One in eight private rented homes poses ‘serious threat’ to occupants’ health, damning report finds – The Independent

‘More than one in eight privately rented homes in England pose a “serious threat” to the health and safety of their occupants, a damning report has revealed.’

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The Independent, 13th April 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Mediating Clinical Negligence Claims – Ropewalk Clinical Negligence Blog

‘The NHS in England faces paying out £4.3bn in legal fees to settle outstanding claims of clinical negligence: so reported the BBC in January 2020 following a Freedom of Information Request. Estimates published in 2019 put the total cost of outstanding compensation claims at £83bn; NHS England’s total budget in 2018-19 was £129bn.’

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Ropewalk Clinical Negligence Blog, 7th April 2022

Source: www.ropewalk.co.uk

Publicly-funded criminal barrister numbers drop by 11% – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 11th, 2022 in barristers, budgets, coronavirus, criminal justice, legal aid, news, statistics by tracey

‘The number of barristers practising full-time in publicly-funded criminal law dropped by 11% last year, according to analysis by the Bar Council. In 2021, only 2,400 barristers reported that their practice was entirely publicly-funded criminal work, down from from 2,670 the previous year.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 8th April 2022

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Article by Jonathan Lewis – Non-party disclosure orders in judicial review proceedings (R (AB) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care) – Henderson Chambers

‘Two children sought permission to judicially review various decisions made by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care relating to provision of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines to children. To pursue their claim, they sought disclosure of various statistics from the Office for National Statistics (the ONS). As the ONS was not a party to proceedings, they made an application under CPR 31.17 for disclosure. Mr Justice Swift dismissed that application on the basis that the information sought was not necessary for the fair determination of the questions of law raised by the pleaded case.’

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Henderson Chambers, 31st March 2022

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Female black and Asian prisoners detail racism endured in landmark report – The Independent

Posted April 8th, 2022 in equality, news, prisons, race discrimination, racism, statistics, women by sally

‘Black and Asian women in prison are experiencing racial discrimination at the hands of staff members, a damning new report has found.’

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The Independent, 8th April 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Four in 10 pupils have experienced or witnessed bullying at the Bar – Legal Futures

Posted April 4th, 2022 in barristers, bullying, equality, harassment, news, pupillage, statistics by sally

‘Nearly four in 10 pupils have either personally experienced or observed bullying, harassment and/or discrimination (BHD), Bar Council research has revealed.’

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Legal Futures, 4th April 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

BSB scraps student aptitude test despite Bar Council opposition – Legal Futures

Posted April 4th, 2022 in barristers, legal education, news, statistics by sally

‘The Bar Standards Board (BSB) is to ditch the Bar course aptitude test (BCAT) as it is no longer acting as a “filter” of those likely to fail the vocational component of their training.’

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Legal Futures, 1st April 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Legal aid work “close to being unsustainable”, new campaign warns – Legal Futures

‘A new campaign for increased legal aid funding has been launched after the findings of a unique census showed the market will not be sustainable without more government action.’

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Legal Futures, 31st March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Changes needed so Windrush payout scheme is ‘efficient and effective’ – report – The Independent

Posted March 25th, 2022 in colonies, compensation, delay, government departments, immigration, news, statistics by tracey

‘The Windrush compensation scheme has “structural weaknesses” and needs reform so it can be “efficient and effective”, according to a report.’

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The Independent, 24th March 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Mobile loophole for gaming drivers is closed – BBC News

‘A loophole allowing drivers to escape punishment for handheld phone use if they are taking a photo or playing a game has closed in Great Britain.’

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BBC News, 25th March 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

80% of UK police accused of domestic abuse kept jobs, figures show – The Guardian

Posted March 18th, 2022 in disciplinary procedures, domestic violence, news, police, statistics by tracey

‘More than 1,000 police officers and staff accused of domestic abuse are still serving in law enforcement, new figures show. Eight out of 10 kept their jobs after the allegations were made, with a small fraction being disciplined or dismissed.’

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The Guardian, 17th March 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Stalking: Five orders issued compared to 7,000 complaints – BBC News

Posted March 16th, 2022 in news, police, stalking, statistics, victims by tracey

‘Only five stalking protection orders were issued in Wales last year despite more than 7,000 reported offences.’

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BBC News, 16th March 2022

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Anti-stalking orders ‘fail to protect women from danger’ – The Guardian

Posted March 14th, 2022 in government departments, news, police, stalking, statistics, victims, women by tracey

‘New powers to shield stalking victims from dangerous perpetrators were “mis-sold” by the government and are failing to provide rapid protection, according to a damning report sent to the Home Office.’

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The Guardian, 12th March 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

8% of judges report facing bullying and/or harassment – Legal Futures

Posted March 10th, 2022 in bullying, harassment, judiciary, news, statistics by tracey

‘Around one in 12 judicial office-holders have experienced bullying and/or harassment in the last 12 months, while 5% reported that they had faced discrimination, according to research published yesterday.’

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Legal Futures, 10th March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Just over half of judicial review judgments are available to the public on Bailii: report – Local Government Lawyer

‘Of the 5,408 unique judgments given by the Administrative Court from 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2020, only 55% (3,001) are available to the public on BAILII, research has suggested.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 8th March 2022

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

MPs slate Ministry of Justice over Crown Court backlog and judges – Legal Futures

‘MPs today slated the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) “meagre ambition” to reduce the Crown Court case backlog and warned that efforts to recruit judges will ignore the need to improve diversity.’

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Legal Futures, 9th March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Research Briefing: Special Educational Needs: support in England – House of Commons Library

‘This House of Commons Library briefing sets out the system of support for children and young people in England aged 0-25 with special educational needs (SEN).’

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House of Commons Library , 1st March 2022

Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk

Justice system in England and Wales ‘risks causing fresh trauma to girls’ – The Guardian

‘The vast majority of vulnerable young women and girls in the criminal justice system in England and Wales have previously suffered abuse and violence and are in danger of being retraumatised by the experience, charities say.’

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The Guardian, 4th March 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

LSB warns Bar Council over objections to “unreasonable” PCF rise – Legal Futures

Posted March 2nd, 2022 in barristers, budgets, consultations, fees, Legal Services Board, news, statistics by sally

‘The Legal Services Board (LSB) has approved a 4.5% increase in the practising certificate fee (PCF) for barristers, while warning the Bar Council that the exercise of its regulatory functions, such as setting the fee, “should not be prejudiced” by its representative role.’

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Legal Futures, 2nd March 2022

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Environment Agency downgrading 93% of prosecutions for serious pollution – The Guardian

‘England’s Environment Agency has downgraded 93% of prosecutions for serious pollution over four years, despite recommendations from frontline staff for the perpetrators to face the highest sanction, a leaked report seen by the Guardian reveals.’

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The Guardian, 2nd March 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com