Last 3 months headlines – Page 1367

  • News

    Likely appointment of Jonathan Sumption to Supreme Court is controversial

    2011-04-14T00:00:00Z

    What does it take to become a justice of the UK Supreme Court? According to its president, Lord Phillips, those who applied for the most recent vacancies had to demonstrate independence of mind, integrity, intellectual ability, clarity of thought, an ability to work under pressure, ...

  • News

    The Sheik and the flapper

    2011-04-14T00:00:00Z

    Every decade and court has its great – and often eccentric – advocate, and in the 1920s, Western Australia’s Arthur Haynes neatly filled the bill, writes James Morton. Haynes trained trotting horses and, after staying at his club until the early hours, would get up ...

  • News

    Legal aid changes will hit commercial practitioners

    2011-04-14T00:00:00Z

    by Rosalind Connor, partner and head of pro bono at Jones Day The government’s consultation on its Proposals for the reform of legal aid in England and Wales has provoked an entirely predictable wave of protests from legal aid practitioners and those, such as free legal ...

  • News

    APIL warns of ‘dumbed down’ lawyers post-ABS

    2011-04-14T00:00:00Z

    The new president of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) today warned of the emergence of a new breed of 'dumbed-down, legal-lite' lawyer following the introduction of alternative business structures. Addressing APIL's annual conference, David Bott (pictured) predicted that 'potentially massive' new entrants to ...

  • News

    New round of district judge appointments

    2011-04-13T00:00:00Z

    The Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) is to recruit 56 district judges over the next two to three years. This is the first time in more than two years that any district judge (civil) positions have been available. It is unlikely there will be another opportunity to ...

  • News

    test

    2011-04-13T00:00:00Z

    The Legal Services Board has seen a high level of interest from banks and private equity houses in the run-up to the introduction of alternative business structures, its chair David Edmonds told the Gazette in an interview last week. Edmonds, who was reappointed for a further ...

  • News

    A career in the law? Let’s be honest…

    2011-04-13T00:00:00Z

    Perhaps a passion for the musical genres of trance, house and Ibiza is the secret of securing a training contract with a law firm. It certainly worked for Radio One presenter Judge Jules, who is also, as it happens, a London School of Economics ...

  • News

    Law Commission proposes new ‘Consumer Act’

    2011-04-12T00:00:00Z

    Consumers are finding it too hard to win compensation for misleading and aggressive trading practices and the law must be reviewed, the Law Commission said today. Opening a consultation on the matter, the commission said that routes to redress for ripped-off consumers are 'difficult’ and ‘far ...

  • News

    Society announces election of deputy vice-president

    2011-04-12T00:00:00Z

    Solicitor Nick Fluck will become Law Society deputy vice-president in July, and will become president in 2013, Chancery Lane announced today. Fluck, partner at Lincolnshire firm Stapleton & Son and a council member since 2005, will serve one year as deputy vice-president from July, followed by ...

  • News

    Stop cancelling one-to-one meetings with staff

    2011-04-12T00:00:00Z

    Many managers in private practice and in in-house legal departments struggle with issues around staff morale. Morale’s a complex area. Staff can be intelligent and productive people, team players who are trusted by their colleagues and managers, working in a ...

  • News

    Big-hitters join Society’s Human Rights Committee

    2011-04-12T00:00:00Z

    Seven new members have joined the Law Society's Human Rights Committee to help highlight, challenge and condemn human rights abuses across the world. They are: Immigration solicitor Shanti Faiia of City firm Laura Devine. Faiia was previously with the United Nations development programme and the Sri ...

  • News

    New SRA Handbook passes its first test

    2011-04-11T00:00:00Z

    Congratulations to the SRA on the launch of its new Handbook. I was hoping to have some mischief at its expense and tell its staff that they will have to start re-writing it straight away, as a result of an interesting judgement of the Court ...

  • News

    Legal Services Board reveals high level of ABS interest

    2011-04-11T00:00:00Z

    The Legal Services Board has seen a high level of interest from banks and private equity houses in the run-up to the introduction of alternative business structures, its chair David Edmonds told the Gazette in an interview last week. Edmonds, who was reappointed for a further ...

  • News

    ASA rejects complaint about QualitySolicitors TV advert

    2011-04-11T00:00:00Z

    The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has rejected a complaint made by a Yorkshire firm about a television advert for law firm network QualitySolicitors. Williamsons in Hull had challenged the content of the advert, claiming that it was misleading. The advert showed an ...

  • News

    APIL’s new president pledges to campaign for rights of injured

    2011-04-11T00:00:00Z

    The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) will campaign with other claimant organisations against government plans to make injured people pay for legal fees out of their own compensation, the association’s new president will tell delegates at the APIL annual conference later this week. Bott & ...

  • News

    QualitySolicitors in WHSmith tie-up

    2011-04-08T00:00:00Z

    QualitySolicitors has signed a deal with WHSmith enabling it to place a QS member of staff in 150 branches of the high street books and stationery giant, the Gazette can reveal. The deal will see QS open a ‘legal access point’ staffed by a local QS ...

  • News

    Employment lawyers see surge in disputes

    2011-04-08T00:00:00Z

    Employment solicitors have seen a surge in clients seeking advice on work-related disputes, according to figures seen by the ...

  • News

    Dominic Grieve set for Minority Lawyers Conference

    2011-04-08T00:00:00Z

    Attorney general Dominic Grieve and influential Islamic thinker Tariq Ramadan will join a line-up of high-profile speakers at tomorrow’s Minority Lawyers Conference at the Law Society in London. The biennial conference, organised jointly by the Law Society, Bar Council and Institute of Legal Executives, celebrates ...

  • News

    Profession helps law schools to step up pro bono advice

    2011-04-08T00:00:00Z

    The number of law schools offering pro bono legal advice has risen significantly thanks to a boost in support from solicitors, a report published this week has found. The report by pro bono charity LawWorks showed a 40% increase over the last five years in the ...

  • News

    RBS offers legal documentation to small business clients

    2011-04-08T00:00:00Z

    The Royal Bank of Scotland launched a product that will provide legal documentation and advice to its small business customers this week. The service, Smarta Business Builder, incorporates a range of online accounting, business and legal services, with legal software provided by Epoq. ...