian

Posted April 10th, 2017 in diversity, judges, legal profession, news, race discrimination by sally

‘The first non-white circuit judge to sit at the Old Bailey has revealed she was often mistaken for a defendant or witness when she first entered the judiciary.’

Full story

The Guardian, 8th April 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

What happens when the robots get it wrong? – The Future of Law

‘As new technologies and automation start playing an ever more important role in the legal world, what are the risks in relation to negligence? As new technologies and automation start playing an ever more important role in the legal world, what are the risks in relation to negligence?’

Full story

The Future of Law, 3rd March 2017

Source: www.blogs.lexisnexis.co.uk

The only way is ethics – Counsel

‘Minding our standards: in the first of a new column for Counsel, Andrew Walker QC outlines fresh imperatives and initiatives for barristers to enhance their knowledge of ethics in practice and stay ahead of the curve.’

Full story

Counsel, March 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Courts are running out of qualified judges, peers are told – The Guardian

‘Vacancies for crown court and high court judges are increasingly being left unfilled because of a serious shortage of suitably qualified applicants, a select committee has been told.’

Full story

The Guardian, 1st March 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Neuberger: “Barristers increasingly shunning judicial careers” – Litigation Futures

‘If a career on the bench is not made more attractive financially, the rule of law could be undermined, and with it lucrative industries vital to post-Brexit economic prosperity, the departing president of the Supreme Court has warned.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 24th February 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Who gets Silk 2016-17? – Counsel

Posted February 23rd, 2017 in diversity, equality, legal profession, news, queen's counsel by sally

‘David Wurtzel reveals the story behind the statistics in this year’s Silk list and Abigail Bright imparts sage career advice from an expert panel of women QCs.’

Full story

Counsel, March 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Maximising mini-pupillage – Counsel

Posted February 22nd, 2017 in barristers, diversity, legal profession, news, pupillage by sally

‘No contacts, no mini-pupillage? Dr Elaine Freer examines the state of work experience at the Bar in light of recent guidance for chambers and her own research on socio-economically disadvantaged aspirant entrants.’

Full story

Counsel, March 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Legal records at risk – Counsel

Posted February 22nd, 2017 in archives, barristers, confidentiality, documents, legal history, legal profession, news by sally

‘The Bar is in danger of losing its distinct legal heritage, warns Clare Cowling – who outlines the considerable research value to be found in chambers records’

Full story

Counsel, March 2017

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Legal Services Board launches probe into whether Law Society fetters SRA’s independence – Legal Futures

‘The Legal Services Board (LSB) has stepped up the pressure on the Law Society’s role as the approved regulator of solicitors by announcing a formal investigation into whether the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has sufficient independence.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 17th February 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Lawyers sue to discover extent of information obtained by “corporate spy” – Legal Futures

Posted February 20th, 2017 in asbestos, confidentiality, legal profession, news, spying by sally

‘A solicitor and barrister who act for an anti-asbestos campaign are in a legal battle over what confidential and privileged information was passed on by a supposed TV documentary maker who was actually placed in the campaign to spy on its activities.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 20th February 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk