GIVING BAD NEWS TO CLIENTS: SOME USEFUL HINTS AND SOME USEFUL LINKS
This post follows a report earlier in the week of a solicitor being struck off because she lied to her client about the fact that a medical report had arrived. The medical report contained bad news in relation to the…
MEMBER NEWS: HONING IN ON THE INTERNAL RESEARCH FACILITY ON THIS SITE: WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION – SOME GUIDANCE
Yesterday I had an enquiry about the internal search function on this site. In particular whether it used Boolean operators. It doesn’t but there is a “work around” discussed below. On a separate issue I also recorded a webinar on…
DELEGATION IN LITIGATION: A CASE TO POINT – AND A WEBINAR ON THE 9th DECEMBER 2024
It is often the function, if not the duty, of someone who writes about civil procedure to look at a decision and then extract the most uninteresting aspect of the case for wider publication. I am doing this in relation…
SENIOR MASTER COOK’S GUIDANCE ON COST MANAGEMENT HEARINGS: A PIECE BY PIECE GUIDE (2):DELEGATION
We are continuing with our detailed examination of the Kings Bench Masters Cost Management Hearings Guidance Note. This time we are looking at issues relating to delegation. Costs budgeting and Cost Judges encourage delegation. The problem for many practitioners is that…
FISH FILES, LITIGATORS AND LITIGATION: GET BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM YOUR FRIENDS…
I have a strong suspicion that “fish files” form a considerable percentage of the cases that are written about on this blog. It is an issue that has been looked at several times in the past. A “fish file” is…
STARTING OUT IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION: WHAT DO YOU PUT IN YOUR BAG: WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY (AND YOUR) FRIENDS
Many people are starting their pupillages and training contracts at the moment. I thought it would be a good idea to revisit advice given (or rather gathered) on this blog in the past. When someone about to start pupillage asked…
A TRIBUTE TO THE LATE (AND GREAT) SIMON (“SPIKE”) MULLINGS: “STAY SAFE EVERYONE AND MAKE SURE YOU HUG YOUR LOVED ONES”
I was devastated to learn of the death of Simon Mullings over the weekend. The tributes that have been paid from housing lawyers and many others have reflected his position as one of the foremost housing practitioners and campaigners. Giles…
KEEPING UP TO DATE WITH THIS BLOG? X NO LONGER MARKS THE SPOT
For many years this blog has run alongside a Twitter (“X”) account – @CivilLitTweet. That account was started at the same time as the blog and (initially) all posts on the blog were sent automatically to Twitter. That facility stopped…
CHILDREN AND FATAL ACCIDENT LITIGATION 2024: KEY ISSUES CONSIDERED: WEBINAR 6th AUGUST
There are particulars challenges and difficulties facing a practitioner in cases where children are the only or primary dependants in a fatal claim. This webinar addressed the key issues, in relation to the law, practice and procedure and helping with…
LOOKING BACK ELEVEN YEARS – THE LAST POST: LAWYERS LOOKING AFTER OURSELVES
This week we have looked back at some of the consistent topics on this blog over the past 11 years: expert evidence; witness statements; proving things, among them. I could have added many others: Part 36; service (or non-service) of…
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION: SOME KEY POINTS AND SOME USEFUL LINKS
Earlier today I gave a webinar on “What to do when things go wrong in litigation”, this was immediately before I went to court to argue a case which, among other things, related to extensions of time to serve the…
WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION: WEBINAR 30th APRIL 2024
This blog often looks at cases where litigation has gone wrong, be it limitation, service or someone falling foul of the rules or court orders. One of the saddest aspects of many of these cases is that if prompt and…
A FEW NOTES ON THE RETIREMENT OF HIS HONOUR JUDGE GOSNELL TODAY (“WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS”)
You may expect me to write about the retirement today of the Designated Civil Judge for Leeds and Bradford, HHJ Mark Gosnell. He has, after all, been providing material for the blog for many years, on costs, evidence, procedure and…
WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION: TEN KEY POINTS WORTH REPEATING
In January 2017 I wrote about a case where a newly qualified solicitor had been struck off . The solicitor “had ‘messed up’ on a handful of the 170 cases he was handling and did not seek help from colleagues”. …
HALLOWEEN FOR LITIGATORS: AN ICY (AND SCARY) BLAST FROM THE PAST: WHAT SCARES LAWYERS MOST?
Here we take a look back at the old, old, days of 2017. There was a suggestion there be a “Halloween” post for lawyers – what scares the legal profession most? . Having taken up the challenge I then promptly delegated…
WORKING REMOTELY: AVOIDING PROCEDURAL AND OTHER PITFALLS: WEBINAR 16th OCTOBER 2023
Working remotely can give rise to additional pressures on litigators, particularly in relation to procedural issues and dealing with problems that occur in litigation and with clients. This webinar looks at the major pitfalls that can occur in personal injury…
LAWYERS: LOOKING AFTER OURSELVES SO WE CAN LOOK AFTER OTHERS: A SERIES OF POSTS THAT MAY HELP
Earlier today there was a post on Twitter asking how, lawyers being human after all, they deal with the emotional fall out that is a part of many people’s workload. This is an opportune time to reprise a series of…
TEN YEARS OF BLOGGING : A DECADE OF CIVIL LITIGATION BRIEF: A QUICK LOOK BACK AND AN EVEN QUICKER LOOK FORWARD
The 24th June 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the start of the blog. I did worry, when I started, whether there would be enough material to . However, over the past 10 years I have never been short of…
A REPEAT: WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION (BECAUSE ONE DAY THEY WILL…)
Last week I tweeted a link to a blog post that was written in 2019. It led to a lot of interest, some people stating that the issues involved stretched far beyond the legal profession (including pastors). The original post…
WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION: WEBINAR 25th APRIL 2023
This blog spends a lot of time looking at cases where things have gone wrong, for one reason and another. This webinar on the 25th April 2023 looks at the main problem areas in litigation and the practical steps that…
Fatal accidents series 2023 – Taking care of the client and yourselves: Webinar 1st March 2023: Essential viewing on St David’s Day
On the 1st March 2023 solicitor Hilary Wetherell is presenting the 5th webinar in the series on fatal accidents. Booking details are available here. The webinar deals at the practical steps that the lawyer can take to understand and help…
JONATHAN BAMFORTH SOLICITOR: A TRIBUTE TO THE VERY BEST OF US
I had always planned to write a tribute following the untimely death of solicitor Jonathan Bamforth. However, as you can see below, his colleagues have written far better than I could ever have done. I will write a few personal…
REPEAT SERIES ON WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL III: THRIVE & SURVIVE: (UPDATED) GUIDANCE FROM NEW SOUTH WALES
This is a repeat of a series first published in 2107. It is designed to help lawyers, and litigators in particular, in the initial stages of practice. We will be looking at guidance from around the world. Many of…
REPEAT SERIES OF WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU AT LAW SCHOOL II: “80% OF VALUE COMES FROM 20% OF ACTIVITIES”
This “repeat” looks at the second in the series “What they don’t teach you at School”, it based on one article by Susan Carter Liebel 9 Things I wish they’d taught me at Law School. “9 THINGS I (REALLY,…
WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU IN LAW SCHOOL: A REPRISE : EARLY MORNING STARTS AND LEGAL CHEEK STARTED A SERIES
Back in the dim and distant days of 2017 I wrote a series “What they don’t teach you at law school”. The series also got a lot of input from other lawyers. This seems a good time to reprise the…
THE SEVENTH LEGAL CHRISTMAS MUSIC CONTEST 2022 THE STATE OF THE COURTS PUT TO MUSIC
The Legal Christmas Music contest is back, for the seventh year running. All that is required to enter is that you make, or agree you will make, a donation to a food bank: after that is (as ever) down to…
GRAB A BARGAIN, RAISE FUNDS FOR FOODBANKS AND LEARN ABOUT FORGOTTEN YORKSHIRE (& PARTS OF NORTH DERBYSHIRE AND HUMBERSIDE): BUT BE VERY QUICK
For a very short time the paperback book “Forgotten Yorkshire & Parts of North Derbyshire and Humberside” is on offer for 0.99 pence (reduced from £10.00). This has led the inimitable Tripe Marketing Board to make sure that profits from…
LAWYERS SHOULD NOT BE RUDE TO COURT STAFF (INDEED, NOT RUDE TO ANYONE): A WORRYING REPORT
The Oxford Mail carries a story on the 4th November which is highly disturbing. The headline says it all “Judge adjourns case for a week after reports of ‘barristers abusing court staff'” This, if established, is appalling behaviour. Rude, abhorrent…
HALLOWEEN FOR LAWYERS: SCARY THINGS: RESURRECTING NIGHTMARES FROM THE PAST
Halloween may, and should, be more muted this year. I had planned to write a post on delays in the civil courts, which can be really scary. I will save this from another date. Instead I have resurrected contributions from…
AVOIDING PROCEDURAL PROBLEMS: A PRACTITIONER’S GUIDE: WEBINAR 23rd SEPTEMBER 2022
In case anyone hasn’t noticed a lot of (perhaps the vast majority) of posts on this blog relate to procedural issues and problems that litigators have run into, or taken advantage of. On the 23rd September 2022 I am presenting…
BEREAVEMENT: USEFUL LINKS
I had not planned to blog today. However some social media sites make it clear that a lot of people are having difficulties dealing with bereavement. The queen’s death has led to immense pain and sadness in itself and also…
NINE YEARS ON VIII: 2021: ADVICE FOR LAWYERS GOING ON HOLIDAY
In August 2021 the post “Lawyers and Holidays: Avoiding Stress – Advice from all over the world” proved a popular topic. This is a good time of year to repeat it. THE POST FROM 2021 This is the time of…
NINE YEARS ON VII: 2020: TWO LITIGATORS WHO ARE SORELY MISSED
2020 was a very strange year for us all. In March the Covid problems started to hit and, for many months, this blog dealt primarily with issues relating to litigation and lockdown. The busiest day ever on this blog was…
NINE YEARS ON VI: 2019: ADVICE TO A NEWLY QUALIFIED LAWYER: THE GOOD STUFF ABOUT BEING A LITIGATOR – FROM NICE LAWYERS
I am selecting a post from 2019 and we are now looking at one made with a little help from my friends. I started a series on “Advice to a Newly Qualified Litigator”. The fourth in the series was a…
NINE YEARS ON IV: 2016: BEING LEGALLY STREETWISE: WHAT THEY DON’T TEACH YOU IN LAW SCHOOL
Continuing with the selection of post from each year of the blog I have reproduced below a post from February 2016. This post was unusual in that I saw a post from a firm of solicitors, Darlingtons, and asked permission…
FISH FILES AND HOW TO FILLET THEM BEFORE THEY BITE AND YOUR PROBLEMS BECOME CAST IN STONE
I periodically write about fish files because I suspect they are the cause of a large percentage of procedural problems that arise in litigation. A “fish file” is a file that has been left for so long it has started…
UPDATE ON USEFUL LINKS ON STRESS, LAWYERS AND LAW: TIPS FOR A LESS STRESSFUL LIFE AND PRACTICE
Periodically I reproduce and update available guidance on stress for lawyers. Here are useful links to posts about preventing, and dealing with, stress as a lawyer and litigator. HELPFUL LINKS Ulaw blog considers research that looked at thousands of lawyers in…
“IT IS INAPPROPRIATE FOR JUDGES THESE DAYS TO BE EMAILING ADVOCATES ASKING THEM TO UNDERTAKE TASKS AT THE WEEKEND”: PART OF A JUDGMENT
There is much of interest in the judgment of HHJ Carter in N (A Child) (Termination of children’s guardian) [2022] EWFC B16, a case that may well be of considerable interest to family lawyers. Here I want to concentrate on…
LITIGATION: WHAT IS AN APPROPRIATE CASE LOAD AND IS IT IMPORTANT? (A DELIBERATE REPEAT)
I first wrote about this issue in 2016. This went on to be part of a short series, such were the responses at the time. Appropriate workload is an important issue and relatively little is written about it. The issue…
CELEBRATING ST DAVID’S DAY BY THRIVING IN THE LAW: GUIDANCE FROM (NEW SOUTH) WALES
Today being St David’s Day I was looking for some material from Wales to celebrate. I came across guidance from Young Lawyers in New South Wales. The principles set out are universal. HOW TO SURVIVE AND THRIVE This is…
THOUGHTS TO START A NEW YEAR: WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS
Trying to start a good way to start a year is always challenging. It is a good time for repeats, in 2019 asked the good people of Twitter for the advice they would give to the tyro lawyer. I recently…
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG IN LITIGATION – SEEK HELP
Periodically I draw people’s attention to material that will help them deal with the stresses of litigation. Today the article by John Hyde on an overworked solicitor using a client’s damages to make payments on other cases leads me to…
LAWYERS AND HOLIDAYS: AVOIDING STRESS – ADVICE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD
This is the time of year when many of us go on, and return from, holiday. Even if people are not globe trotting a few weeks (or even days) away can lead to stress. This is an appropriate time to…
LAWYER 1706% OUT IN ESTIMATE OF COSTS – AND ASSERTS THAT’S A GOOD THING: PAH
Today is April 1st. The headline to this post may be slightly deceptive, but for good reason. I wanted an opportunity to thank the many dozens of people who were kind enough to support my 10,000 steps a day in…
MORE ON WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG: GOOD ADVICE IN TIMES OF STRESS AND PANIC
The Law Society Gazette today has an article by John Hyde “Prosecute the firms that force junior solicitors to cover up mistakes”. The central thrust of the argument is that there has to be a duty on firms employing lawyers…
“THE OPTIMUM CASELOAD”: WHY YOU SHOULD READ AN ARTICLE ABOUT IT?
Workload is likely to be the main source of stress for most litigators. The very basic issue of what is an appropriate caseload for litigators is often complained about but rarely analysed. Here we look at one sensible, and wholly…
MAKING MISTAKES AS A YOUNG LAWYER: HELPFUL GUIDANCE – WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS…
The post yesterday on making mistakes as a young lawyer got a lot of attention and comment. For that reason I have decided to re-post something on the same vein. This post is based on guidance given on Twitter in…
MAKING MISTAKES AS A YOUNG LAWYER (INDEED A LAWYER OF ANY AGE): LEARNING HOW TO CRASH LAND
There have been reports today of an overturning of an SRA decision, with remission back to the SDT, of a case of a young solicitor who made the mistake of leaving documents on a train. The real issue came with…
VICARIOUS TRAUMA IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION: A REVIEW: A BOOK WELL WORTH BUYING
This is a book that is long overdue. A careful and detailed consideration of issues relating to trauma and burnout in the legal profession. It is both topical (covering the impact of Covid) and also wider ranging than the short…
THE IMPORTANCE OF ACCURATE WITNESS STATEMENTS: TURN DOWN £60,000 AND PAY OUT £90,000 INSTEAD…
One case that exemplifies the dangers of taking an “incomplete” witness statement is the decision of Judge Keyser Q.C. In Kellie & Kellie -v- Wheatley & Lloyd Architects Ltd [2014] EWHC 2866(TCC. This case gives a working example of the…
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