Today's rundown:
New deputy vice president
Importance of social mobility
Robot lawyers
ADR in divorce
Law Society's new deputy vice president, Nick Emmerson
Our announcement that we have a new deputy vice president at the Law Society of England and Wales is reported by Today's Wills and Probate and Today's Conveyancer.
Nick Emmerson states his pleasure in being elected to the role which he will officially take on in October. "It's a great honour to be elected to this position – I'm looking forward to facing the challenges ahead and working alongside the other office holders, council and staff. I'm proud to be a solicitor and am keenly aware of the issues facing our profession at this exceptionally difficult time."
Our response to state of the nation report
LawCareers.net reports on our response to a report from the Social Mobility Commission. Law Society president I. Stephanie Boyce said: "We all have a part to play by ensuring that we are actively reaching out to those from lower socio-economic backgrounds and removing the barriers to entry and progression.
"We recognise more needs to be done to monitor socio-economic diversity across the profession too, including who gets access to the higher-level apprenticeships in the sector, and who gets on and reaches the senior levels of the profession."
Read state of the nation report here.
Robot lawyers
PQ magazine cites our report on the future of the legal profession which suggests that AI may come to have a much larger role in legal work.
Divorcees unaware of ADR
A report commission by Irwin Mitchell found that 39% of divorcees were unaware of ADR during their divorce, states ICLGcom. I. Stephanie Boyce said, "These figures are concerning. Mediation is a useful way to help minimise conflict between separating couples.
"Solicitors are best placed to assess all ADR options with their clients – such as arbitration, early neutral evaluation, negotiation and conciliation. We encourage a review of these other forms of ADR to ensure parties are able to access the best solution for them. Divorcing couples should be allowed to claim for legal aid funding, and we recommend the UK government reintroduce legal aid for early legal advice in private family proceedings."
Also worth a read:
- Extinction Rebellion to target City law firms – Gazette
- High Court uses new hourly rates ahead of formal introduction – Legal Futures
- Taliban preventing Afghans from fleeing – BBC
- 2020 Paralympics kick off in Tokyo – Guardian
- Covid claims 100 lives a day in the UK – Guardian
- Schools told to stay open and scrap bubbles – Times (£)