Last 3 months headlines – Page 1294

  • News

    Human rights

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Extradition - Inhuman or degrading treatment - Applicants being accused of terrorist offences by US government Ahmad and others v UK: ECtHR (Judges Garlicki (president), Björgvinsson, Bratza, Hirvelä, Nicolaou, Bianku, Vucinic and L Early (section registrar)): 10 April 2012 ...

  • News

    Employment

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Discrimination - Discrimination on the grounds of age - Employee partner in defendant solicitors’ firm Seldon v Clarkson Wright and Jakes: SC (Justices of the Supreme Court Lords Hope (deputy president), Brown, Mance, Kerr, Lady Hale): 25 April 2012 ...

  • News

    Judges will make QASA unworkable, says Kelcey

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Judges will make the controversial quality assurance scheme for advocates ‘totally unworkable’ by refusing to engage with the assessment of candidates, a leading criminal solicitor-advocate has warned. Ian Kelcey, senior partner at Bristol firm Kelcey and Hall, told the Law Society’s criminal law conference last ...

  • News

    Queen’s speech ushers in era of cameras in court

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    News broadcasters have hailed the permitting of cameras in court for the first time as 'an important step for democracy and open justice'. The lifting of the ban was confirmed as part of the Queen's speech today and allows for judgments to be filmed and broadcast. ...

  • News

    Chinese firm enters London with co-operation plan

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    The first top-tier Chinese law firm to enter the London market says it is looking to co-operate - rather than merge - with UK firms. Zhong Lun has built a formidable base in China in less than 20 years, with 150 partners and more than ...

  • News

    Jack of all trades

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    How much does an ex-justice secretary cost? This question may be of more than passing interest to Ken Clarke, as political seers believe a Cabinet reshuffle may be imminent which could see the wily Westminster veteran jettisoned.

  • News

    Marathon man

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Some lawyers run marathons. Naz Gauri, associate at Chadbourne & Parke’s London office, has just run six. In seven days. Across the Sahara. He was taking part in the 246km Marathon des Sables (MdS) - a seven-day ultra-marathon which includes one extra-long day when the ...

  • News

    It will soon matter (even) more how much loot resides in the ‘bank of mum and dad’

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    There are few things as dispiriting in modern public life as the sight of the great and good pulling up the drawbridge of opportunity. David Willetts, ‘the thinking person’s Tory MP’, has written a provocative book about the phenomenon: the unambiguously titled The Pinch: How the baby-boomers stole their children’s ...

  • News

    COLPs and COFAs central to outcomes-focused regulation

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    The launch of outcomes-focused regulation (OFR) on 6 October 2011 marked a pivotal shift in how law firms are regulated, with a less prescriptive and more risk-based approach. It has required firms to look closely at how they run their businesses and whether they have appropriate systems and procedures in ...

  • News

    Home truth

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Would I Lie to You?, Charles and Eddie (pictured) once asked. Well, if they’d been singing to solicitors, there’s every chance it wouldn’t have mattered. The University of Central Lancashire has revealed that 95% of solicitors think they are better at detecting deception than they really are.

  • News

    Going barefoot

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Here’s one for the diary. On Monday 12 November, come to work prepared to doff footwear in public. Whatever the weather. Toes, ankles and soles are to be bared on the birthday of blind Chinese human rights lawyer Chen Guangcheng.

  • News

    The Shulman defence

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    The story of the man who left his wife his collection of (valuable) Dinky toys took me back to a tale of nude photographs. Property dealer Clive Raphael apparently bequeathed his wife, the model Penny Brahms, a shilling and some revealing shots of her. It came ...

  • News

    Defamation Bill ‘a sop to media’ says libel lawyer

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Proposals in the Queen’s speech to implement the draft Defamation Bill in the next parliamentary session attracted a mixed response. A bill ‘to protect freedom of speech and reform the law of defamation’ is expected to restrict the use of ‘forum shopping’ by overseas litigants and to introduce a new ...

  • News

    Employment bill to set existing changes in legislation

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    The Enterprise & Regulatory Reform Bill announced in the Queen’s speech includes plans to overhaul the employment tribunal system and transform the resolution landscape.

  • News

    Cautious welcome for Children and Families Bill

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Legislation heralded in the Queen’s speech to reduce delays in the family justice system needs to be matched with the resources to make it a reality, family lawyers have warned. Lawyers broadly welcomed the announcement of a Children and Families Bill, but cautioned that its measures ...

  • News

    Crime and Courts Bill to create single county court system

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    The government has confirmed in the Queen’s speech that it will enact proposals for a single county court system in England and Wales. The move was mooted in March amongst a raft of other proposals following the report of a consultation into solving disputes in the ...

  • News

    How the new EU cookie law affects law firms

    2012-05-10T00:00:00Z

    Most websites nowadays use ‘cookies’ (as I will explain) and the European Union has passed a law which means we all have to take action. Your clients need to take action, but so do you, as your firm has a website too. What are cookies? They ...

  • News

    TLT creates UK-wide practice

    2012-05-09T00:00:00Z

    National firm TLT has announced plans to launch operations in Scotland and Northern Ireland to create a UK-wide practice. The firm has merged with Scottish practice Anderson Fyfe to create TLT Scotland, with the deal expected to be confirmed on 1 July. ...

  • News

    Spectator to face contempt charge over Lawrence trial article

    2012-05-09T00:00:00Z

    The Crown Prosecution Service is to prosecute The Spectator magazine over an opinion column published during the Stephen Lawrence murder trial last year. The notice to prosecute is the first since the CPS published guidelines that called for prosecutors to assess whether the public interest outweighed ...

  • News

    LLPs 10 years on

    2012-05-08T00:00:00Z

    In fact, limited liability partnerships (LLPs) have been with us for just over 11 years since their introduction in April 2001. Although it was possible to operate a law firm as a limited company prior to 2001, an LLP has been viewed as a more obvious alternative to a traditional ...