Last 3 months headlines – Page 1195
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Justice reforms have increased burden on judiciary, says LCJ
Reforms to the efficiency of the administration of justice have increased the burdens on the judiciary at a time when their pay and pension packages are being cut, according to a report from the lord chief justice, Igor Judge.
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SRA licenses 15th ABS
Seven-partner Gloucestershire high street firm Langley Wellington has become the 15th alternative business structure to be licensed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority since licensing began in March 2012. It joins firms ranging in size from Kent sole practitioner Lawbridge to Co-operative Legal Services, with plans to ...
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New ABSs critical of application process
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has too few resources to handle the licensing of alternative business structures (ABSs) and should ‘triple in size or work 24 hours a day,’ the senior partner of one of the four firms licensed this week told the Gazette. The four new ...
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The Briefs and criminal law – it’s a numbers game
Those of you able to tear yourself away from the Olympics last night might have caught the first of a two-part behind-the-scenes documentary about the lawyers and clients at the Manchester office of Tuckers. The Briefs was made by Chameleon Television, which spent a year with ...
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Accused silk in court on VAT fraud charge
A London silk has appeared in court charged with a £600,000 VAT fraud. Rohan Anthony Pershad QC, who practised from Thirty Nine Essex Street, was summoned to appear at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court yesterday.
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Immigration
Detention - Unlawful detention - False imprisonment - Damages BA and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Bail for Immigration Detainees intervening): Court of Appeal, Civil Division (Sir Anthony May P, Lady Justice Black and Lord ...
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I look forward to working to ensure the profession thrives
I know that many Law Society members are having a difficult time right now, and it certainly is not the first time in my career that the death of the high street has been predicted. It is also true that current practising and economic conditions are exceptionally testing for many ...
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In-house: no more an overhead
Budget restrictions and financial pressures will cause many councils to place increasing demand on their legal teams to deliver efficiencies, while maintaining high professional standards. Most struggle to do this in the traditional way - by reducing overheads, removing staff or cutting service levels. So at Kent, we tried to ...
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In-house: the Government Legal Service
I feel fortunate to have found my way into the Government Legal Service (GLS), which three-and-a-half decades on continues to deliver on its original promise as a career.
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Quotas and targets will help change mindset
I write in response to Lucinda Moule’s comment entitled ‘Wrong targets’. I agree that there needs to be more opportunities given to children attending comprehensive schools. However, I do not believe creating more selective schools is the answer. This may be the answer for law firms, but not for the ...
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Grammar push
I very much agree with Lucinda Moule’s article. I am from a working class background and my school did not push me in the same way that my brother (who went to a boys’ grammar school) and my mother who went to an ‘old style’ grammar school after passing her ...
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No replacement yet for £10m High Court IT failure
Justice officials have admitted they cannot say when a new computer system will replace a £10m failed attempt to upgrade IT in the High Court. The Electronic Working System, designed to speed up cases in the Royal Courts of Justice, was ditched in March after what ...
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Bar victory over ‘cab rank’ rule
Changes to the ‘cab rank’ rule approved last week will pave the way for new standard contractual terms between solicitors and barristers. Under amendments to the Bar Standards Board’s code of conduct approved by the Legal Services Board, the cab rank rule will apply where work ...
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Panel cull
I have today (24 July) received an email advising me that I have been removed from Santander’s conveyancing panel with immediate effect due to very few instructions. However, on 1 February 2012, I paid £118.80 to Santander as the fee for its annual panel membership review. ...
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Police investigation
I cannot believe the police are right to tell Angela Neale that they will not investigate an apparent conveyancing fraud unless the potential victim (the prospective buyer) complained. The police have a duty to investigate crime whenever it is brought to their attention. The John ...
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LSC to face judicial review over report costs
The Law Society is to challenge by judicial review a Legal Services Commission decision to meet just one-third of the costs of an expert witness report ordered by a county court on behalf of a child. The LSC declined to pay the full costs of the ...
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Firm pays tribute to kind solicitor
The funeral will be held next week of solicitor and father-of-three James Ward, who died last month after being shot in his office. The 58-year-old, who helped to found Wiltshire firm Morris Goddard & Ward more than 20 years ago, was described by colleagues as a ...
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Damages uplift ruling sparks call for clarity
Lawyers have called for extra guidance after claiming a judicial announcement on damages raises more questions than answers. The Court of Appeal last week handed down a judgment that will lead to a 10% increase in general damages in most civil cases from 1 April next ...