The quality of advocacy – BBC Law in Action

Posted June 20th, 2012 in advocacy, fees, legal profession, news, quality assurance by sally

“As the lines blur between the work of solicitors and barristers , Joshua Rozenberg asks whether a cheaper service provides better value for money or is it leading to poor representation in court and ultimately miscarriages of justice? He discusses the issues with Baroness Deech of the Bar Standards Board, a solicitor advocate Sundeep Bhatia and Elisabeth Davies, Chair of the Consumer panel at the Legal Services Board. He also speaks to senior appeal court judge Lord Justice Moses and asks about the best way to assess quality and what dangers lie ahead if suffers.”

Listen

BBC Law in Action, 19th June 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Sticking to our principles – The Bar Council

Posted June 6th, 2012 in fees, legal profession, Legal Services Board, news, quality assurance by sally

“Examining the LSB’s commitment to standards and to quality; the LSB decision to continue to permit referral fees; and a meeting with the new Chief Executive of the Legal Services Commission.”

Full story (PDF)

The Bar Council, June 2012

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

Litigation funders become big business, enjoying booming market in UK – The Guardian

Posted May 26th, 2012 in champerty, costs, damages, legal profession, news, third parties by sally

“Champerty used to be a crime. Now it is known as third-party litigation funding and has developed into an investment industry backed by up to £500m of investor cash looking for lucrative courtroom opportunities.”

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The Guardian, 25th May 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Lawcast 202: Gary Slapper on the fabric of law in society and weird cases – Charon QC

Posted May 23rd, 2012 in judiciary, legal education, legal profession, podcasts by sally

“Today I am talking with Professor Gary Slapper, Director of NYU. We have a wide ranging discussion on the fabric of law in society, the College of Law sale, the proposed new ‘practice oriented’ degrees and their value, if any, and consider the quality of judges. Gary also introduces a few unusual cases towards the end.”

Podcast

Charon QC, 22nd May 2012

Source: www.charonqc.wordpress.com

“Charon QC” is the blogging pseudonym of Mike Semple Piggot, editor of insitelaw newswire.

Legal aid cuts: if lawyers don’t defend justice for all, who will?

“A pillar of postwar society has been shattered by the legal aid cuts: that’s why a strike is now on the cards.”

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The Guardian, 22nd May 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Social exclusivity ‘rife’ in profession – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 22nd, 2012 in diversity, legal profession, news by sally

“Social exclusivity is increasing in the legal profession, according to a new analysis of lawyers’ schooling published today.”

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Law Scoiety’s Gazette, 22nd May 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Grieve spells out ‘modernise or die’ message to adversarial system – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 11th, 2012 in criminal justice, legal profession, news, solicitors by tracey

“The adversarial criminal justice system will survive only if practitioners embrace modernisation, the attorney general warned solicitors last week.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 10th May 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Lawyers give muted response to legislative plans in Queen’s Speech – The Lawyer

Posted May 11th, 2012 in bills, legal profession, news, speeches by tracey

“Competition reform, secret courts and changes to defamation pricked the ears of lawyers during the Queen’s Speech yesterday.”

Full story

The Lawyer, 10th May 2012

Source: www.thelawyer.com

Why lawyers can’t coach witnesses – The Guardian

Posted May 9th, 2012 in inquiries, legal profession, news, professional conduct, witnesses by sally

“If lawyers are preparing David Cameron for his appearance before Lord Justice Leveson, they are on perilous ground.”

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The Guardian, 8th May 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Flexible working patterns – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 26th, 2012 in flexible working, legal profession, news, solicitors, women by sally

“In the legal profession’s workaholic culture, achieving work/life balance has always been a struggle – and still is. The term ‘work/life balance’ has such negative connotations in private practice that some firms have banned it from their vocabulary. At Ashurst, for example, they refer to ‘work/life fit’. Speaking at the International Women in Law Summit last month, Ashurst senior partner Charlie Geffen said how one ‘fits home life into work’ was ‘a more honest’ description of what was realistic in law firms, particularly in transactional work.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 26th April 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

How do you get lawyers to do what is ‘right’? – The Guardian

Posted April 10th, 2012 in legal education, legal profession, news, professional conduct by sally

“UCL Centre for Ethics and Law hopes to create a culture where lawyers do more than complying with the minimum they can get away with.”

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The Guardian, 5th April 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Eldon Lecture on workforce diversity – Legal Services Board

Posted March 28th, 2012 in diversity, legal education, legal profession, news by sally

Eldon Lecture on workforce diversity (PDF)

Lecture by LSB Chairman David Edmonds

Legal Services Board, 22nd March 2012

Source: www.legalservicesboard.org.uk

Attend our handbook and entity regulation roadshows – Bar Standards Board

Posted March 21st, 2012 in legal profession, news by sally

“We have launched a consultation on a new Code of Conduct for barristers, which includes our proposals for regulating new types of business structure.”

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Bar Standards Board, 20th March 2012

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Employed Bar Looks to the Future at Annual Conference – The Bar Council

Posted March 21st, 2012 in barristers, legal profession, news by sally

“The Employed Barristers’ Committee (EBC) of the Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, hosts its annual conference in London tomorrow, entitled “A Week in the Life of an Employed Barrister”. This year’s conference will focus on the effect of the changing legal and regulatory landscape on the day-to-day work of an employed barrister, and will include a keynote address by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer QC.”

Full story

The Bar Council, 20th March 2012

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

Females make up just 20 per cent of honorary silk nominations – The Lawyer

Posted March 21st, 2012 in diversity, legal profession, news, queen's counsel, women by sally

“Just 20 per cent of the people nominated for the honorary QC title in the past three years were women, The Lawyer can reveal.”

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The Lawyer, 20th March 2012

Source: www.thelawyer.com

LSB welcomes the release of the Social Mobility Toolkit – Legal Services Board

Posted March 2nd, 2012 in diversity, legal profession, press releases by tracey

“The Legal Services Board (LSB) today welcomes the publication of the Social Mobility Toolkit, a resource aimed at creating a step-change in social mobility across the professions. The proposal for the publication emerged from an LSB- chaired group bringing representatives from the professions together to discuss the implications of the Milburn Report on Fair Access to the Professions for regulators and professional bodies as they seek to improve access for non-traditional candidates, as well as to ensure they become better represented at higher levels of industry.”

Full story

Legal Services Board, 2nd March 2012

Source: www.legalservicesboard.org.uk

 

No solicitors make the silk round – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 1st, 2012 in diversity, legal profession, news, queen's counsel, solicitors by tracey

“Not a single solicitor was among the 88 new Queen’s Counsel appointments announced today. Of the 214 applicants, only two came from solicitor advocates; neither was successful. Since 2008, six solicitors have been made QC. Last year two out of the five who applied were successful, while in the previous competition one from the 10 who applied succeeded. Dame Joan Higgins, chair of the QC selection panel, said: ‘The panel is concerned that there appears to be considerable hesitancy on the part of solicitor advocates to apply for silk, even where they may be well qualified to do so.’”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 29th February 2012

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Judge criticises lawyer fees as “out of kilter” – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 17th, 2012 in costs, fees, legal profession, news, personal injuries by sally

“A senior judge has warned there is ‘something out of kilter’ in the civil justice system after hearing a case in which lawyers were paid almost six times more than their client.”

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Daily Telegraph, 16th February 2012

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Ratings scheme for advocates will be misused by criminals, judge warns – The Guardian

Posted February 14th, 2012 in advocacy, judges, legal profession, news, quality assurance by sally

“A senior judge has warned that a new ratings scheme for advocates will encourage more criminals to appeal against their convictions and create a generation of sycophantic barristers desperate to impress judges at the expense of their clients’ interests.”

Full story

The Guardian, 13th February 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

The bar can bridge the gap – The Guardian

Posted February 10th, 2012 in advocacy, legal profession, news by tracey

“Barristers should stop insulting solicitor advocates and take steps to merge the two professions.”

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The Guardian, 8th February 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk