Presidential priorities
Modern Law Magazine (pages 6-9) publishes a featured piece on Law Society president Nick Emmerson and his presidential priorities.
“The influence and access the Law Society wields, must be put to use for the benefit of all of our members, both across England and Wales and overseas,” he said.
“I want to fling open the doors of the Law Society, both physically and virtually, and invite our entire profession in to participate.
“I will advocate for the value that solicitors add to every part of England and Wales when speaking to government, Parliament and senior stakeholders. This means highlighting not just the role our profession plays in providing access to justice but also our economic heft as a successful business sector.”
Judicial review
Jonathan Goldsmith, chair of our Policy & Regulatory Affairs Committee, discusses our judicial review victory in the Gazette and there is further coverage of the judgment in bnnbreaking.
Lawyer of the week in the Times (£) is Tom de la Mare KC who successfully represented the Law Society in the High Court.
Also in the Times (£), Angus McBride, general counsel at News UK and a former duty solicitor, writes on how the judgment highlights the parlous state of criminal legal aid.
Video witnessing of wills
Gazette reports on the pandemic-era legislation that permitted video witnessing of wills coming to an end.
The piece looks at our views on what must happen if video witnessing is to be reintroduced.
Law Society president Nick Emmerson said: “Video witnessing when making a will, obtaining probate or administering an estate, introduces a further level of risk which solicitors need to assess and manage. Therefore, the digital wills process needs to have an appropriate level of protection to address concerns about the risk of fraud and undue influence. It is also important to make sure that people who would struggle to make a will electronically are not disadvantaged.”
Flight tracker
Steve Kuncewicz, a Law Society Council member, spoke to ITV News (from 01:19) about Taylor Swift’s lawsuit against a university student tracking her private jet.
Consumer protection review
New Law Journal continue coverage of the Solicitors Regulation Authority launching a consumer protection review, in light of shifting risks in the sector.
Law Society chief executive Ian Jeffery said: “We welcome the launch of this review which is timely in light of the serious consequences of the collapse of Axiom Ince. It is right that consumer protection and the Compensation Fund are the two main points of focus.
“The potentially far reaching changes under review require careful consideration and full and meaningful consultation with the profession, with an opportunity to consider a range of options that best serve the needs of consumers.”
Legal advice and mediation
The British Association of Social Workers reports that separating couples are to be offered legal advice and mediation in a bid to unclog the family courts.
Karen Dovaston, chair of the Law Society’s Family Law Committee, said: "Pre-2014, most of the cases you could sort out without having to go to court. You could manage people's expectations about what the court can and can't do.
"When the government withdrew legal aid huge swathes of people who would have got legal aid couldn't afford it.”
Flawed research
Consumer research commissioned by the Solicitors Regulation Authority to help justify assuming oversight of legal executives is flawed, the Law Society warned in a letter to the regulator, reports the Gazette and Inside Conveyancing.
Also worth a read:
- Call for evidence on whiplash tariff – Legal Futures
- The role of private prosecutions in the justice system – Solicitors Journal
- New sentencing guidelines on blackmail, kidnapping and false imprisonment – New Law Journal
- Firms commit to promoting solicitor apprenticeship schemes – Gazette
- Old Bailey evacuated – Times (£), BBC and Gazette
- Post Office scandal highlights the role of litigation funding in civil justice – Times (£)
- Hundreds face losing their homes after signing up to 'no win no fee' legal firm which has collapsed owing £48m – Daily Mail
- Minister urges conveyancers to increase pace of innovation – Legal Futures