Housing possession statistics
New Law Journal, Oxford Mail, Leeds Live, Yorkshire Live, This is Oxfordshire, Yahoo! UK and Ireland and a few other outlets cover the Law Society’s calls for rental reform, as new figures show rising numbers of landlord and mortgage possession orders, leaving countless at risk of homelessness.
Law Society president Richard Atkinson said: “The cost-of-living crisis has meant that renters are increasingly at risk of losing their homes. When faced with repossession, renters should be entitled to legal representation and access to justice.
“However, an underfunded justice system has denied renters a fair chance in court due to lack of legal aid.
“It is critical that the government invests in the legal aid system, so that renters have the help they need to avoid losing their homes.
"Labour must recognise that only a well-funded justice system can protect renters' rights.”
SRA client money proposals
New Law Journal reports that the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has launched proposals to install tighter safeguards on client money.
President Richard Atkinson said: “Firms should continue to be able to operate client accounts, as they are vital for the effective and efficient delivery of many legal services.
“There is a danger that radical change will add cost and delay for clients and simply transfer the same or even greater risk from the current client accounts system to any new one.
“Following the Legal Services Board’s decision to take enforcement action after its independent review into the SRA’s handling of the collapse of Axiom Ince, a key question that must be asked is how the SRA can improve its own monitoring and enforcement around these kinds of risks as part of its core regulatory function. Simply passing regulatory responsibility elsewhere is unlikely to be the answer.”
Post Office inquiry
Global Legal Post reports that a professor has called the creation of an independent commission to improve the effectiveness and use of the law, in the wake of the Post Office scandal.
President Richard Atkinson said he recognised the “growing need and demand for support… following the Post Office Horizon IT public inquiry”. He added that the profession should “learn the wider lessons and implications of what went wrong in solicitors’ professional ethics”, calling it “a key topic the profession would like more support on”.
Criminal justice system
Liverpool Echo and Yahoo UK cover what happens when a criminal case is sent from magistrates to crown court, as the backlog in criminal courts rises.
Immediate past president Nick Emmerson said: "It is unacceptable that victims, witnesses and defendants are having to wait so long, with their lives in limbo, to access justice. The criminal justice system is in crisis with huge backlogs of cases, crumbling courts and overcrowded prisons.
“There simply are not enough judges and lawyers to work on all the cases and we have heard concerning reports that court buildings are not being used to their full capacity." There have been exceptions in recent months, with those charged with violent disorder following rioting in Southport, Liverpool and later around the UK being processed quicker.”
Artificial intelligence
Legal Cheek reports on artificial intelligence in law and mentions the Law Society’s role in developing ethical standards for AI in the profession.
American Bar Association
Times (£) publishes an interview with Bill Bay, president of the American Bar Association (ABA), where Bay expresses his interest in strengthening the ABA’s ties with the Law Society and Bar Council and uniting the professional globally.
Law Society Charity
Ian Bond, a member of the Law Society’s Wills & Equity Committee and trustee of the Law Society Charity, writes in the Gazette about how the Law Society Charity helps firms to help others.
Also worth a read:
- Rape courts plan hampered by lack of prosecuting barristers – Times (£)
- New report reveals that mental health patients are increasingly being sent to units far from home, often worsening their condition - Guardian
- A responsible approach to AI will help not hinder the economy – Times (£)
- SRA reminds in-house solicitors to report any wrongdoing within their organisations - Gazette
- Richard Moorhead: Post Office inquiry exposes lack of integrity in lawyers – Times (£)
- New report calls for law obliging firms to do human rights and environmental due diligence - Guardian
- Possible ban on social media for under-16s in the UK is “on the table" - BBC News
- MPs are to summon Elon Musk to testify about X’s role in spreading disinformation, in a parliamentary inquiry into the UK riots - Guardian
- Britain’s longest-serving MPs have issued a joint call urging the Commons to reject the assisted dying bill - Guardian
- Explainer: how the Employment Rights Bill could re-shape workplace protections in the UK - Solicitors Journal
- London drives surge in UK rental cost – FT (£)
- UK to relaunch trade talks with India and form a new economic partnership with Japan – City A.M.