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Legal aid focus

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Legal aid heroes take centre stage on Oscar night

The government is refusing to back down on its plans to overhaul the country’s legal aid system, despite swingeing attacks from MPs and stakeholders.

Too rushed and too risky? In a two-part article, Professor Michael Zander QC reports on why the Carter reforms were savaged by the Constitutional Affairs Committee

Cherie Booth QC will name the winners of this year’s legal aid Oscars on 28 June. The Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year (LALY) awards, which are in their fifth year, recognise excellence among legal aid providers who help protect the rights of some of society’s most marginalised people.

In brief

The country’s first Community Legal Advice Centre (CLAC) which aims to improve access to publicly funded civil legal advice for local residents, has been launched.

The LSC has shown a willingness to listen in key areas affecting legal aid provision, says Richard Miller

Criminal Defence Service Direct (CDS Direct), the Legal Services Commission’s (LSC’s) telephone advice service for suspects held in police stations, is to be expanded.

Overseas legal assistance is to receive a major boost with the advent of a new initiative, the Justice Assistance Network.

David Burrows reports from the legal aid family law barricades

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Freeths—Rachel Crosier

Freeths—Rachel Crosier

Projects and rail practices strengthened by director hire in London

Bird & Bird—Gordon Moir

Bird & Bird—Gordon Moir

London tech and comms team boosted by telecoms and regulatory hires

DWF—Stephen Hickling

DWF—Stephen Hickling

Real estate team in Birmingham welcomes back returning partner

NEWS
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 transformed criminal justice. Writing in NLJ this week, Ed Cape of UWE and Matthew Hardcastle and Sandra Paul of Kingsley Napley trace its ‘seismic impact’
Operational resilience is no longer optional. Writing in NLJ this week, Emma Radmore and Michael Lewis of Womble Bond Dickinson explain how UK regulators expect firms to identify ‘important business services’ that could cause ‘intolerable levels of harm’ if disrupted
Refusing ADR is risky—but not always fatal. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed and Sanjay Dave Singh of the University of Leicester analyse Assensus Ltd v Wirsol Energy Ltd: despite repeated invitations to mediate, the defendant stood firm, made a £100,000 Part 36 offer and was ultimately ‘wholly vindicated’ at trial
Criminal juries may be convicting—or acquitting—on a misunderstanding. Writing in NLJ this week Paul McKeown, Adrian Keane and Sally Stares of The City Law School and LSE report troubling survey findings on the meaning of ‘sure’
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has narrowly preserved a key weapon in its anti-corruption arsenal. In this week's NLJ, Jonathan Fisher KC of Red Lion Chambers examines Guralp Systems Ltd v SFO, in which the High Court ruled that a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) remained in force despite the company’s failure to disgorge £2m by the stated deadline
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