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28 March 2017 / Richard Harrison
Issue: 7741 / Categories: Opinion , Procedure & practice , CPR
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The Brexit of CPR

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Richard Harrison looks at the treatment of costs management in the Merrix case & finds some interesting parallels

Brexit, as well as meaning “Brexit”, means that the political establishment can talk about and do little else. We seem to have a single issue administration. It has devoted itself to implementing the “will of the people” even when that desire was expressed by a very small majority, apparently bamboozled by misrepresentations and manipulated by demagogues and self-interested media, into voting for a simple “yes” or “no”.

That binary solution is one which no sensible person would want to apply to a complex cultural and commercial tapestry built up over 40 years. It simply cannot be unravelled without immense effort and possibly immense damage.

By presenting the British people with such a misconceived, simple choice about which to express a “will”, the last Conservative government gave a poisonous legacy to the present one and it is one which Mrs May and her colleagues are struggling to implement rationally. Some believe it will cause immense damage

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Flint Bishop—Charlotte Harris

Flint Bishop—Charlotte Harris

Sheffield expansion continues with appointment of commercial property partner

Browne Jacobson—Paul Duggan

Browne Jacobson—Paul Duggan

Browne Jacobson strengthens banking and finance practice with latest partner appointment Paul Duggan

Ward Hadaway—Chris Piggott

Ward Hadaway—Chris Piggott

Employment partner joins Ward Hadaway

NEWS
Mr Justice Nicklin’s decision to order costs on an indemnity basis may be a ‘significant win’ but it’s still ‘far from game, set and match’ for Associated Newspapers, a former costs judge has said
The Law Society RFC Festival of Sport returns next month, bringing together legal and financial services professionals for one of the sector’s largest annual sporting events
Legal aid deserts leave almost one in four without adequate access to justice
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned solicitors and law firms that using artificial intelligence does not alter their professional obligations, amid concerns over inaccurate legal material and client confidentiality
Can a meticulously maintained spreadsheet turn a couple’s informal financial arrangements into legally enforceable obligations? 
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