When Laws Become Too Complex: ill-timed and badly thought out – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted June 25th, 2013 in drafting, legislation, news, reports by sally

“As the dust from the Civil Justice reforms begins to settle, it appears that Parliamentary counsel have slipped another consultation through in the background. Published in March this year, it appears innocuous enough, but on further consideration raises a number of significant concerns. I also question why this report was even necessary. Parliamentary austerity and wholesale changes to the legal profession should have lent caution to the writers of the report, given that this can be construed as a real attack upon the legal profession. Ill-timed and badly thought out, the principle will be applauded by businesses that will look at the superficial benefits but not appreciate the issues, and is therefore convenient politically.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 25th June 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexhange.co.uk

Education review comes out for ‘incremental’ reform – Law Society’s Gazette

“Legal education and training is not ‘fundamentally broken’ but is failing to ensure consistent levels of quality across the profession, a long-awaited pan-profession report says today.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 25th June 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Regulator’s handling of complaints against barristers ‘prompt, thorough and fair’ – Bar Standards Board

Posted June 21st, 2013 in barristers, complaints, press releases, reports, standards by tracey

“Complaints against barristers are handled promptly and fairly, according to a new independent report published today.”

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Bar Standards Board, 21st June 2013

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Confidentiality clauses in public sector payoffs ‘must not stop whistleblowers’ – The Guardian

“Margaret Hodge says government must make clear deals should not stop whistleblowers from speaking out, after NAO report.”

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The Guardian, 21st June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Police cells holding more than 9,000 mentally ill people a year – The Guardian

Posted June 20th, 2013 in detention, health, mental health, news, prisons, reports by sally

“More than 9,000 mentally ill people a year are being detained in police custody despite official guidance that such powers should be used only in exceptional circumstances, watchdogs say.”

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The Guardian, 20th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Jail reckless bankers, standards commission urges – BBC News

“Senior bankers guilty of reckless misconduct should be jailed, a long-awaited report on banking commissioned by the government has recommended.”

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BBC News, 19th June 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Infrastructure Cost Review highlights important new efficiency initiatives, says expert – OUT-LAW.com

Posted June 18th, 2013 in costs, environmental protection, news, railways, reports by sally

“A Government-backed efficiency report seeks to answer some of the criticisms of national infrastructure policy, while highlighting some important new initiatives, an expert has said.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 18th June 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Legal advice on divorce prompts most legal complaints – BBC News

Posted June 13th, 2013 in complaints, divorce, legal ombudsman, news, reports by sally

“Divorce cases have prompted the most complaints about lawyers in the last year with individuals being urged to shop around for legal advice.”

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BBC News, 13th June 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Legal Ombudsman chairman calls for major expansion in jurisdiction – Legal Futures

“All consumers of legal services – using a broad definition that includes ‘linked professional services and advice that has a legal dimension’ – should have access to the Legal Ombudsman (LeO), its chairman said today.”

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Legal Futures, 13th June 2013

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Police to reveal details of partners’ pasts to tackle domestic violence – The Guardian

Posted June 13th, 2013 in disclosure, domestic violence, homicide, news, police, reports by sally

“Women will be passed information about the past of a violent partner in an initiative being considered by a police force where nine people have died in domestic violence homicides in four years.”

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The Guardian, 13th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Immigration policy tearing families apart, report shows – The Guardian

Posted June 11th, 2013 in families, immigration, inquiries, news, regulations, reports, visas by tracey

“A cross-party group of MPs has called for an urgent review of new immigration rules, which they claim are tearing hundreds of British families apart. Their inquiry report shows that a new minimum earnings rule of £18,600 a year, which came into effect last July, has meant that thousands of British citizens, including people with full-time jobs, have been unable to bring a non-European husband, wife or partner to live with them in Britain.”

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The Guardian, 10th June 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Helen Fenwick: Article 8 ECHR, the ‘Feminist Article’, Women and a Conservative Bill of Rights – UK Constitutional Law Group

Posted June 6th, 2013 in bills, courts, families, human rights, news, reports, women by sally

“There has been a lot of commentary on the Report of the Bill of Rights’ Commission, and the ‘damp squib’ analysis of the Report (see Mark Elliott) as a whole is one most commentators appear to assent to (see eg Joshua Rozenberg for the Guardian here). My view in general is that the squib could reignite post-2015 if a Conservative government is elected, not in relation to the very hesitant ideas as to the possible future content of a Bill of Rights that the Report put forward, but in relation to its majority recommendation that there should be one (see further my previous post on the Commission Report here). If a BoR was to emerge under a Conservative government post-2015 I suggest that it would reflect the ideas of the Conservative nominees on the Commission which assumed a far more concrete form in the Report than the majority recommendations did (eg see here at p 192). This blog post due to its length is not intended to examine the probable nature of such a BoR based on those ideas in general, but to focus only on two aspects: the idea of curtailing the effects of an equivalent to Article 8 ECHR (right to respect for private and family life), and of requiring domestic courts to disapply Strasbourg jurisprudence under a BoR in a wider range of situations than at present under s2HRA (see Roger Masterman’s post on s2 on this blog here). In respect of the latter issue the potential impact of so doing will only be linked to selected aspects of Article 8 jurisprudence of especial actual and potential benefit to women.”

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UK Constitutional Law Group, 5th June 2013

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Case for legal clampdown on ‘chuggers’ compelling, say MPs – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 6th, 2013 in charities, education, news, public interest, reports, select committees by sally

“Charities should be forced to rein in the use of High Street fund-raisers known as ‘chuggers’ or face state regulation, a cross-party committee of MPs has concluded.”

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Daily Telegraph, 6th June 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Inspectors call for streamlined criminal justice process – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted June 4th, 2013 in criminal justice, Crown Prosecution Service, news, police, reports by sally

“Inspectors of police service and prosecutors have called for decisive action to streamline the criminal justice process and end ‘the spectre of unnecessary bureaucracy’.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 4th June 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Broken arms and strip-searches revealed in damning boys’ jail report – The Independent

“Two children at a privately-run Young Offenders Institution had their arms broken by staff last year during routine strip searches, a report by the Prison Inspectorate has revealed.”

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The Independent, 4th June 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

UK needs prompt action on human rights record, UN panel warns – The Guardian

Posted June 3rd, 2013 in Afghanistan, human rights, Iraq, news, Northern Ireland, reports, torture by sally

“The British government’s human rights record since the attacks of 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq is facing ferocious criticism from a United Nations panel, which warns that prompt action is needed to ensure the country meets its obligations under international law.”

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The Guardian, 31st May 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Culture change needed at BSB, says super-regulator – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 29th, 2013 in barristers, legal profession, news, reports by sally

“The Bar Standards Board will encounter ‘significant challenges’ in emulating the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s move to outcomes-focused regulation, a report by the super-regulator has concluded.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 29th May 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

The Intellectual Property Bill – NIPC Law

Posted May 29th, 2013 in bills, intellectual property, news, patents, reports by sally

“In Digital Opportunity, A Review of Intellectual Property and Growth Professor Ian Hargreaves made 10 recommendations for IP policy which I discussed at length in “IP Policy: Does Hargreaves say Anything New?” 24 June 2011. Some of those recommendations required primary legislation. Others did not. As I said in my article, Hargreaves was not the first review of IP policy in recent years and most of the previous ones had been left to gather dust. I suspected the same would happen to Hargreaves.”

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NIPC Law, 28th May 2013

Source: www.nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

Companies will not be forced to publish results of equal pay audits, says Government – OUT-LAW.com

Posted May 28th, 2013 in company law, data protection, disclosure, equal pay, news, publishing, reports by sally

“Companies that are required to undertake equal pay audits would not be required to make the results of those audits public, the Government has proposed.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 28th May 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Four in 10 people think judges are too soft in manslaughter cases – Daily Telegraph

Posted May 28th, 2013 in burglary, homicide, news, reports, sentencing by sally

“Four in 10 people think judges should give tougher sentences in some violent cases such as manslaughter, a Ministry of Justice study has suggested.”

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Daily Telegraph, 24th May 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk