SLAPPs
Private Eye reports a representative body for media lawyers has accused the Law Society of advancing a 'one-sided and misleading account' of the issues surrounding Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs).
Law Society president Nick Emmerson said: “The Law Society has to balance its position carefully taking into account the interests of members – both claimant and defendant –access to justice and the rule of law. We are happy to hear all positions.”
Criminal court delays
The Law Society’s response to rising delays in the criminal court system is featured in Private Eye magazine (pg. 39).
Law Society president Nick Emmerson said: “The backlogs in our criminal courts continue to get worse, with victims and defendants waiting years before cases come to court. The last thing victims, witnesses and defendants need is for further delays to be created by a failure to deliver a defendant from prison to court on time.”
Stuart Nolan, chair of our Criminal Law Committee, added: “I would characterise these delays as another result of the underfunding of our criminal justice system, including courts, prisons and the police. Jury trials cost around £8,000 a day; every delay in starting court on time can add a couple of days on the end of a long trial.”
Online divorce service
Karen Dovaston, chair of our Family Law Committee, features in a personal capacity in HM Courts and Tribunals Service’s new podcast Inside HMCTS, where she discusses the benefits of a modernised divorce process.
Role of AI in legal profession
Jonathan Goldsmith, chair of the Law Society’s Policy & Regulatory Affairs Committee, writes in a personal capacity in the Gazette about the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the legal profession.
He mentions the Law Society’s response to a government white paper on AI and guidance on the use of generative AI.
Also worth a read:
- What is expected in today’s Autumn Statement? – BBC News
- Half of legal workers work overtime to meet job expectations – Legal Cheek
- LSCP says consolidation of legal regulators “may be a good thing” – Legal Futures
- Supreme Court finds that Deliveroo riders cannot be classified as workers – City A.M.
- SRA highlights benefits and risks of AI in the legal world – Legal Cheek
- Levels of violence and self-harm rise in youth prisons – Guardian
- National living wage increases to £11.44 per hour – Sky News