Last 3 months headlines – Page 1206
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News
Jackson reforms: part two
The new funding arrangements from April fundamentally change the civil litigation landscape. Only some of these result from the Jackson costs report. Lord Justice Jackson did not recommend the serious cutbacks in legal aid enacted in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (LASPO) Act 2012 and S.I. 2013 ...
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NewsMy legal life: Sarah Webb
My uncle, a Swansea solicitor, gave me my first job in the law as his secretary. I did law as a non-graduate with long articles, starting off doing criminal work in Shepherds Bush.
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‘Back to basics’ in Brum
The new president of Birmingham Law Society, Allsopp & Co partner Martin Allsopp, does not have a computer on his desk because, he says, he wants the profession to ‘go back to basics’ and talk to clients ‘one-to-one’ again. In a nutshell, that is his ...
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News
The dilemma of small claims
The struggle over the financial limits for small claims is an issue which is traditionally difficult for lawyer policymakers, because of the apparent conflict between public and private interests. The raising of personal injury claim levels in the UK has caused a fuss, and now the topic has appeared on ...
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Contempt of court
Committal – Breach of injunction – Claimants publishing photographs on Facebook and Twitter in breach of injunction Attorney general v Harkins; Attorney general v Liddle: Queen's Bench Division: 26 April 2013 ...
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Referral guidance
by Sukhbir Bassra and Amarveer Bassra The referral ban is now in force and there are hundreds of firms of solicitors looking for a way forward.
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News
Acquisitive Quindell posts big jump in profits
The stock-exchange listed company that has acquired a clutch of personal injury firms over the past year today posted a nine-fold rise in profits. Quindell Portfolio, which runs ‘end-to-end’ processes in several business sectors reported pre-tax profits of £41.2m on a turnover of £171.9m in ...
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News
‘Going to court was worse than the abuse’
‘You can’t be certain that you think that it wasn’t possible that you filled in the first side of the form?’ If you struggled for a moment with that question, imagine how it must have felt for a defendant with learning difficulties who was asked it ...
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News
Insurance defendant firms to merge
Two national firms are merging to create a £90m defendant insurance litigation business with more than 1,200 staff. Dispute resolution firm Greenwoods is to join insurance firm Plexus Law under the umbrella of the £150m Parabis Law group. The two firms have already signed heads of ...
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News
Mills seeks apprentice boon
Obiter’s chums on the Gazette newsdesk were surprised last month when Alex Mills, founder and director of ‘exciting legal franchise brand’ Dynamo Legal, declined the offer of an interview. Such bashfulness from the promoter of a new commercial offering is unusual, especially on launch day. ...
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News
Sweet dreams are made of this
Ever wondered why the legal profession is so productive? Research suggests that it is in part because lawyers daydream so much. A survey (sponsored, for some reason, by hotel firm Travelodge) reveals that lawyers top the list of daydreaming professionals. The research suggests that daydreaming improves ...
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News
No minister, as quango sparks fly
A lovely spat is developing in Westminster as the government tries desperately to add another quango to its bonfire. The dispute started with the Ministry of Justice declaring it wanted rid of the Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council, which monitors legal tribunals and ombudsman rulings, to ...
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News
Memory lane
The Law Society’s Gazette, May 1953The blind solicitor: Some of his problems and the means whereby they may be solved, by ‘Aveugle’ It is a fact that may surprise some, though by no means all, members of the profession that several solicitors practising in this country ...
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Bar: legal aid plans will ‘irreversibly undermine access’
The Bar Council has called on the Ministry of Justice to reconsider its ‘discriminatory’ legal aid cuts that it warns will ‘irreversibly undermine access to justice’ and create a two-tier service. It is urging all barristers to write to their MPs alerting them to the dangers ...
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Deadline looming to stay on the roll, SRA warns
Solicitors without a practising certificate who wish to remain on the roll have six weeks left in which to apply online, the Solicitors Regulation Authority reminded the profession today. The deadline for applications is 18 June. According to the regulator, 26% of the estimated total of ...
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Immigration, rehabilitation and deregulation reforms in Queen’s speech
As widely trailed, immigration and crime form key planks of the government’s legislative programme outlined in the Queen’s speech today.
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Immigration bill prompts concern
Measures in the immigration bill announced in today’s Queen’s speech prompted strong reactions from specialist lawyers, welfare campaigners and business. Nichola Carter, head of immigration at niche London firm Carter Thomas, described the proposals as ‘extremely worrying’. Requiring landlords to ...
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State must provide ‘genuine access’ – Neuberger’s rebuke to government
The president of the Supreme Court has warned that denying access to the courts could create an exploitative society that might ultimately fail - and he called on lawyers to help ensure the justice system works. Delivering the first Harbour Litigation Funding lecture, Lord Neuberger said ...
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PI shake-up continues with two new takeovers
Contraction in the personal injury market has continued with the announcement of two new takeovers. North-west firm Antony Hodari has completed the purchase of litigation specialist Tandem Law through its AVH Legal trading arm. The acquisition was agreed with Tandem Law’s administrators ...
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Support for deaf clients
With Deaf Awareness Week taking place this week, the spotlight is being shone on those consumers who are Deaf and how legal advice can best be provided to them. In this context, research by the Royal Association for Deaf People’s (RAD) Deaf Law Centre (DLC) has revealed statistics that show ...