Litigation/Dispute Resolution
Still no timescale on litigation funding reform, minister admits
The government yesterday continued to stonewall on when litigation funding reform would happen, citing the need to find “a new legislative vehicle” to take it forward.
Record number of claims lodged at the county court
The number of claims lodged at the county court in the second quarter of this year was the highest since the Ministry of Justice started publishing quarterly statistics in 2009.
Huge row over who represents Mariana Dam claimants
An extraordinary row broke out yesterday over whether Pogust Goodhead has been replaced as the solicitors bringing the Mariana Dam case.
Court of Appeal upholds data breach ruling in favour of law firm
The Court of Appeal has thrown out a bid to appeal a ruling that cleared defendant law firm DWF of data protection breaches.
Law firm’s £3m liability cap “unreasonable”, court rules
A £3m liability cap in a law firm’s terms of business was unreasonable under the Unfair Contract Terms Act, the High Court has held.
Strike off for solicitor who backdated letter and blamed laptop
A solicitor has been struck off for creating letters to mislead both his opposite number and his own firm in a bid to cover up his failure to acknowledge service.
ACL proposes alternative to Legal Ombudsman taking on costs disputes
A pre-action protocol run through an online portal would be a better way to resolve lower-value costs disputes than handing them to the Legal Ombudsman, specialists have argued.
Change of solicitors in rugby injury litigation gives court “comfort”
A judge has allowed hundreds of rugby head injury claims to go ahead despite not complying with unless orders, after taking “comfort” from the players changing solicitors.
High Court lifts suspension on new HMCTS cybersecurity contract
The High Court has lifted a suspension preventing HMCTS from signing a new cybersecurity contract, triggered by a procurement challenge.
Vos: Humans “likely to accept” AI judges for small disputes
It is likely that “humans will come to accept, on economic grounds, machine-enabled resolution of small disputes”, the Master of the Rolls has predicted.
Judge hits out at “aggressive” approach of party and its lawyers
A judge has heavily criticised the “aggressive” approach of a defendant and its lawyers, saying the case was “like going back in time to when I first started in practice in the 1980s”.
Think tank calls for regulation to fill litigation funding “gaps”
A think tank has called for “urgent regulation” to improve transparency in the litigation funding market and identify the ultimate sources of money.
Legal consultant to chambers challenges contempt referral
A legal consultant to a barristers’ chambers referred by a High Court judge to the Attorney General for possible contempt of court proceedings has filed an appeal.
Businessman can continue £20m law firm negligence claim
A businessman can continue with a £20m counterclaim for negligence against a City law firm suing for fees of £194,000, the High Court has ruled.
Charity to double support to LiPs after lottery grant
A charity set up to help support litigants in person and improve legal education has been awarded a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund.
Blog
The new metrics for success in conveyancing
While technology has made much of the conveyancing process faster, there remains a practical limit to how many matters anyone can manage while still keeping standards intact.
The UK legal market is polarising – and the middle is disappearing
Consolidation and the boutique boom are not contradictory. They are the same market stretching apart at both ends – and it changes what your firm is worth, and to whom.
Conveyancing’s consistency problem is about pressure, not skills
When I qualified, a conveyancer had perhaps 10 or 12 plates to keep spinning. Today’s conveyancers have 20 or 30, and almost none of the room for error I had starting out.
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