Last 3 months headlines – Page 1381
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War of the words: how the government controls the debate with new legal lexicon
Ministers in the coalition government don’t talk about ‘fat cat lawyers’. This may be because policy-makers are moving on from an unhelpful cliche as they prepare to cut legal aid, or it could be because any focus on high rewards turns the public’s ...
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Legal Services Board should get the job done
Is it appropriate for a regulatory overseer to be an evangelist for that which it would oversee, particularly when the consequences of ‘regulatory capture’ in the financial services industry are so painfully uppermost in the public mind?
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Government's rhetoric on divorce mediation is far too simplistic
by Christina Blacklaws, senior partner at Blacklaws Davis Mediation works. I have practised as a mediator for 15 years now and am still shiny-eyed about it.
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Landmark judgment highlights retainer letter lapse
A High Court judge warned solicitors of the need to be clear in retainer letters, as he ruled that a firm had breached its contract by refusing to carry out further work for a client until he had paid his bills, in a ...
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UK borders ‘less secure’, say Home Office immigration staff
UK immigration staff charged with policing the nation’s borders believe that borders have become less secure as a result of government changes to immigration law, Home Office research has indicated. A study ...
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National Approved Letting Scheme quality mark deal
Landlord and tenant solicitors can become affiliated to the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS), following an agreement with the Law Society announced this week. NALS represents landlords ...
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Mediator shortage looms, says family lawyers' group
Separating couples may ‘escape’ the new requirement to consult a mediator before going to court because of a shortage of properly accredited mediators, family lawyers’ group Resolution has suggested. The group’s chair Dave Allison also warned there was a risk that members of the public may ...
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Smooth as Silk
For anyone who gets home from a long day of billable hours with a craving for even more law, a new BBC1 drama began last week. Silk, written by ex-barrister and Kavanagh QC creator Peter Moffat, focuses on two rival barristers seeking to be appointed as QCs. Martha Costello (pictured, ...
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Insurers back Law Society call to scrap ARP
The insurance industry has lent its support to the Law Society’s proposal for an alternative to the assigned risks pool (ARP), as a Solicitors Regulation Authority consultation on reforms to the professional indemnity insurance (PII) market closed this week.
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Crippen yarn
A recent case where a husband was alleged to have given his wife sleeping tablets so that he could romp with his girlfriend reminded me of the Crippen murder, 100 years old last year, writes James Morton. In July 1910, a decayed body which was ...
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Name game
Solicitors will already be familiar with the term LeO to describe the Legal Ombudsman, which opened last October. But this could so easily have been a far more amusing acronym, as the ombudsman himself reveals in his blog. Adam Sampson says the complaints body considered various options before settling on ...
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Rallying cry
Following last week’s Memory Lane item featuring a 1970s call to start a solicitors’ racing car club, it seems the profession still has an attraction to fast cars. Freeth Cartwright partner Paul Calladine writes: ‘I was interested to see the article "Memory Lane February 1971" and the prospect of a ...
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Brussels doubt
Obiter applauds the Law Society’s human rights team, whose prompt action has helped save many hundreds of pounds of BBC licence payers’ money. Researchers at the BBC’s The One Show wrote to the Society to say that they planned to find out more ...
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'Frightened’ Bradford solicitor paid out money ‘under duress’
A Bradford solicitor who claimed she had been threatened and forced to pay out £520,000 of clients’ money under duress was suspended from practice by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal last week. Taslim Khan, 41, of Rasool Solicitors, in Dewsbury, west Yorkshire, admitted improperly withdrawing clients’ money, ...
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Sir Geoffrey Bindman joins Iran protest
High-profile human rights solicitor Sir Geoffrey Bindman spoke in support of democracy at a protest against the Iranian government last week, organised by the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran. Bindman said: ‘Change is coming in the Middle East, and that would include the liberation of ...
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US courts warned over share actions
The US must not allow its courts to accept ‘f-cubed’ cases, where foreign investors can sue foreign companies after they lose money on shares bought on foreign stock exchanges, City lawyers have warned. In a joint response to a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) consultation, ...
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EU lawmakers warned over contract harmonisation
The government has told EU lawmakers that they should not legislate to harmonise European contract laws because there is a ‘paucity of evidence’ that a problem exists. In its response to a European Commission consultation on the issue, the Ministry of Justice said that the commission ...
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Clients must be able to choose the lawyer they want
One of our main concerns at the Law Society is to ensure that we continue to work to preserve the principles of access to justice. This includes preserving our clients’ ability and freedom to choose the solicitor that they want. ...
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Allen & Overy advises on Tesco deal, oil acquisition, issuing capital notes and cross-border advice
Every little helps: Magic circle firm Allen & Overy advised a consortium of banks on arranging Tesco’s £685m commercial mortgage-backed bond issue, designed to release value from its UK property portfolio. City firm Berwin Leighton Paisner advised Tesco.
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Properly rewarding and promoting law support staff is overdue
The advent of ABS and the personal opportunities that will follow throw into focus the skills required to manage and promote a successful law firm. Over many years, firms have invested in a robust and in many cases excellent management team, bringing together a full range ...