Alternative business structures: an uncertain future? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

“The government’s White Paper preceding the Legal Services Act, based on the conclusions of Sir David Clementi’s review, promoted the concept of alternative business structures (ABSs) based on an expectation of a glowing future: that consumers would have more choice, and would benefit from reduced prices, better access to justice, improved levels of service, greater convenience, and that in consequence there would be increased consumer confidence in the quality of legal services. The suppliers of legal services would benefit from increased access to finance, a better spread of risk, increased flexibility, the opportunity to recruit and reward high quality non-legal staff, and there would be greater opportunities for new legal professionals.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 21st January 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

More legal aid cuts will lead to poor relying on ‘second best’ lawyers – The Guardian

Posted January 21st, 2013 in barristers, budgets, legal aid, legal representation, news by sally

“Poor defendants in criminal cases will be condemned to be represented by ‘second best’ lawyers under proposals to slash the costs of legal aid, the chair of the Bar Council has warned.”

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The Guardian, 21st January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ched Evans rape case: Tenth person fined for naming victim – BBC News

Posted January 21st, 2013 in anonymity, compensation, costs, disclosure, fines, news, rape, sentencing, victims by sally

“A woman who named a woman raped by Wales and Sheffield United footballer Ched Evans has been told to pay more than £1,600 in fines, costs and compensation.”

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BBC News, 21st January 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The supreme court’s YouTube channel is a welcome step for open justice – The Guardian

Posted January 21st, 2013 in internet, judgments, news, Supreme Court, video recordings by sally

“Judgment summaries are a good start, but it would be useful to watch recordings of full hearings. Do you agree?”

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The Guardian, 21st January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Criminals should not be allowed to hire expensive lawyers, Chris Grayling says – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 21st, 2013 in barristers, budgets, legal aid, legal representation, news by sally

“Criminals should not be allowed to hire the most expensive lawyers when taxpayers are covering their legal costs, the Justice Secretary has said.”

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Daily Telegraph, 21st January 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Improving justice through new technology – Ministry of Justice

Posted January 21st, 2013 in live link evidence, news by sally

“Justice Minister Damian Green saw how new technology is being used at Maidstone Magistrates’ Court to improve the justice system. A demonstration of a video-link system and tablet devices showed how the court is increasing efficiency.”

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Ministry of Justice, 17th January 2013

Source: www.justice.gov.uk

More training to identify and support victims of human trafficking – Home Office

Posted January 21st, 2013 in charities, education, news, trafficking in human beings, victims by sally

“GPs, midwives, youth workers and social workers are among those professionals who will soon benefit from training to identify and help victims of human trafficking, the Home Office announced today.”

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Home Office, 21st January 2013

Source: www.homeoffice.gov.uk

“Do Judges use Gavels?”: The Modern Judge in Myth and Reality – Lord Carnwath of Notting Hill JSC

Posted January 21st, 2013 in judiciary, speeches by sally

“Do Judges use Gavels?”: The Modern Judge in Myth and Reality (PDF)

Lord Carnwath of Notting Hill JSC

Judicial College, 16th January 2013

Source: www.supremecourt.gov.uk

Central London NHS Trust: key points from the Tribunal’s first MPN case – Panopticon

Posted January 21st, 2013 in appeals, data protection, hospitals, news, penalties, tribunals by sally

“Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust v IC (EA/2012/00111) concerned the first monetary penalty notice (MPN) to be appealed to the First-Tier Tribunal. The Trust’s appeal has been dismissed by the Tribunal (Professor Angel, Rosalind Tatam and Paul Taylor).”

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Panopticon, 17th January 2013

Source: www.panopticonblog.com

Command Papers – official-documents.gov.uk

Posted January 21st, 2013 in parliamentary papers by sally

The single-tier pension: a simple foundation for saving, Cm 8528 (PDF)

Draft Pensions Bill, Cm 8529 (PDF)

Source: www.official-documents.gov.uk

Regina (Crown Prosecution Service) v Bolton Crown Court – WLR Daily

Regina (Crown Prosecution Service) v Bolton Crown Court [2012] EWHC 3570 (Admin); [2013] WLR (D) 13

“The Crown Court had no power under regulation 3 of the Costs in Criminal Cases Regulations 1986, made under section 19(1) of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985, to make a costs order against a party to criminal proceedings in favour of another party’s counsel.”

WLR Daily, January 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Is Britain guilty of systemic torture in Iraq? – The Guardian

Posted January 21st, 2013 in armed forces, inquiries, Iraq, news, sexual offences, torture by sally

“High court to hear shocking testimonies alleging sexual abuse and torture of Iraqi prisoners and their families by British armed forces between 2003 and 2008.”

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The Guardian, 19th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Abortion and the cognitively impaired mother – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted January 21st, 2013 in abortion, jurisdiction, learning difficulties, news, parental rights by sally

“It will be interesting to watch the reception of a recent Court of Protection case, as yet unreported, in which a woman with profound learning difficulties was found to have capacity to decide not to terminate her pregnancy.”

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Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 21st January 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Child radiotherapy case: “one cannot enjoy even diminished quality of life if one is not alive” – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted January 21st, 2013 in cancer, children, complementary medicine, medical treatment, news, parental rights by sally

“The highly publicised case about a seven year old boy whose estranged parents could not agree about the necessary treatment following surgery for his brain tumour was resolved by a firm ruling in favour of orthodox medicine by Bodey J, four days before Christmas.”

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UK Human Rights Blog, 19th January 2013

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Back to school for the OFT? – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted January 21st, 2013 in competition, complaints, licensing, news, school children by sally

“On 25 October 2012 the Office of Fair Trading announced that it had written to the head teachers of almost 30,000 State schools to draw attention to the high price of school uniforms. The high price is caused in part by 74% of schools requiring parents to purchase uniforms from a single, named retailer or from the school itself. This has created a captive market for chosen suppliers, allowing them to charge an additional £52 million per year (see para 2.3 of the OFT’s 2006 school uniforms review).”

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Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 20th January 2013

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

Almost £2 billion in court fines and confiscation orders remain unpaid – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 21st, 2013 in assets recovery, confiscation, courts, debts, fines, news by sally

“Nearly £2 billion in court fines and confiscation orders remain unpaid, official figures show, as the Government admitted it needed to do more to tackle the debt.”

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Daily Telegraph, 19th January 2013

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

‘The Right to Resist: Privilege for Employment Lawyers’ – 11 KBW

Posted January 21st, 2013 in barristers, confidentiality, disclosure, employment, news, privilege by sally

“There are may aspects to the law of privilege, but what they have in common is a right to resist the compulsory disclosure of information. The law of privilege is, at least in part, a manifestation of the law of confidentiality. However, the underlying principle is one of public policy: where privilege applies, the law treats the benefits of full and transparent disclosure of information in the context of litigation as being outweighed by the benefits of giving litigants the right to keep information private.”

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11 KBW, 18th January 2013

Source: www.11kbw.com

Oxford college sued over using ‘selection by wealth’ for admissions – The Guardian

Posted January 21st, 2013 in fees, guarantees, news, universities by sally

“An Oxford college is being sued for discriminating against poorer students applying to study for postgraduate courses. St Hugh’s, which was founded in 1886, is being taken to court for choosing applicants not just on academic merit, but also on their ability to prove they can pay tens of thousands of pounds for tuition fees and living expenses.”

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The Guardian, 19th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Wrong priorities – NearlyLegal

Posted January 21st, 2013 in complaints, housing, local government, maladministration, news, ombudsmen by sally

“Every now and again, there is a Local Government Ombudsman report that seems to go beyond individual instances of maladministration and instead capture something of the zeitgeist. The LGO decision summarised here may well be one of the latter (certainly the Guardian thinks so), as arguably what it shows is a Local Authority prioritising its own administrative concerns over its legal duties in both its policy and the operation of policy. There is also a routine failure to ask the kind of questions that might have meant it had to do more. This on top of a series of administrative failures.”

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NearlyLegal, 20th January 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Amazon Marketplace purchases not covered by Consumer Credit Act – The Guardian

“If you pay Amazon and it passes the money on to the retailer, a loophole could leave you without redress.”

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The Guardian, 19th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk