Disciplined solicitor blames failings on legal aid cuts – Legal Futures

Posted September 25th, 2018 in costs, disciplinary procedures, expert witnesses, legal aid, news, solicitors by sally

‘A criminal sole practitioner has been fined for offences including failure to distribute legal aid payments for professional disbursements, which he blamed on having laid off a manager after the firm suffered from government cutbacks.’

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Legal Futures, 25th September 2018

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Expert who sent first draft of evidence to solicitors “not a hired gun” – Litigation Futures

Posted August 17th, 2018 in drafting, evidence, expert witnesses, news, solicitors by sally

‘It was “a serious transgression” for an expert witness to make changes to his evidence after sending a first draft to his client’s solicitors, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 16th August 2018

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Advocate and expert – asking for trouble – Nearly Legal

Posted August 14th, 2018 in advocacy, expert witnesses, news, rates, surveyors, tribunals, valuation by sally

‘Non-domestic rating is not something we usually cover on this blog. It is, after all, not about housing. But the decision of the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) in Gardiner & Theobold LLP v Jackson (Valuation Officer) [2018] UKUT 253 (LC) goes much wider.’

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Nearly Legal, 13th August 2018

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Senior judge warns experts over conditional fee agreements – Litigation Futures

Posted August 9th, 2018 in disciplinary procedures, expert witnesses, fees, news by tracey

‘The president of the Upper Tribunal’s Lands Chamber has warned expert witnesses that it could refer them to their professional bodies if they break the rules on conditional fees.’

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Litigation Futures, 8th August 2018

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Paediatricians as Expert Witnesses in the Family Courts in England and Wales: Standards, competencies and expectations – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted August 9th, 2018 in children, doctors, expert witnesses, family courts by tracey

‘Produced by the Family Justice Council and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, this guide directs the reader to discipline-specific information with regards to paediatricians as expert witnesses. It is intended to be used by all stakeholders as a companion document to the generic expert witness standards set out in Part 25 of the Family Procedure Rules.’

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Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 7th August 2018

Source: www.judiciary.uk

Capacity in the context of Prader-Willi syndrome – Family Law

Posted July 31st, 2018 in disabled persons, expert witnesses, mental health, news, social services by sally

‘Ella Anderson, barrister at Spire Barristers, discusses the practical implications of the judgment in Re FX [2017] EWCOP 36 – the first ever reported decision to consider questions of capacity in the context of Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare genetic disorder which causes a range of physical, learning and behavioural difficulties.’

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Family Law, 30th July 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

The risks to litigants in person when cross-examining psychologist expert witnesses – Family Law

Posted June 26th, 2018 in cross-examination, expert witnesses, news, psychiatrists by sally

‘Many psychologist expert witnesses, from professional bodies (British Psychological Society) to more informal expert witness networks, have raised concerns about the impact of this practice. The concerns fall into three main areas: the potential harm of conducting such a cross-examination to the litigants in person (LiPs) in question; potential breaches of ethical conduct for the psychologist expert; and the potential impact on the quality of the evidence. This paper hopes to set out these issues and invites discussion as to potential guidance and remedy.’

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Family Law, 28th June 2018

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

‘Smoke and mirror’ tactics of drink-drive defence teams criticised – The Guardian

‘The “smoke and mirror” tactics of defence lawyers in drink-driving cases have been criticised by the government’s forensic science regulator, who has launched an investigation into the work of a number of expert witnesses.’

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The Guardian, 18th June 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

I was re-reading the Ikarian Reefer only last week – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted June 6th, 2018 in expert witnesses, news, personal injuries, ships by tracey

‘Sometimes the old cases are the best ones and that surely has to be true of the Ikarian Reefer. Even now, over 25 years since the judgment at first instance was handed down (and countless other pieces of guidance have been published) we still see experts getting it wrong.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 5th June 2015

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Finance and Divorce Update, April 2018 – Family Law Week

‘Claire Molyneux Senior Associate, and Naomi Shelton, Associate, Mills & Reeve LLP analyse the news and case law relating to financial remedies and divorce during March 2018.’

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Family Law Week, 15th April 2018

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Saunders v Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 343 (QB) – Zenith Chambers

Posted March 20th, 2018 in burden of proof, expert witnesses, health, negligence, news by sally

‘Burdens of proof, res ipsa loquitur and experts’ joint statements: Saunders v Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 343 (QB).’

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Zenith Chambers, 6th March 2018

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Who is it that doesn’t like Mondays? – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted March 19th, 2018 in artistic works, copyright, expert witnesses, intellectual property, news by sally

‘Music nerds may remember with fondness the great copyright wrangle involving Procol Harum and Bach. The focus of that dispute was the organ line in the 1967 hit Whiter Shade of Pale, and Blackburne J’s judgment is imperative reading for anyone interested in the law’s dominion over music, ideas or intellectual property in general. Go to the end of this post for a reminder of that entertaining litigation and its outcome.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 18th March 2018

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Burdens of proof, res ipsa loquitur and experts’ joint statements: Saunders v Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 343 (QB) – Zenith PI

‘Two discrete procedural points arise out of Yip J’s decision in Saunders v Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 343 (QB). They restate principles which are of considerable practical significance for those preparing and litigating civil claims.’

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Zenith PI, 6th March 2018

Source: zenithpi.wordpress.com

The challenge of expert evidence – Counsel

Posted February 12th, 2018 in cross-examination, evidence, expert witnesses, news by tracey

‘Avoid the pitfalls of probabilistic reasoning and examine expert evidence with more confidence: Colin McCaul QC introduces new guidance from the Inns of Court College of Advocacy and the Royal Statistical Society.’

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Counsel, February 2018

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Unreliable forensic toxicology tests – next steps – Family Law

‘Family analysis: The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has announced that it is treating some hair strand test results as potentially unreliable. Maud Davis, partner at TV Edwards LLP looks at what this could mean for proceedings involving children where there was a reliance on hair strand testing, and suggests next steps for family practitioners advising in this area.’

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Family Law, 7th December 2017

Source: www.familylaw.co.uk

‘We believe you harmed your child’: the war over shaken baby convictions – The Guardian

Posted December 8th, 2017 in child abuse, child cruelty, evidence, expert witnesses, forensic science, news by sally

‘Expert witnesses who claim parents have been wrongly accused have been vilified and struck off. But the science is anything but certain. What happens to the truth when experts can’t agree?’

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The Guardian, 8th December 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

New hot-tubbing and ‘costs of costs management’ rules come into force – Litigation Futures

‘Variations that judges can adopt in orders for concurrent expert evidence – known as ‘hot-tubbing’ – came into force last week, along with a new provision that clarifies how the costs of costs management should be calculated.’

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Litigation Futures, 1st December 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Court of Appeal rejects NHS challenge to taking out clinical negligence ATE at start of case – Litigation Futures

Posted November 29th, 2017 in costs, expert witnesses, insurance, negligence, news by sally

‘Clinical negligence claimants can continue to take out after-the-event (ATE) insurance for expert reports when they enter into conditional fee agreements, and premiums will be recoverable even if the case settles before the reports are commissioned, the Court of Appeal has decided in a major ruling today.’

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Litigation Futures, 28th November 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Expert Shopping Considered Again – by Fiona Ross – Park Square Barristers

Posted November 23rd, 2017 in civil procedure rules, expert witnesses, news, personal injuries by sally

‘An action was brought by a Claimant child for serious injuries she sustained in a road traffic accident. She recovered 90% of her claim in a liability trial however it was agreed between the parties that a preliminary issue should be tried as to whether her severe developmental abnormalities had been caused by the accident.’

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Park Square Barristers, 22nd November 2017

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Age Assessment: Dental Assessments, Appearance and the Benefit of the Doubt – Garden Court Chambers

‘AS was born in Afghanistan. His father, who had worked as a commander in the police, was kidnapped by the Taliban. The family were later informed that he had been killed. The Taliban came looking for AS and it was decided that he should leave the country. He arrived in the UK on 7th September 2015 and claimed asylum. He was taken into the care of Kent County Council. His stated age of 15 was not accepted and an age assessment was undertaken, as a result of which he was found to be 17 with a date of birth of 7th September 1998. Judicial review proceedings were issued challenging this decision. During the course of proceedings, Kent changed its position and argued that he was most likely to be aged 24.’

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Garden Court Chambers, 10th November 2017

Source: www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk