News

The BSB has set up a private forum, on its website, for current pupillage students to discuss their pupillage experiences. This forum will run for the length of the Pupillage Review, which is being chaired by Derek Wood QC and is seeking to improve the pupillage stage of training.
All current pupillage students were emailed a password to access the forum in March. The passwords ensure anonymity, so we hope this encourages students to participate with frank comments about their pupillage experiences. Any current pupillage student who wishes to participate but has not received a password should email Kofi Kramo, BSB Communications Officer, at: kkramo@barstandardsboard.org.uk 

The Commission is aiming for the e-justice portal to be up and running by the end of 2009. Initially, it will provide only information and translation facilities – a gateway to national databases. In the longer run, the EU intends to use it for procedural steps too. 

Family lawyers’ group Resolution has called for radical reform of the divorce laws.  Resolution is calling for amicable divorce on the grounds of “irretrievable breakdown” to be allowed after six months.

In 2008 the Commission issued a proposal for a directive applying criminal sanctions to reinforce the already-existing administrative and other penalties that can be applied to polluters. The European Parliament has backed the proposal.
See: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+REPORT+A6-20090080+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN&language=EN 

Sir Mark Potter, the President of the Family Division, and Mr Justice Munby, have joined Muslim groups in condemning forced marriages as unacceptable.

Despite the EP and French EU Presidency’s calls in late 2008 for rapid consideration of a legislative measure on the recognition and enforcement of authentic acts, the Commission has said that it will not issue a consultation before early 2010. When it does, the scope of the paper will likely extend to equivalent, non-notarial acts. That said, reference is made in the Brussels I review, so a watchful eye is on that. 

The Commission has just completed an important consultation on the effects of the application of foreign law on claims arising from cross-border road traffic accidents, currently dealt with under Article 4 of EC regulation 864/2007 (applicable law in non-contractual matters, aka “Rome II”). The Bar Council responded.
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2009/crossborder-accidents_en.htm 

At the end of March, the Chairman of the Bar, Desmond Browne QC, accompanied by the Vice Chairman, Nicholas Green QC, the Chairman of the Bar’s European Committee, Michael Patchett-Joyce, and a small delegation from the Bar Council secretariat, attended a series of high-level meetings in Brussels. Highlights included detailed and productive meetings with Sir Kim Darroch, UK Permanent Representative to the EU; Meglena Kuneva, Commissioner for Consumer Protection; Jonathan Faull, Director General, DG Justice Liberty and Security; Baroness Ashton, EU Trade Commissioner, and Philip Lowe, Director General, DG Competition. 

The EP has supported the Commission’s 2008 proposal to extend copyright protection for performers and phonogram producers, from 50 to 70 years. See:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&language=EN&reference=P6-TA-2009-0282 

By the time of reading, the long-awaited Commission proposal for an EU regulation on jurisdiction and applicable law in the field of succession and wills should either have been adopted by the Commission, or put on ice until the autumn. When it is adopted, the default applicable law will almost certainly be that of the habitual residence of the testator at the time of death, subject to the exception of his having expressly chosen the law of his country of origin if different. The Chancery Bar Association will comment on the proposal once adopted. For a detailed editorial, see:
http://conflictoflaws.net/2008/guest-editorial-harris-on-reflectionson-the-proposed-eu-regulation-on-succession-and-wills/