MORE ON REMOTE HEARINGS: THE DANGERS OF INJUSTICE: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION (IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO DO JUSTICE OVER THE TELEPHONE IN THE COURSE OF A OVER-BUSY LIST)
In B (Children)(Remote Hearing: Interim Care Order) [2020] EWCA Civ 584 the Court of Appeal set out some of the dangers of remote hearings and the need to take considerable care when important decisions are being made. It is also…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 16: SHAYLLA SHABBIR: THE PUPIL’S VIEW
This is the time of year when pupil barristers are starting to be let lose to hone their skills in courts and tribunals up and down the country. At the moment they are stuck at home. I asked pupil barrister …
REMOTE HEARINGS: CHILDREN CASES: GUIDANCE FROM THE COURT OF APPEAL
Civil litigators may well be able to gain some assistance from the guidance being given in children cases. The Court of Appeal gave judgment today in Re A (Children) (Remote Hearing: Care and Placement Orders). a-children-judgment-300420 [2020] EWCA Civ 583…
A DRAFT JUDGMENT IS NOT AN INVITATION TO TREAT: PARTIES SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO REOPEN THEIR CASE
In Michael Wilson & Partners Ltd v Sinclair & Anor (No. 2) [2020] EWHC 1017 (QB) Mr Justice Chamberlain added a postscript to the judgment about attempt to “re-open” draft judgments. “Professional lawyers ought to know that the circulation of…
LITIGATION, CASHFLOW AND COVID 2: INTERIM PAYMENTS ON ACCOUNT OF COSTS
It is often said that cashflow is the lifeblood of business and this is never more so than in the current situation. Here we are looking at orders for interim payments when a case, or an issue in a case,…
COVID REPEATS 9: A LOT OF WISDOM ABOUT LEGAL PRACTICE FROM A LOT OF PEOPLE
This is a repeat of a post that contained a lot of wisdom from a lot of people. Lawyers (including judges) on Twitter sent in dozens of contributions on advice to young lawyers. All of it is worth repeating (and…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 15: TIM PHIPPS: A SHORT TRIP ACROSS THE HUMBER
In our attempt to gain members from a wide geographical area we move away from the major cities and taking a trip over the Humber Bridge. However, once over the bridge, we are not going very far. The first turning…
COVID REPEATS 8: “NEVER WRITE ANYTHING DOWN THAT YOU WOULDN’T WANT READ OUT IN OPEN COURT”
I am repeating this because it is important. One rule that every lawyer should learn is that if you write, type, email or text anything you live with the risk that it could end up being read out in court….
LITIGATION, CASHFLOW & COVID 1: DETAILED ASSESSMENTS CAN STILL GO ON (& HERE’S HOW…)
In the first in a series of litigation and cashflow during the COVID crisis I am recommending that you read a post by my colleague Kevin Latham – How to Make Remote Detailed Assessments Work. LATHAM’S LAWS Kevin sets out…
THE SOLICITOR’S DUTY TO REVIEW THE DOCUMENTS IN LITIGATION: AN INTERESTING POSTSCRIPT
There is an interesting postcript to the judgment of Jon Turner Q.C. (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) in Square Global Ltd v Leonard [2020] EWHC 1008 (QB. “It is fundamental that the client must not make the selection…
COVID REPEATS 7: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL V: WEAR SUNSCREEN & HAVE A PLAN
Here I am repeating advice given by a former chairman of the Bar in Kuala Lumpur. Many of the challenges and difficulties that (at some time) you may think are specific to you, are in fact universal issues that lawyers…
COVID-19 NOT A GOOD REASON TO RESTRAIN PRESENTATION OF WINDING UP PETITIONS (ON THE FACTS OF THIS CASE)
In Shorts Gardens LLB v London Borough of Camden Council [2020] EWHC 1001 (Ch) Mr Justice Snowden did not accept that COVID-19 and prospective legislation by the government in relation to insolvency was a good reason to restrain winding up…
PERSONAL INJURY LITIGATORS AND THE CORONAVIRUS (LIVE WEBINAR): 13th MAY 2020
On the 13th May I am giving a webinar looking at the practical implications for personal injury litigators of coronavirus and social isolation. This looks at the rule changes, relevant legislation, case law and guidance in relation to coronavirus. It…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 14 : ANONYMOUS DISTRICT JUDGE (2): EXERCISING A “RIGHT OF REPLY”
Our 14th club member is also anonymous. A second District Judge provides some insight into the difficulties of continuing to work throughout the problems caused by COVID-19. Where are you working from now? Home. A market town 60 miles…
The Virtual Workspace: 50 Tips for Effective Video Conferencing: BOOK REVIEW – “BUY” IT QUICKLY…
Andrew King’s book is a testament to the speed at which it is possible for lawyers to act. Just over a fortnight ago Andrew wrote a thread on Twitter setting out his experience of being involved in a virtual trial,…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB : CENRIC CLEMENT-EVANS: ein haelod cyntaf o Gymru
I am keen we have as wide a geographical spread of members as possible, so the next member is based in Wales. Cenric Clement-Evans, solicitor, lecturer and campaigner, based in Cardiff. Where are you working from now? I was…
COVID REPEATS 6: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL 4: OWNING AND FIXING YOUR MISTAKES
Here we are re-visiting a post based on at an article by Elizabeth Collura in Lawyerist.com – Recognisizing, Owning and Fixing Your Mistakes. This is short but to the point. Mistakes happen, they are rarely disastrous. It is a failure to address…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 12: ANONYMOUS DISTRICT JUDGE (1)
I haven’t quite worked out the logistics of our club having anonymous members (I will have to check the constitution carefully). However there are advantages to anonymity, a District Judge (in fact more than one) have agreed to join and…
CONCENTRATION, CORONAVIRUS AND WORK: SOME SITES THAT MAY HELP
One of the difficulties caused by coronavirus is a problem in concentration and focusing. Even people who habitually work from home have increased problems in settling down. Here is a list of links that may help. The advice given may…
COVID REPEATS 5: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL 3: SURVIVE AND THRIVE
Here I am repeating really good, well thought out guidance from the Young Lawyers Group of the Law Society of South Wales. Quite honestly this is the type of guidance that every lawyer starting their career should be given. There…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 11: MORAYO FAGBORUN BENNETT
The next member of our club is Morayo Fagborun Bennett a barrister at Hardwicke. She recently lost her home office as it became a bedroom for her youngest child. This couldn’t have happened at a better time… Where are…
THE FUNDAMENTALS OF PERSONAL INJURY DAMAGES: WEBINAR 7th MAY 2020
I am giving a webinar on the 7th May 2020 – 12.00 – 13.00 on the fundamentals of personal injury damages. Many practitioners engage daily in the assessment of personal injury damages without a detailed knowledge of the fundamental principles,…
A LIST OF PRACTICAL GUIDANCE CONCERNING THE OPERATIONS OF COURTS AND TRIBUNALS
There has been a whole host of information relating to the practical operation of courts and tribunals. I am grateful to the barristers at 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square for sending me details of their collection and collation of this material….
APPEAL JUDGE OVERTURNS REFUSAL TO EXERCISE SECTION 33 DISCRETION: DELAY AND PREJUDICE HIGHLY RELEVANT FACTORS
In Gregory v H J Haynes Ltd [2020] EWHC 911 (Ch) Mr Justice Mann overturned a judge’s decision not to exercise their discretion under Section 33 of the Limitation Act 1980. The claimant had been guilty of culpable delay but…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 10: PAUL NICHOLLS
The normally ebullient solicitor Paul Nicholls joins our club as a very special member. Paul has been seriously ill with coronavirus, hospitalised, ventilated and was given a 50% chance of survival. He is now back at home and working. Against…
COVID REPEATS 4: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL 2
The fourth “repeat” looks at the second in the series, based on one article by Susan Carter Liebel 9 Things I wish they’d taught me at Law School. “Here I want to recommend a specific article by Susan…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 9: SUE JAMES
I am taking advantage of this series to both make new friends and catch up with old ones*. I have known Sue James since we were at university together (a year or two ago now). We were both involved in…
GUIDANCE FOR THE CONDUCT OF REMOTE COSTS HEARINGS: READ ALL ABOUT IT
The Association of Cost Lawyers has a link on its site to agreed guidance for the Guidance of Remote Hearings. This is designed to ensure that assessments can continue remotely during social isolation. Litigation Futures has a useful summary of…
IS PD 51Z VALID? COURT OF APPEAL WILL HEAR CASE ON POSSESSION PROCEEDINGS ON THE 30th APRIL
The Nearly Legal Housing Law blog reports that the Court of Appeal will hear an appeal on the 30th April as to whether PD 51Z is valid. THE CASE The appeal is a leapfrogged appeal from a decision of…
COVID REPEATS 3: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL (1)
In 2017 there was a whole series of posts with advice given from Twitter for those starting their careers in the courts. Since many people aren’t getting that experience right now (or getting it in a fairly remote form), this…
REMOTE HEARINGS: ARE THERE “TWO NATIONS” OPERATING WITHIN THE COURT SYSTEM (OR MORE THAN THAT…)
The ability of the courts to proceed using remote hearings has to be celebrated. Sometimes, however, it is interesting to contrast the very real technical difficulties being experienced by county courts up and down the country with what appears to…
COVID REPEATS 2: DEADLINES AND PROCRASTINATION: HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT?
Working in unusual conditions, often away from the office, and in the midst of a pandemic can sharpen the mind. For many of us, however, it makes work more difficult. It is worthwhile repeating a post from last year with…
QUEEN’S BENCH GUIDANCE BULLETINS: SUMMARIES AND LINKS
Inevitably guidance from the QBD on the impact of coronavirus has come in stages. The six Bulletins are summarised below, together with links to the each guidance. Queen’s Bench guidance: This update explains the steps that are being taken in order…
SERVICE ON EU-DOMICILED DEFENDANTS: DIFFICULTIES THAT ARISE WITH THE CLOSURE OF THE FOREIGN PROCESS SECTION
I am grateful to barrister James Beeton for drawing my attention to, and giving me permission to cite from, his post on the International Law and Travel Blog “A BIG PROBLEM FOR SERVICE ON EU-DOMICILED DEFENDANTS” THE CLOSURE OF THE FOREIGN…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 8 : ANDREW KING
The next to join the club is Andrew King co-owner of Lennons Solicitors. Working from home with his wife and four young sons (6, 2 and 1 year old twins…) Andrew has been involved in a remote trial during this…
A HEARING THAT “COULD NOT BE CONDUCTED FAIRLY OR PROPERLY” WITHOUT A PHYSICAL PRESENCE IN THE COURTROOM: IDEA OF REMOTE TRIAL REFUSED
The judgment of Sir Andrew McFarlane in P (A Child: Remote Hearing), Re [2020] EWFC 32 shows that remote hearings are not suitable for every case. “It seems to me that to contemplate a remote hearing of issues such as…
EXTENSION OF TIME GRANTED AND HEARING PUT BACK BECAUSE OF COVID-19 PROBLEMS: THE RELEVANT PRINCIPLES CONSIDERED
In Muncipio De Mariana & Ors v BHP Group Plc [2020] EWHC 928 (TCC) HHJ Eyre QC allowed the defendants extra time to serve evidence because of the coronavirus crisis and a hearing date was put back. There is an…
KEEPING YOUR LAW FIRM GOING IN THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS (10): GUIDANCE FROM NEW ZEALAND
Here we look at guidance to lawyers from New Zealand. The series on “Lawyers in Lockdown” is particularly illuminating, it shows that these issues are universal. We are far from alone. New Zealand The New Zealand Law Society has a…
Covid-19 and the immigration tribunals: a working guide for representatives
Barristers Bernadette Smith and Geeta Koska have produced a guide dealing with the legal and practical issues facing those who are practising in immigration tribunals during the coronavirus crisis. THE GUIDE One useful function of the guide is that it…
ANOTHER DAY ANOTHER AMENDMENT TO THE PRACTICE DIRECTIONS: POSSESSION PROCEEDINGS
There have been amendments to Practice Direction 51Z. These provide exceptions to the total ban on possession proceedings. THE AMENDMENTS: 120th UPDATE – PRACTICE DIRECTION AMENDMENTS “The amendments to Practice Direction 51Z supplementing the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 are…
CORONAVIRUS AND SOCIAL CARE: ESSENTIAL GUIDANCE FROM MY COLLEAGUES
Whilst this blog deals, primarily with procedural issues and problems arising from Covid-19 there are major issues relating to substantive law. The law on social care, in particular, is now a major issue. On the Kings Chambers site Coronavirus: Guidance…
119th Practice Direction Update to the Civil Procedure Rules – Online Civil Money Claims in support of the Covid-19 effort
The 119th update to the Practice Direction Amendments can be found here. The amendments relate to the the Online Civil Claims (OCMC) pilot scheme. THE CHANGES The changes are best summarised in the Courts and Tribunals Announcements page, available here. …
KEEPING YOUR LAW FIRM GOING IN THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS (9): CANADA
In the 9th in this series we look at advice to and from lawyers in Canada. All of these links offer practical advice which can be used in the UK, and beyond. Canada In ‘COVID-19: law firms going remote, some…
THE POSTS ON CORONAVIRUS: CATALOGUED AND SORTED (IT HAS BEEN QUITE A MONTH…)
I first wrote about Coronavirus in a post on March 15. This feels like a very long time ago. This blog has, basically, been looking at the issues relating to coronavirus, lawyers and litigation ever since then. This seems like…
KEEPING YOUR LAW FIRM GOING IN THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS (8) ADVICE FROM AUSTRALIA THAT MAY BOWL YOU OVER
I have spent part of lockdown watching “The Test” – a series about Australia’s cricket team. I have been rooting for the Aussies all the way (except when they played England of course). With the degree of planning and preparation…
KEEPING YOUR LAW FIRM GOING IN THE CORONAVIRUS (7): GUIDANCE THAT IS BORN IN THE U.S.A.
The thing about an international pandemic is that many of the problems we face are universal. Lawyers across the globe are dealing with very similar issues in relation to maintaining a firm throughout the COVID-19 crisis. Here we look at…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 7: SIMON (“SPIKE”) MULLINGS
The seventh member of the club is legal aid practitioner, Simon Mullings, who describes himself as “a long-beard housing law caseworker and newly anointed co-chair of the Housing Law Practitioners’ Association.” 1. Where are you working from now? I am…
COVID REPEATS (1): THE (ALMOST) COMPLETE GUIDE FOR ASPIRANT AND NEW LAWYERS – FROM TWITTER
I have spent some time (probably too much time) watching repeats of cricket matches over the past few weeks. On the whole these remain almost as interesting (or boring, depending on your point of view) as the first time around. …
KEEPING YOUR FIRM GOING IN THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS (6) : THE POSTS SO FAR
Things are moving so quickly at the moment that it is difficult to get time to recap. This is a good time to remind people of the posts on this blog under the heading Keeping your firm going in the…
THE (NOT SO) LONELY LITIGATOR’S CLUB 6: JONATHAN EXALL
I have been looking for the experiences of newly qualified litigators, these have been difficult to find. Eventually I found one newly qualified lawyer I could “persuade”. Working as a solicitor at Chadwick Lawrence in Leeds – Jonathan Exall Where…
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