Lawyers forced to pay out £1m in no win, no fee disputes – The Guardian

Posted January 6th, 2014 in compensation, complaints, costs, fees, legal aid, legal ombudsman, news, solicitors by sally

‘Lawyers were ordered to pay almost £1m in compensation to disappointed clients last year owing to failures in no win, no fee agreements, according to figures released by the legal ombudsman.’

Full story

The Guardian, 6th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Barristers and solicitors walk out over cuts to legal aid fees – The Guardian

‘Criminal courts across England and Wales will be severely disrupted on Monday morning when barristers and solicitors stage an unprecedented mass walkout in protest at government plans to slash legal aid fees by up to 30%.’

Full story

The Guardian, 5th January 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Young v Young: can “eye-watering” divorce costs be justified? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

‘A 7 year divorce case culminating in a 20 day final hearing with £6.5m spent on one side’s legal costs alone. In the aftermath of Young v Young, what should be done by the judiciary and practitioners to make fees in family proceedings proportionate?’

Full story

Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 16th December 2013

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

Proceedings brought by X – WLR Daily

Posted December 16th, 2013 in data protection, EC law, fees, fines, freedom of information, law reports by sally

Proceedings brought by X (Case C-486/12); [2013] WLR (D) 485

‘Article 12(a) of Parliament and Council Directive 95/46/EC of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data did not preclude the levying of fees in respect of the communication of personal data by a public authority. Pursuant to article 12(a), in order to ensure that fees levied when the right to access personal data was exercised were not excessive for the purposes of that provision, the level of those fees could not exceed the cost of communicating such data.’

WLR Daily, 12th December 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Committee says proposed legal aid cuts may breach human rights – The Guardian

‘Chris Grayling is a man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing, the chair of an influential all-party backbench committee has suggested. Oscar Wilde’s cynical jibe was twice put to the justice secretary when he gave evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights on 26 November and was then repeated by Dr Hywel Francis, a Labour MP, when he launched its report today.’

Full story

The Guardian, 13th December 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Back & forth – New Law Journal

Posted December 12th, 2013 in employment, employment tribunals, fees, news, redundancy, tribunals by sally

‘Chris Bryden & Michael Salter discuss some of the key developments of 2013 & share a few predictions.’

Full story

New Law Journal, 11th December 2013

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Solicitors to join walkout over MoJ plans to cut legal aid fees by up to 30% – The Guardian

Posted December 10th, 2013 in barristers, fees, industrial action, legal aid, news, solicitors by tracey

‘Criminal courts across England and Wales will be disrupted for half a day next month when thousands of solicitors join barristers in a mass walkout over government plans to cut legal aid fees by up to 30%.’

Full story

The Guardian, 6th December 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Government proposes higher court fees for commercial cases – OUT-LAW.com

Posted December 6th, 2013 in civil justice, company law, consultations, courts, fees, news by tracey

‘Companies seeking to recover large sums through the civil courts could be charged up to £20,000 in fees under proposals put forward by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 6th December 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Court fees: proposals for reform – Ministry of Justice

Posted December 4th, 2013 in budgets, consultations, costs, courts, fees, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

‘The courts play a vital role in our democracy. They provide access to justice for those who need it, help to maintain social order and support the proper functioning of the economy.’

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 3rd December 2013

Source: http://consult.justice.gov.uk

Court fees set to soar for commercial litigation – Litigation Futures

Posted December 4th, 2013 in bills, consultations, costs, courts, fees, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

‘Court fees for litigants in commercial money claims could rise from under £3,000 to more than £21,000 under plans by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) for a percentage-based fee system.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 4th December 2013

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Chambers in scrap with MoJ over reduced rates for Very High Cost Cases – The Lawyer

Posted December 4th, 2013 in barristers, costs, fees, legal aid, Ministry of Justice, news, solicitors by sally

‘A number of high profile criminal sets have clashed with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) due to its circulation of a list of practitioners who might undertake Very High Cost Cases, which are now subject to reduced rates.’

Full story

The Lawyer, 3rd December 2013

Source: www.thelawyer.com

Support for vulnerable women and taxpayers in court fees changes – Ministry of Justice

Posted December 3rd, 2013 in civil justice, consultations, courts, domestic violence, fees, injunctions, news by sally

‘People taking high value cases through civil courts in England and Wales will be expected to pay much more towards their running costs, Courts Minister Shailesh Vara has announced – while the fees for domestic violence injunctions will be scrapped.’

Full story

Ministry of Justice, 3rd December 2013

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

All out – barristers step up legal aid opposition with morning of ‘non-attendance’ – Legal Futures

Posted December 3rd, 2013 in barristers, fees, industrial action, legal aid, news by sally

‘The Criminal Bar Association (CBA) has announced a morning of ‘non-attendance’ on the first day of the new court term next year in a major escalation of its opposition to the government’s legal aid cuts.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 2nd December 2013

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Regina (Members of the Committee of Care North East Northumberland) v Northumberland County Council – WLR Daily

Posted November 29th, 2013 in care homes, fees, law reports, local government, social services by sally

Regina (Members of the Committee of Care North East Northumberland) v Northumberland County Council [2013] WLR (D) 460

“The Court of Appeal gave guidance as to how to assess whether a local authority had (i) complied with its statutory duty to provide accommodation and social care services to adults in its area who, by reason of age, illness, disability or any other circumstances, were in need of care and attention which was not otherwise available to them, and (ii) followed guidance contained in a local authority circular, by having ‘due regard’ to the actual costs of providing care and other local factors.”

WLR Daily, 27th November 2013

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Litigation Trends Survey – The Jackson Effect – New Law Journal

Posted November 28th, 2013 in budgets, costs, fees, law firms, news by tracey

‘In the first of NLJ / LSLA’s litigation trends surveys, James Baxter charts how firms and practitioners are navigating Jackson LJ’s revolutionary road-map of change.’

Full text

New Law Journal, 30th October 2013

Source: www.newlawjournal.co.uk

Chancery Lane issues advice on barristers’ VHCC protest – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 28th, 2013 in barristers, fees, industrial action, Law Society, legal aid, news, solicitors by tracey

‘Firms should treat the withdrawal of barristers from very high cost cases (VHCCs) in protest over fee cuts like any other change of legal team, the Law Society has today advised.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 27th November 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Court of Appeal upholds strict costs rule in Mitchell case – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 27th, 2013 in appeals, budgets, costs, defamation, fees, media, news, solicitors, time limits by tracey

‘The Court of Appeal today upheld a strict costs judgment in a landmark case which establishes the court’s post-Jackson hardline approach to costs budgeting.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 27th November 2013

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government to legislate to cap the cost of payday loans – OUT-LAW.com

‘The Government will introduce legislation to cap the cost of payday loans to borrowers, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 27th November 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Justice costs: Fury as lawyers’ fees top £850 an hour – The Independent

Posted November 27th, 2013 in budgets, costs, fees, law firms, legal aid, news, solicitors by tracey

‘Britain’s biggest law firms are shamelessly exploiting the maxim that “you get what you pay for”, with hourly fees at record levels of £850 an hour, according to new research.’

Full story

The Independent, 26th November 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

BSB closes “anomaly” that would have forced barristers to accept VHCC fee cut – Legal Futures

Posted November 26th, 2013 in barristers, fees, legal aid, news by tracey

‘The Bar Standards Board has moved to close a “regulatory anomaly” that would have temporarily seen barristers forced to accept the controversial new legal aid rates set by the government for very high-cost cases (VHCCs).’

Full story

Legal Futures, 26th November 2013

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk