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03 November 2023 / Stephen Gold
Issue: 8047 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Civil way
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Civil way: 3 November 2023

New pre-trial checklists; Intermediate track hearing fee; No fault possession; Help with Fees revamped

LAWBITES

Shrinking world The Hague convention on international child abduction came into force as between the UK and Jamaica on 1 November 2023 (see SI 2023/1084).

Pre-trial checklist (listing questionnaire) Form N170 is not quite sure what it is. It started its life as a ‘listing questionnaire’. Some way along the line it was baptised as a ‘pre-trial checklist’ and now it is a schizophrenic ‘pre-trial checklist (listing questionnaire)’ although it sometimes loses the ‘listing questionnaire’ in CPR text. Whichever appellation you adopt, it has just changed (along with the directions questionnaire in form N18) to accommodate the new intermediate track. For both fast and intermediate tracks, litigants are told that the court will normally give three weeks’ notice of the date fixed for trial unless, in exceptional circumstances, shorter notice has been directed. You will need to say whether shorter notice would be accepted. An estimate of costs must be attached if no costs management

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Clarke Willmott—Matthew Roach

Partner joins commercial property team in Taunton office

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Farrer & Co—Richard Lane

Londstanding London firm appoints new senior partner

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Bird & Bird—Sue McLean

Commercial team in London welcomes technology specialist as partner

NEWS
The legal profession’s claim to be a ‘guardian of fairness’ is under scrutiny after stark findings on gender imbalance and opaque progression. Writing in NLJ this week, Joshua Purser of No5 Barristers’ Chambers and Govindi Deerasinghe of Global 50/50 warn that leadership remains dominated by a narrow elite, with men holding 71% of top court roles
A legal challenge to police disclosure rules has failed, reinforcing a push for transparency in policing. In NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth examines a case where the Metropolitan Police required officers to declare membership of groups like the Freemasons
Bereavement leave is undergoing a quiet but profound transformation. Writing in NLJ this week, Robert Hargreaves of York St John University explains how the Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a day-one right to leave for a wider range of losses, alongside new provisions for pregnancy loss and bereaved partners
Courts are beginning to grapple with whether AI-generated material is legally privileged—and the answers are mixed. In this week's issue of NLJ, Stacie Bourton, Tom Whittaker & Beata Kolodziej of Burges Salmon examine US rulings showing how easily privilege can be lost
New guidance seeks to bring order to the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Minesh Tanna and David Bridge of Simmons & Simmons set out a framework stressing ‘transparency’, ‘explainability’ and ‘reliability’
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