A UNIVERSAL right to legal redress must be enshrined in a written constitution, according to the Liberal Democrat Lawyers Association. The association unveiled its blueprint for legal reform at the House of Commons on Friday. In its Access to Justice report the group goes out of its way to distance itself from Labour, which has […]
DOCTORS have accused the Legal Aid Board of unrealistically raising the hopes of medical negligence plaintiffs by handing out legal aid casually. The claim, made in the British Medical Association’s response to Lord Mackay’s legal aid Green Paper, has been met with fury by personal injury lawyers and prompted a vigorous LAB defence of procedures. […]
A MODEL code for chambers is to be sent out to sets up and down the country to encourage them to adopt the Bar Council’s new Equality Code. Chambers will be encouraged to adopt or adapt the model code to bring them in line with the new Equality Code, which was agreed at the recent […]
Extradition to the UK of Nick Leeson, the dealer blamed with bringing down Barings bank, could follow an action launched by the Barings Perpetual Noteholders’ Action Group, whose members lost £100 million in the bank’s collapse. The City of London Magistrates’ Court issued eight summonses on behalf of the group requiring Leeson to appear on […]
THE GOVERNMENT’S disclosure reform plans would probably infringe the European Convention on Human Rights if enacted, the campaign group Justice has warned. In its response to Home Secretary Michael Howard’s consultation paper on disclosure, the group attacks what it sees as a distinct prosecution bias. And it says plans to limit disclosure by the prosecutor […]
OIL company BP has struck a property deal which gives Welsh firm Morgan Bruce the legal work for nearly 1,000 filling stations, distribution depots and other commercial premises. Morgan Bruce will take on two senior in-house property lawyers from BP Oil UK in what amounts to a major expansion for the firm. David Rosmarin will […]
VOLUNTEER advisers at citizens’ advice bureaux are being forced to wait months for places on legal training schemes, it has been revealed. The delays are caused by an underfunding of bureaux coupled with a soaring demand for training in specialist areas such as employment law. They were revealed in the annual report of the National […]
The International Bar Association Council has urged its members to promote common professional standards on money laundering and embody them into a code of practice for lawyers worldwide. Recent estimates place the amount laundered around the globe at £500 billion per annum. The council has agreed to institute practice rules aimed at denying criminals access […]
Pity the poor banker. In the game of life he aspired to be a player, maybe even the scorer. Instead, all does is provide the kit. If this wasn’t bad enough, he incurs everyone’s wrath whenever he wants his ball back. I like banks and bankers. They are always nice to me and, as a […]
First a little history. Bevan Ashford was formed in 1987 as an amalgam of Bevan Hancock of Bristol and Ashford Sparks and Harwood of Devon, which was itself the result of a merger. The three principal offices, Bristol, Exeter and Tiverton, were banked by Midland (Bristol and Tiverton) and National Westminster (Exeter). When Edward Lewis […]
Hilda Amoo-Gottfried, the London solicitor judicially reviewing Legal Aid Board area committee moves to deselect her from a duty solicitor scheme, is pressing on with her action despite an LAB offer to pay her legal costs and settle, it is understood. Amoo-Gottfried was reinstated by LAB chiefs several weeks ago after a judge gave her […]
Alistair Walters is a partner at Walker Martineau. His book on advance fee and prime bank instrument fraud is published by Sweet & Maxwell. The recent publicity about the discovery of an advance fee fraud run from Torquay has once again thrust this type of scam into the spotlight. There have been many similar frauds […]