Family
McFarlane tells family judges to curb out-of-hours hearings
The president of the Family Division has told judges and lawyers to stop the increasing practice of holding virtual hearings outside of normal court hours, citing wellbeing concerns.
Family lawyers “must be forced to follow good practice”
Family lawyers should be forced to follow good practice to protect children from “acrimonious legal representation”, and should embrace multi-disciplinary practice, a major report has concluded.
Exclusive: New ‘corporate’ chambers looks to shake up Bar
A family law barrister, together with the former chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association, are looking to shake up the Bar by adopting a corporate structure for their new chambers.
Four in ten parents “do not understand remote hearings”
Four in ten parents who have been involved in a remote family hearing say they did not understand it, a major study has discovered. The president of the Family Division said this was “worrying”.
Family lawyers embrace mixed teams to offer non-court alternatives
An increasing number of family law specialist teams are joining with other disciplines and professionals to offer clients a wider range of services that do not involve the court process, it has emerged.
Remote hearings “can bring horror into your home”, says judge
A particularly unwelcome issue for judges hearing cases remotely is that some of the most disturbing elements of serious family cases are being heard at home, a High Court judge has reported.
Family lawyers “losing connection” with colleagues since lockdown
Family law specialist are feeling more isolated and less connected to their peers and colleagues within the legal community since the UK went into lockdown, a survey of Resolution members has found.
Legal executive banned for forging client’s signature
A highly experienced chartered legal executive who forged her client’s signature after forgetting to ask the client to sign a consent order has been banned from working for law firms.
Australia uses AI to help separating couples split assets
The Australian government has launched a A$3m (£1.6m) online platform which uses artificial intelligence to help separating couples divide up their property.
High Court judge’s private comments caught on Zoom
A High Court judge caught making critical comments of a mother in a care case because her laptop had not been disconnected from Zoom should have recused herself, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
Blog
Motor finance – the FCA is more worried about banks than consumers
The Financial Conduct Authority’s motor finance redress scheme announced last week amounts to one of the largest ever consumer failures by the regulator.
Mazur: a symptom not a cause?
If Mazur is a symptom, what does it mean for the underlying health of our civil justice system: the ‘finest legal system in the world’?
Cross-generation collaboration: the key to in-house legal tech adoption
In-house legal function leaders will increasingly have to evolve their thinking on how to manage multigenerational teams containing differing levels of technological expertise.
