Roger Pearson looks at a court challenge to allow the continuation of Gloucester elver fishing rights Five elver fishermen are heading for the High Court to challenge what they claim is an attempt to strip them of centuries old rights to fish the River Severn. They are also suing a well- known Gloucester farmer and […]
Cyril Dixon reports LOCAL authority watchdogs are to question Hull City Council about a controversial staff transfer policy based on advice by Anthony Scrivener QC. Officials from the Local Government Staff Commission have written to Hull asking for further details of Scrivener’s guidance and its implications. The advice has provoked conflict between Hull and the […]
The Irish Republic has passed a revamped Finance Act after solicitors won their fight against being legally compelled to report tax evasion to the Revenue Commissioners. They had claimed that to do so would contravene the traditional lawyer/client relationship and undermine the citizen’s constitutional right against self-incrimination. The proposal, covering auditors, accountants and tax advisers, […]
Titmuss Sainer Dechert acted for the Crown Estate Commissioners in the £22.5 million purchase from Hypo Property Investment of St James’s House, St James’s Square, Manchester. Slaughter and May acted for Hypo.
Once you are labelled as an unproductive partner, it is only a question of time before you depart. Many firms have 30 April as their year end, and the decision to part company, if not the actuality of departure, tends to be made at that time, if only for the sake of tidiness. In those […]
NOTTINGHAM Law School has announced plans to provide a post-graduate diploma in litigation and advocacy through its new Anglo-American partnership with the National Institute for Trial Advocacy in the US. Described as a “powerful union of two outstanding institutions”, the venture launches NITA (UK), based at Nottingham’s Centre for Advanced Litigation. The sole provider of […]
In December 1993, a survey carried out by Wansbroughs Willey Hargrave revealed that small to medium-sized companies viewed late payment of debts as less of a problem than in the late 1980s. Respondents cited two reasons for the improvement: their own tighter debt recovery procedures and their use of a professional debt recovery service. However, […]
CITY firm Denton Hall has been signed by the Pakistani government to act in the planned sale of a US$1.5 billion share portfolio from the Pakistan Telephone Company. The sale, to an international telecomms group, is being handled by a consortium which includes Denton Hall, accountancy firm Coopers & Lybrand and merchant bank Morgan Grenfell. […]
THE INTERNATIONAL Bar Association has amended its constitution to appoint its first honorary member – South African president Nelson Mandela. The change to the constitution, proposed by Slaughter and May’s Francis Neate – chair of the IBA’s Section on Business Law (SBL) – was introduced following a vote at the council’s recent annual general meeting […]
A CRITICAL response to the Government’s legal aid proposals has been released by the Law Society which claims plans for rigid new controls would do little to make the system more cost-effective. The society says the Green Paper proposals have been designed to serve the interests of the Treasury and not the public with planned […]
BAR COUNCIL member Allan Levy QC has called on the UK to introduce a Children’s Rights Commissioner to protect the interests of the nation’s youth. Levy, who raised the issue at the eighth biennial meeting of the International Bar Association’s Section on General Practice, said the idea had gained support among the UK legal profession […]
Prominent lawyer Stephen Jakobi is no stranger to litigation. As a one time member of the London Solicitors Litigation Association and the Law Society’s Litigation Committee he knows the pitfalls of heading to the courts better than most. Today, however, he has added reason to advise against any courtroom confrontation. He has just been involved […]