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All articles by John Greenwood
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OpinionEasy does it in the modern office
The other day, as I paid a visit to the old firm, a sepulchral calm appeared to have descended on the family department.
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OpinionKeeping a civil tongue
Suddenly being thrust into civil law, including family cases, is no joke.
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OpinionCareer path for criminal law
Retired criminal lawyer John Greenwood reflects on the position of trainee criminal law solicitors and barristers.
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OpinionFull disclosure – at last?
Criminal lawyers will have been horrified by the revelations about non-disclosure of evidence helpful to the defence.
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Opinion
Stay lucky
A dignitary interviewed on the radio the other day was asked what had been the most important factor in his life – the answer was luck. Looking back on a long legal career, I realise how vital this was. I was lucky after National Service, knowing virtually nothing about the ...
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Opinion
Court is no laughing matter
While it is always dangerous to underestimate how seriously a court may view your case, it can be equally risky to make a joke, however well-intentioned.
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OpinionIt’s a dog’s life
There seems to be an increasing trend to take your pooch to the office. Indeed, one firm boasts as many as three office dogs on its website.
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OpinionBlame game
I suppose it rarely crosses the minds of property or commercial lawyers that they may create enmities sufficient to provoke violence. For criminal lawyers, there is the reassurance that they are on the side of those who might harbour and carry out violent acts. For the family lawyer it can ...
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OpinionToo few judges
It is a strange little world, that of the deputy district judge, particularly those retired who come back and sit a few times a month. Every month a list is sent out of perhaps a hundred unfilled court sittings around the country. It is first come, first served for venues. ...
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OpinionA gilded age for lawyers?
There is a growing tendency for the current generation of lawyers to cast a somewhat jaundiced eye on those of us of an earlier time. They may well have a point. The past is indeed a different country; we did things very differently there. How did we ever justify the ...
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OpinionShort-sighted
The new lord chancellor should increase the retirement age for the senior judiciary to 75. I shall never forget the frustration of having to retire as a recorder at 65 when I felt that after 15 years or so I had at last gained the experience, particularly in family cases, ...
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OpinionFamily affairs
Courts still clung to the principle of the wife’s right to lifelong maintenance.
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Opinion‘Short’ Sharp shock
I do not envy divorce lawyers having to advise clients in a ‘short’ marriage following the Sharp decision.
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OpinionErosion of a lawyer's role
Civil litigation lawyers will have taken note of Lord Faulks’ call for regulation of third-party funding. Taking an entirely dispassionate view, the factor that stands out for me is the erosion of the lawyer’s position when faced with the influence of a third party having no direct interest in the ...
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Opinion
Monitoring for signs of stress?
I have become concerned by cases involving friends and former colleagues who appeared to have burnt out and suffered breakdowns.