The Law Business: 28th Jan to 3rd February

Welcome to the year's fourth edition of the weekly 'Law Business' column brought to you by the SundayLawReview team. This week, news of QASA being delayed until September formed the major discussion point amongst the criminal law fraternity. A very interesting annual survey on staff satisfaction at the Ministry of Justice revealed low levels of satisfaction with a very high percentage of staff refusing to recommend the department as a great place to work. National firm Cobbetts announced the appointment of administrators at the start of the weak despite posting solid financial results last December. 

 

At the start of the week lawyers in Kenya had been asked to dress in a more formal manner when representing clients. In solidarity with the profession we tried on many an outfit all along the Chancery Lane shops but in the end, decided to return to our worn out jeans and sandals. Total relaxation is absolutely crucial for this team when taking a serious look at what happened in the business of law within UK as reported by online legal publications throughout last week.


The most interesting articles on developments, compliance, business and the study of law including articles cited within TheLawMap 'focus of the day': 

  • Bar Council and Law Society at loggerheads as standard terms of contract come into force. Full story - Legal Futures
  • Costs budgeting: why judges need more training. Now that we are only two months from Jackson D-Day, solicitors are waking up to the prospect of costs budgeting. Full story - Law Gazette
  • A recent case clarifies the point at which employee consultation should start in regard to redundancies. In a recent case (USA v Nolan), the advocate general of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) Paulo Mengozzi reminded us of a key principle in any restructuring: a company’s communication strategy. Full story - The Lawyer
  • Libel litigant exceeded costs budget ‘for good reason’. The Court of Appeal has ruled that a libel litigant who greatly exceeded her costs budget could depart from it ‘with good reason’. Full story - Solicitors Journal
  • ISPs and defamation law: hold fire, Robert Jay. Defining internet service providers as publishers within defamation law would be totally unworkable. Full story - Guardian Law
  • A dissenting Judge - why I’ll miss the Lord Chief Justice when he hangs up the gown and retires in September | Law Gazette http://t.co/lMI9We5e 
  • Tougher test for family expert witnesses | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/BV3ADyj9 
  • Ombudsman predicts more cases as compensation limit rises | Law Gazette http://t.co/pAVE9vd6 
  • Revised QASA timetable confirms new 10-month delay | Legal Futures http://t.co/bVTAmsBg 
  • Top-100 English firm slams into buffers | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/DjtokGAE 
  • Jackson LJ condemns ‘massive legal fees’ in sandwich shop battle | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/YpBVhfl9 
  • Confusion over implementation date of new Part 36 rule | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/j8S7IOCB 
  • Brand loyalty – and the ski-jacket owners’ club | Law Gazette http://t.co/cmiWkYYp
  • Civil justice advisers condemn PI fixed fees as ‘unrealistic’ | Law Gazette http://t.co/PMDA2Rxu 
  • Government unveils revamped legal panel | The Lawyer http://t.co/QFLXRd97
  • Values and Lawyers Ethics: A Second Brief Survey | Lawyer Watch  http://t.co/i39Q4vPn
  • SRA needs to hold "overzealous lawyers" to account for advice that enables client wrongdoing | Legal Futures http://t.co/nI9eNwwV 
  • Bar Council and Law Society at loggerheads as standard terms of contract come into force | Legal Futures http://t.co/805m6R8s
  • Who's having a Bud? Intellectual property | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/uux0i2eV 
  • Push for negligence advice to be privileged | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/HcVpLRU0
  • SRA “doesn't have responsibility for trainees” at Cobbetts | The Lawyer http://t.co/0GfmVF5a 
  • College of Law encouraged by Cobbetts' treatment of trainees | The Lawyer http://t.co/QHZFG692 
  • Recruiters: Cobbetts was continuing to hire lawyers up until December | The Lawyer http://t.co/C88bVPsu
  • Supreme Court dismisses contempt appeal | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/rVhihmy3 
  • Not entirely Honest Abe | Law Gazette http://t.co/xRE2DPhY 
  • Labour warns of Justice Secretary Chris Grayling’s ‘Trojan horse’ attacks | Law Gazette http://t.co/TMpSVuUR
  • Law firms suffer fall in fees as north-south gap widens | The Scotsman http://t.co/tkEDYa39 
  • Simplify the Law owner unveils cash injection from external investor | Legal Futures http://t.co/gwG8Umb6 
  • Law Society hits out at 'inadequate' client-care rules in Bar's new public access training | Legal Futures http://t.co/dMtyICdS 
  • Small firms left at the altar as mid-sized law firms eye merger opportunities | Legal Futures http://t.co/3Zj2C7x9 
  • ATE insurance market ‘has a future’ | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/sNLYDsAE
  • Rise in corporate manslaughter cases | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/rWrgysee 
  • Enhanced criminal records checks ‘breach human rights’ | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/AVWDT78L
  • Cash rich or cash poor? Litigation funding | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/BtTYFC8N 
  • Legal aid is the key to a diverse profession | Law Gazette http://t.co/8b3rhnLk 
  • Business lobby condemns ‘opt-out’ regime in competition actions | Law Gazette http://t.co/SxHn8VpR 
  • More firms ask for help to fund tax bills | Law Gazette http://t.co/MxBhcIqu 
  • ABS specialising in claims by builders and cabbies eyes external investment | Legal Futures http://t.co/anJBavG1 
  • If at first you don't succeed... SRA tries again to increase £2,000 fining power | Legal Futures http://t.co/AEExR3yb 
  • Response from Britain's main lawyers' bodies to a proposed referendum on EU membership was surprisingly muted The Global Legal Post http://t.co/G6AsIS0o
  • Regulating litigation funding | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/dSQ6AWDk 
  • Conveyancing firms have criticised some of the country’s biggest lenders for excluding them from their business panels http://t.co/DUtewyUt 
  • Knowledge management is an increasingly important function in offering quality client service | The Lawyer http://t.co/1HLAkinl
  • Financial disputes are starting to dominate the English courts | The Lawyer http://t.co/vjzC26N0 
  • Lawyers must be sure their clients with land interests are insured against wildlife-related hold-ups | The Lawyer http://t.co/YZ0jONDy 
  • A recent case clarifies the point at which employee consultation should start in regard to redundancies | The Lawyer http://t.co/1Qg6xyYv 
  • The Supreme Court choked when it could have developed the law on legal advice privilege | The Lawyer http://t.co/aeeARsid 
  • The Lawyer Hot 100 2013 unveiled | The Lawyer http://t.co/fOnwNrKS 
  • Understanding the CPR | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/y67xxOgb
  • Costs budgeting: why judges need more training | Law Gazette http://t.co/FShy43fY
  • SRA calms referral fee fears | Law Gazette http://t.co/1hVi6DnY 
  • 1,000 firms face Santander panel exit over CQS | Law Gazette http://t.co/A87SJmOR 
  • Simplify complaints procedures, OFT tells profession | Law Gazette http://t.co/3lOvb6zD 
  • DBA caps set by government | Law Gazette http://t.co/pVqFKo9K 
  • MoJ reveals £600m in court fines are unpaid | Law Gazette http://t.co/ZNP93SAr 
  • Judicial review limits attacked | Law Gazette http://t.co/3opIMYI9 
  • Economic woes prompt firms to ditch lockstep | Law Gazette http://t.co/rLZpFS4S
  • Costs and assessing unreasonable behaviour | Law Gazette http://t.co/SLQahERO
  • Solicitors face sanction threat over COLP/COFA forms | Law Gazette http://t.co/Yl7qF3tt 
  • Legal professional privilege fight goes on | Law Gazette http://t.co/pdMcEyaU
  • Consumer panel attacks regulators for not making lawyer registers available to comparison websites | Legal Futures http://t.co/Jk9DMIFD

Articles of the week:

The UK and international articles of the week are pieces selected by @TheLawMap tweeting team based on recommendations from friends and followers of LawNewsIndex.com daily law news blog. 

  • Sixty-eight years after Auschwitz: Why we still remember | Gabriella Swerling - The Independent 
  • We don’t make our country stronger by forcing refugees into desperation | Natasha Walter - New Statesman
  • Lord chief justice: changes to judiciary 'eroding something important' | Joshua Rozenborg - The Guardian
  • Restorative Justice Is Not Forgiveness | Ted Wachtel - Huff Post

News from the Law Firms & Chambers: 

Friday 1st February
Thursday 31st January
Wednesday 30th January
Tuesday 29th January
Monday 28th January

We would like to thank all the publications cited in this week's column. Please notify via @TheLawMap Twitter handle of any errors or omissions.

 

TheLawMap Publications at a glance: 
LawNewsIndex.com - Daily Law News Archive
SundayLawReview.com - Weekly Law Business News Blog
Law Specials - A compendium of articles on Justice & Society
Wig - Daily Newspaper Focusing on Law & Society
MetaLawIndex - Informal Blog chronicling behind the scene events at LawNewsIndex & Twitter

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