Last 3 months headlines – Page 1275
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Mis-selling claim papers sent to FSA
Court papers from an ongoing interest rate swap mis-selling claim obtained by the Gazette have been submitted to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) by the MP leading parliamentary scrutiny of the products’ sale to UK businesses.
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ECtHR whip-round for extra lawyers to clear backlog
The European Court of Human Rights has appealed for voluntary contributions from member states to pay for extra lawyers to clear its backlog of cases – but no state has yet agreed to chip in. The Council of Europe and the court’s president announced the ...
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Classified results
It’s late June and they’re bustin’ out all over. Law firms’ annual results, of course. This is the time of year when City firms release the previous year’s figures for turnover (not very interesting), profit (quite interesting) and profit per equity partner (admit it: the bit you really want to ...
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Flash Gordon
Describing solicitor Jeffrey Gordon (pictured) requires some impressive numbers. He was admitted in 1956 after five years of articles, which means the 78-year-old has been working in the law for 61 years. He has run more than 100 marathons, including all 32 London marathons, and he has run the London ...
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Win Legally Blonde tickets
The award-winning hit Legally Blonde The Musical is on tour. Directed by Tony and Olivier Award-winning Jerry Mitchell (Hairspray), Legally Blonde The Musical is the best show in town – case closed. Obiter has three pairs of tickets to ...
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Land ahoy
Land Registry is the latest body to come under the spotlight of the government’s Red Tape Challenge, aka ‘Give the impression that we’re doing something to help the economy’. In theory, 25 regulations are under scrutiny for being otiose or in need of reform. But Obiter hears that land registration ...
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Form guide
If ever there is a case for triple checking (what we sociologists call ‘triangulation’) what a client tells you, it is over the question of his criminal convictions, writes James Morton.
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Herbert Smith merger creates ‘truly global’ giant
International law firm Herbert Smith is to merge with Australian firm Freehills to create one of the world’s largest firms. The new firm, Herbert Smith Freehills will, subject to regulatory approval, launch on 1 October, Herbert Smith said today. It will have 2,800 lawyers, including ...
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LASPO: we are all in it together
Recently the number of requests from individuals in need of pro bono assistance seems to have rapidly risen. I hear from colleagues that the situation is similar for other pro bono projects, and there seems to be a general consensus within the sector that when the Legal Aid, Sentencing and ...
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Injustice and vulnerable defendants
Vulnerable defendants are not getting fair trials and should have the benefit of the sort of special measures available to vulnerable witnesses in criminal trials, the Prison Reform Trust (PRT) suggests today.
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Separate jurisdiction could leave Wales in slow lane, Society says
The Law Society has warned that creating a separate legal jurisdiction in Wales could ‘dilute some of the benefits’ which accrue to the country from its present alignment with England. Such a move would also raise questions relating to whether there needs to be a ...
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‘Inquisitorial’ hearings planned for family litigants-in-person
Judges will adopt an inquisitorial approach to family cases, limiting cross-examination by the parties themselves, to deal with the increasing number of litigants-in-person, the judge in charge of family court modernisation has indicated. Mr Justice Ryder also said that the use of experts will be limited, ...
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North-east firm is latest to gain ABS status
A limited company based in Stockton on Tees has become the eighth entity to be licensed as an alternative business structure by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. NAS Legal Limited’s successful application was announced by the SRA this morning. The company, which was incorporated in August ...
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PEP dips by a fifth at FFW as public sector contracts
Field Fisher Waterhouse has blamed the squeeze on public sector spending and investment in the firm’s German offices for a sharp fall in profits in the year to 30 April. Profit per equity partner dipped £100,000 on 2010/11, from £510,000 to £410,000, on revenues which rose ...
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Outside funding ‘compelling’ reason to take the ABS route
The Legal Services Act (LSA) has so far had ‘minimal’ impact on law firms, but the reforms have acted as a ‘catalyst for change’ and increasing numbers in the profession are keen to explore outside funding, two surveys have revealed. Since the Solicitors Regulation Authority was ...
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Competition and the provision of professional training
Brussels is an echo-chamber, which is a fortunate thing. A piece of news read by just a few people is soon bouncing around from contact to contact, giving it publicity. Just such an event happened this week, and I am further amplifying it by writing about it here. It is ...
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Cost disputes set to soar post-Jackson, survey predicts
Costs disputes between solicitors and their clients will become more common once the Jackson reforms are implemented, according to a survey of specialist costs lawyers published today. In a poll of 137 costs lawyers, 69% (95) expected to see an increase in disputes, once the recoverability ...
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Right message, wrong case?
Despite the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) defeat in the Upper Tribunal in FSA v Pottage (23rd April, 2012), senior management responsibility remains a key pillar to the enforcement agenda.