A TOP Australian prosecutor has slammed a decision by the New South Wales government to introduce legislation aimed at detaining a man beyond the expiration of his prison sentence. The law, brought in late last year through the Community Protection Act, was inspired by the case of Gregory Kable, a prisoner convicted of the manslaughter […]
There are now 77 solicitor advocates practising in Scotland. Although those with dual rights of audience in the High Court of Justiciary and the Court of Session, House of Lords and Judicial Committee of the Privy Council number only two, the number of applications for civil rights of audience has now reached 27, compared to […]
IN-HOUSE lawyers at a petrol company face an uncertain future after the business changed hands in an £83 million deal. About 10 lawyers from the UK petrol retail and wholesale subsidiary of Burmah Castrol are said to feel “twitchy” and “in limbo”. Burmah Petroleum Fuels is being sold by its parent to Frost Group, the […]
One popular misconception of the not proven verdict is that the defendant is slightly guilty which is often a difficult concept for the public to accept and understand . And it is also an unsatisfactory verdict for the accused. The principle the accused is innocent until proven guilty, it is argued in Scotland, does sit […]
Manchester firm Lopian Wagner has issued a seven-point set of guidelines to assist in reducing the number of disputes in involving office technology contracts. Associate Joanne Grace warns that although in a report last year the Office of Fair trading called for office equipment leasing companies to clean up their contracts and the Finance and […]
The Environmental Law Foundation (ELF) has been granted charitable status by the Charities Commission. The foundation had been seeking charitable status since its 1992 launch and says it will greatly enhance its fund-raising ability. ELF chair, Ross & Craig consultant Martin Polden, says: “This is extremely important to ELF as part of its fundraising strategy […]
A SWAP shop for firms to exchange franchise know-how is planned by the Legal Aid Practitioners Group which says the writing may be on the wall for firms without franchises. If it takes off, the group’s Franchise Information Exchange will marry up franchised firms with firms in need of advice on how to win them. […]
THE NETWORK of lawyers set up last week to develop multi-party personal injury claims is to complain to the BBC about the documentary screened on the day of its launch. ALeRT – Allied Lawyers’ Response Team – says it was misrepresented in the BBC2 Public Eye investigation ‘If in doubt, sue’. Graham Ross, one of […]
NABARRO Nathanson has formally established its Brussels presence, signing New Zealand lawyer Rachel Bickler to operate from the Belgian capital. UK-trained Bickler, brought on board as a senior assistant from the Paris office of international economic body OECD (former Organisation for European Economic Development), is sharing an office with Nabarros’ US associates Weil, Gotshal & […]
The Commercial Court welcomes Lord Woolf’s report on access to civil justice and its emphasis upon the advantages of case management. In terms of the report, the vast majority of cases tried in the Commercial Court come within the category of “heavier cases on the multi-track”. They have for some years been the subject of […]
Ian Pittaway, head of pensions at City firm Nicholson Graham & Jones, has been appointed chair of SSPF Personal Pensions, which runs an occupational pension scheme for the legal profession. Pittaway, a former chair of the Association of Pension Lawyers, succeeds Charles Woodhouse of Farrer & Co.
A PARTNER at City firm Field Fisher Waterhouse has been accused of organising a block vote for deputy vice-president Henry Hodge which his rivals say may jeopardise the election. Rival presidential challengers Eileen Pembridge and Martin Mears expressed outrage at a leaked memo sent out by partner Caryn Mackenzie which inaccurately states Mears is a […]