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08 July 2022
Categories: Legal News , Profession , Constitutional law
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Departures & arrivals at the MoJ as Johnson flails but stays

The Attorney General, Suella Braverman has thrown her hat in the ring for job of Prime Minister, while the Solicitor General, Alex Chalk and Justice ministers, barrister Victoria Atkins and former entrepreneur James Cartlidge resigned, as Downing Street descended into political turmoil

Braverman, a barrister, told ITV journalist Robert Peston, in a live interview, she thought PM Boris Johnson should step down and announced her intention to stand for the leadership. She retained her job.

Chalk, Atkins and Cartlidge were among more than 50 members of the government to resign as Conservative MPs struggled to persuade Johnson to leave office this week. Since Johnson’s apparent resignation speech outside Downing Street, Chalk has since been replaced by former family law barrister Edward Timpson while Atkins has been replaced by non-lawyer Tom Pursglove. A successor to legal aid minister Cartlidge has not yet been appointed.

Elsewhere, former Lord Chancellor Sir Robert Buckland, who was sacked by Johnson a year ago, has returned to the Cabinet as Welsh Secretary. Former justice minister under David Cameron’s and then Theresa May’s government Shailesh Vara has been appointed Northern Ireland Secretary.

MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Nick Vernon, Walkers Bermuda

NLJ Career Profile: Nick Vernon, Walkers Bermuda

Nick Vernon of Walkers on swapping Birmingham for Bermuda and building an employment practice by the sea

Bird & Bird—Christian Bartsch

Bird & Bird—Christian Bartsch

Global firm re-elects CEO for second term

Fletchers Group—Miriam Hall

Fletchers Group—Miriam Hall

Business appoints managing director of operational excellence

NEWS

From blockbuster judgments to procedural shake-ups, the courts are busy reshaping litigation practice. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School hails the Court of Appeal's 'exquisite judgment’ in Mazur restoring the role of supervised non-qualified staff, and highlights a ‘mammoth’ damages ruling likened to War and Peace, alongside guidance on medical reporting fees, where a pragmatic 25% uplift was imposed

Momentum is building behind proposals to restrict children’s access to social media—but the legal and practical challenges are formidable. In NLJ this week, Nick Smallwood of Mills & Reeve examines global moves, including Australia’s under-16 ban and the UK's consultation
Reforms designed to rebalance landlord-tenant relations may instead penalise leaseholders themselves. In this week's NLJ, Mike Somekh of The Freehold Collective warns that the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 risks creating an ‘underclass’ of resident-controlled freehold companies
Timing is everything—and the Court of Appeal has delivered clarity on when proceedings are ‘brought’. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ, Stephen Gold explains that a claim is issued for limitation purposes when the claim form is delivered to the court, even if fees are underpaid
The traditional ‘single, intensive day’ of financial dispute resolution (FDR) may be due for a rethink. Writing in NLJ this week, Rachel Frost-Smith and Lauren Guiler of Birketts propose a ‘split FDR’ model, separating judicial evaluation from negotiation
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