*/
Profession
Proposals to cut the cost of litigation and speed up dispute resolution have been presented to the senior judiciary by the Bar Council.
Reforming civil litigation, published on 25 March, reflects the recommendations of a working group including the chairs of the Chancery Bar Association, Commercial Bar Association and the Technology and Construction Bar Association, chaired by Michael Todd QC.
Among the recommendations are that all cases should be docketed to ensure consistency; case management conferences, conducted by the trial judge, should take place no later than the close of pleadings, at which point the parties should be required to identify the issues to be decided and the evidence required; pre-action protocols should be got rid of; the CPR rules for witness statements should be abolished and replaced by rules for witness summaries; a single, electronic case management administration system should be implemented across the jurisdictions of the Rolls Building; and there should be only one procedural guide for the Rolls Building.
The Lord Chancellor, a day after the report’s publication, announced that the Ministry of Justice would be reviewing court and tribunal resourcing and adminstration. He wanted “those who litigate in our courts to pay their fair share”, and to find means of generating investment for a “better and more flexible service to court users” which would “further enhance the position of the UK at the centre of the international legal market and the revenue it can generate.”
Meanwhile a Chancery modernisation review, launched in February by the Chancellor of the High Court, is reviewing current practices and procedures in the Chancery Division and will make its recommendations for reform within a year.
Reforming civil litigation, published on 25 March, reflects the recommendations of a working group including the chairs of the Chancery Bar Association, Commercial Bar Association and the Technology and Construction Bar Association, chaired by Michael Todd QC.
Among the recommendations are that all cases should be docketed to ensure consistency; case management conferences, conducted by the trial judge, should take place no later than the close of pleadings, at which point the parties should be required to identify the issues to be decided and the evidence required; pre-action protocols should be got rid of; the CPR rules for witness statements should be abolished and replaced by rules for witness summaries; a single, electronic case management administration system should be implemented across the jurisdictions of the Rolls Building; and there should be only one procedural guide for the Rolls Building.
The Lord Chancellor, a day after the report’s publication, announced that the Ministry of Justice would be reviewing court and tribunal resourcing and adminstration. He wanted “those who litigate in our courts to pay their fair share”, and to find means of generating investment for a “better and more flexible service to court users” which would “further enhance the position of the UK at the centre of the international legal market and the revenue it can generate.”
Meanwhile a Chancery modernisation review, launched in February by the Chancellor of the High Court, is reviewing current practices and procedures in the Chancery Division and will make its recommendations for reform within a year.
Profession
Proposals to cut the cost of litigation and speed up dispute resolution have been presented to the senior judiciary by the Bar Council.
The age of criminal responsibility, extreme weather and conflict resolution – plus, new protocol for reporting bullying at the Bar
By David Green
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, examines the forensic science underpinning hair drug testing, its evidential scope and limitations, and why it remains the gold standard for evidencing patterns of drug use in family proceedings
Unlocking your aged debt to fund your tax in one easy step. By Philip N Bristow
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, discusses the upcoming changes to pensions and Inheritance Tax and the potential impact on your financial future
Save the Children UK is the latest charity to benefit from a £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
Barrister apprenticeships – shortly to provide the fourth pathway to the Bar – are an ideal opportunity to support local talent and ‘grow your own’, say Tim Coulson and Dr Jane Dennehy
Oliver Lewis spotlights an overlooked yet rapidly evolving area of law – coercive and controlling behaviour within care contexts
Solicitor General Ellie Reeves KC MP discusses her decade as a trade union and employment law barrister, the demands of life as a Law Officer and the number one priority shaping her work. Interview by Anthony Inglese CB
A decade of reviews and research has disrupted accepted thinking in the search for causality. Suicides following abuse have overtaken domestic homicides. Is the law keeping up? Professor Susan Edwards KC (Hon) examines recent cases and the obstacles to successful prosecution
At least not that way, says Richard Paige
