Lawyers pledge to boycott extended court hours – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Almost 400 solicitors and barristers have signed an open letter to HM Courts & Tribunals Service, refusing to attend a ‘single court listing outside of regular court hours’. The Ministry of Justice responded today by denying the existence of any plan for weekend sittings.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 5th August 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Evaluation of flexible court hours stresses need to get lawyers onboard – Legal Futures

Posted August 3rd, 2021 in courts, flexible working, legal profession, news, pilot schemes by sally

‘Flexible operating hours (FOH) can make it easier for people to access civil and family justice, but there needs to a lot more work to bring solicitors and barristers on board, research into two pilot schemes has said.’

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Legal Futures, 2nd August 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Assessing Beneficial Ownership Under POCA. Is the Crown Court the Appropriate Forum? by Stephen Wood QC – Broadway House Chambers

Posted July 29th, 2021 in chambers articles, courts, Crown Court, news, proceeds of crime by sally

‘Practitioners will be, by now, familiar with the provisions of section 10A POCA, which permits a Court to make a conclusive determination of the extent of a Defendant’s interest, where a third party may hold an interest in the property under consideration.’

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Broadway House Chambers, 13th July 2021

Source: broadwayhouse.co.uk

Fury as Buckland brings back extended court operating hours – Law Society’s Gazette

‘The government could face legal and strike action over its decision to resurrect extended court operating hours as part of the widely-trailled “Beating Crime Plan” unveiled today.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 27th July 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Longer court hours re-emerge despite concerns over impact – Legal Futures

Posted July 28th, 2021 in barristers, coronavirus, courts, delay, Ministry of Justice, news, pilot schemes by sally

‘Extended operating hours in the courts – bitterly opposed by the legal profession – have returned, at least for now, in the guise of “temporary operating arrangements” (TOA).’

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Legal Futures, 27th July 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

NEWS ‘Crying in court’: Bar Council urges action on judicial bullying – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted July 2nd, 2021 in barristers, bullying, courts, diversity, equality, judges, judiciary, news by tracey

‘The Bar Council has encouraged barristers to speak up about judicial bullying, following an anecdotal rise in judges making lawyers cry in court. The representative body is due to meet with the judiciary’s equality and diversity lead this week to discuss the types of incidents involving judges that get reported and the impact they have on barristers.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 2nd July 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Signs of progress as courts support barrister’s childcare responsibilities – Legal Futures

Posted June 24th, 2021 in barristers, breastfeeding, children, courts, flexible working, news, women by sally

‘A barrister has spoken about her “really positive” recent experiences of courts accommodating “the practicalities and balancing acts being carried out by those with children”.’

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Legal Futures, 24th June 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Justice Secretary says it would be wrong for him to push for more rape prosecutions – The Independent

‘Labour accuses Robert Buckland of U-turn after he says he will not use his political position to urge more prosecutions and convictions.’

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The Independent, 20th June 2021

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Speech by the Master of the Rolls at the London School of Economics – Recovery or Radical Transformation: the effect of COVID-19 on Justice Systems – Courts & Tribunals Judiciary

‘Speech by the Master of the Rolls at the London School of Economics – Recovery or Radical Transformation: the effect of COVID-19 on Justice Systems.’

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Courts & Tribunals Judiciary, 17th June 2021

Source: www.judiciary.uk

Individuals and the court process: Proposed changes to CPR 45 in light of recent amendments to the overriding objective – St Philips Barristers

‘Benjamin Clayton discusses proposed amendments to CPR 45, in the context of the recent update pertaining to vulnerable witnesses. Such changes not only take greater account of individual differences, but also put to bed long standing arguments between claimants and defendants.’

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St Philips Barristers, 4th June 2021

Source: st-philips.com

Small claims court delays continue to increase – Litigation Futures

‘Delays in cases going through the civil court continued to rise in the first quarter of 2021, throwing a potentially huge spanner in the works of the whiplash reforms which came into force last week.’

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Litigation Futures, 7th June 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Lord Chancellor outlines his plans to recover the justice system from COVID-19 – Ministry of Justice

‘The Lord Chancellor spoke at the Law Society to thank the hidden heroes who kept justice moving during the COVID-19 pandemic and outlined his plans for recovering the system, as well as propelling it towards a better future.’

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Ministry of Justice, 4th June 2021

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Rape cases in England and Wales will be hit hard by backlog, says police chief – The Guardian

‘Rape and domestic violence cases in England and Wales will be among the worst hit from the growing backlog in the judicial system, and trials could soon start collapsing because of severe delays, the new crime commissioner for England’s second biggest force has warned.’

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The Guardian, 6th June 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

Day to day data on remote hearings in the family courts – Transparency Project

‘HM Courts and Tribunals Service have recently published statistics about the number of hearings conducted remotely, ie by audio, video or on paper, compared with physical in-person hearings, over the course of the coronavirus lockdown. The statistics cover civil and criminal cases as well as family law cases, but it is possible to extract from them a picture of how the family justice system, in particular, has responded.’

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Transparency Project, 4th June 2021

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Non-party access to court documents – OUT-LAW.com

Posted May 21st, 2021 in chambers articles, courts, documents, news by tracey

‘People or organisations who are not a party to a piece of litigation (non-parties) in England and wales can obtain copies of some documents relating to civil proceedings that are held at court. Depending on the type of document requested, the permission of the court may be required. Until fairly recently, the matter had received only limited consideration in Scotland, however, the position there appears to be similar although there are fewer court rules covering the situation and much will depend on the nature of the document sought and the identity of the party seeking it.’

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OUt-LAW.com, 20th May 2021

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Government considers plans to create national hub for court judgments – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 10th, 2021 in artificial intelligence, courts, judgments, Ministry of Justice, news by tracey

‘Plans to create the first single comprehensive repository of England and Wales court judgments are being considered by the government, the Gazette understands. Such a service, run by the National Archives, would publish almost every decision made by courts and tribunals, unlike the current selective system run by the British and Irish Legal Information Institute (BAILII).’

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Law Society's Gazette, 10th May 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Nicholas Reed Langen: Confronting Climate Change in the Courts – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘Talk is cheap. Governments, particularly wealthy, western ones, have been quick to make promises on climate change. They swear blind that they understand the threat the world faces, and that they will implement a policy response commensurate with it. Few nations have adopted this rhetoric as determinedly as the UK, with the British government promising to transform the UK into a net-zero country by 2050, an oath enshrined in law through the passing of the Climate Change Act 2008 (Order 2019) by Parliament in the summer of 2019.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 27th April 2021

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Covid-19 and the courts – The House of Lords Constitution Committee’s report – Transparency Project

Posted April 14th, 2021 in constitutional law, coronavirus, courts, inquiries, news, select committees by sally

‘In a report published at the end of last month the House of Lords Constitution Committee made a number of criticisms of the way the courts have responded to the coronavirus pandemic and the suspension of live hearings necessitated by the lockdown, and made various recommendations as to the need for more resources to reduce the backlog of cases and create a better justice system for the future.’

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Transparency Project, 11th April 2021

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

The role of courts at the seat of arbitration – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 14th, 2021 in appeals, arbitration, case management, courts, jurisdiction, news by sally

‘It is well established in international commercial arbitration that the courts at the seat of arbitration will have supervisory jurisdiction over the arbitral proceedings, including hearing any challenges to the validity of the arbitral award. In the recent case of Minister of Finance (Incorporated) and 1 Malaysia Development Berhad v International Petroleum Investment Company and Aabar Investments PJS [2019] EWCA Civ 2080, the Court of Appeal (Sir Geoffrey Vos, chancellor of the High Court, Newey and Males LLJ) considered the issue of the courts’ powers in section 67 (challenging the award: substantive jurisdiction) and section 68 (challenging the award: serious irregularity) of the Arbitration Act 1996. This article focuses on the Court of Appeal’s important discussion of the role and functions of the court at the seat of arbitration and the impact this has on the law and practice of international commercial arbitration.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 12th April 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

I’ve seen how the UK justice system is crumbling. Why doesn’t the government take action? – Dominic Grieve – The Guardian

Posted April 6th, 2021 in budgets, civil justice, courts, criminal justice, legal aid, news, prisons by sally

‘From decrepit court buildings to legal aid cuts, the service has been brought to its knees. And there’s little hope of change.’

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The Guardian, 5th April 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com