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Wi-fi justice, a Family court revolution and Fee-charging Friends...
Wi-fi justice
All criminal courts will be able to operate completely digitally by July 2016, according to Criminal Justice Minister Damian Green. The new “digital business model” was unveiled in April at Bromley Magistrates’ Court, the first to receive the wi-fi upgrade under new funding of £75m a year, in addition to £44m already budgeted for new IT programmes.
Family court revolution
April saw in the new combined family courts, 26-week time frames for children in care cases and compulsory mediation awareness. Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division, said it marked “the largest reform of the family justice system any of us will see in our professional lifetimes... truly a cultural revolution.”
Fee-charging Friends
Fee-charging McKenzie Friends should be recognised as a “legitimate feature of the evolving legal services market”, according to the Legal Services Consumer Panel. Its study identified the growing market following the LASPO changes, with some providing legal advice and seeking right of audience in an individual case. Despite some evidence about poor courtroom and commercial practices, the Panel concluded that the access to justice benefits outweighed the risks and called on the sector “to develop a credible system of self-regulation to earn greater trust from judges, the legal profession and the general public alike”.
Wi-fi justice
All criminal courts will be able to operate completely digitally by July 2016, according to Criminal Justice Minister Damian Green. The new “digital business model” was unveiled in April at Bromley Magistrates’ Court, the first to receive the wi-fi upgrade under new funding of £75m a year, in addition to £44m already budgeted for new IT programmes.
Family court revolution
April saw in the new combined family courts, 26-week time frames for children in care cases and compulsory mediation awareness. Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division, said it marked “the largest reform of the family justice system any of us will see in our professional lifetimes... truly a cultural revolution.”
Fee-charging Friends
Fee-charging McKenzie Friends should be recognised as a “legitimate feature of the evolving legal services market”, according to the Legal Services Consumer Panel. Its study identified the growing market following the LASPO changes, with some providing legal advice and seeking right of audience in an individual case. Despite some evidence about poor courtroom and commercial practices, the Panel concluded that the access to justice benefits outweighed the risks and called on the sector “to develop a credible system of self-regulation to earn greater trust from judges, the legal profession and the general public alike”.
Wi-fi justice, a Family court revolution and Fee-charging Friends...
Update from the Chair of the Bar
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The case against judge-only justice – and why efficiency is not enough. By Professor Leslie Thomas KC
Jemima Coleman and Zoë Leventhal KC on the evolving global movement seeking to reframe how we view nature: to recognise that nature possesses inherent rights and to enshrine these rights in law
Heritage as an anchor and a compass, finding our common humanity and embracing the power of the outsider – Melina Antoniadis’s lessons learnt
Seeing the full picture – Baljit Ubhey OBE outlines the CPS action plan to tackle violence against women and girls, offering insights directly relevant to courtroom practice
Lauren Fullerton examines the how, what and why of setting up a second chambers base
