Proposals to change the law on crimes motivated by misogyny
Our head of public law Ellie Cumbo was on BBC Breakfast (segment begins 30:34, Ellie is on from 33:52) discussing proposals to change the law on crimes motivated by misogyny.
Lugano Convention
The issue of Lugano was raised at the Tory conference fringe, the Gazette reports. Justice minister Lord Wolfson told the Conservative lawyers event that the government is lobbying to be in the convention. "Is it a disaster if we're not? No," he added.
Law Society president I. Stephanie Boyce also spoke at the event entitled Global Britain – Leading with Legal, saying that legal exports in 2017 were £5bn and the legal services sector contributed almost £60bn to the UK Economy.
SQE loans
Legal Cheek reports on our call for a loans system for people taking the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE).
The Law Society is 'concerned that candidates from less privileged backgrounds will face a significant barrier to entry to the legal profession, with consequences for the diversity of the profession'.
English law
The Gazette covers research by Oxera suggesting that, in order to stay competitive, English law should strive to be the main governing law in new areas that are seeing high growth, such as fintech, cryptoassets and smart contracts.
"We will use this research to help build and inform our existing campaign to encourage the use of English law and promote England and Wales as a jurisdiction of choice and a global centre for legal services," said I. Stephanie Boyce.
Read our release
Economic crime levy
Today's Conveyancer covers the government's economic crime levy proposals.
"The levy effectively represents a tax on the provision of legal services, undermining the competitiveness of a key British industry, at a time when the sector should be championed, " said I. Stephanie Boyce.
Read our release
Conference call
Scottish Legal News trails Stephanie's appearance at the online Prime conference on 10 November.
Also worth a read:
- PM's conference speech fact-checked - BBC
- Former senior police claim austerity hampered ability to tackle violence against women - Guardian
- Cruella de Vil QC – Gazette