Writing in NLJ this week, columnist Jon Robins, talks about the long struggle for justice as depicted in film director Daniel Gordon’s two-hour documentary Hillsborough, shown on BBC2 this month. The families were given legal aid for the 2016 inquests but it was not like that the first round, when the families managed to raise £150,000 for one barrister and then discovered at the inquests that the police had ten barristers, all paid for by the state. Andy Burnham, shadow home secretary, is urging cross-party support for amendments to the Policing and Crime Bill to make misconduct in public office a criminal offence.
20 May 2016
Hillsborough
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Haynes Boone—Louise Woods
Haynes Boone expands global capabilities with addition of Louise Woods as chair of international disputes
DWF—John Gilfedder
DWF strengthens Global Risks practice with strategic hire of aviation partner in London
Shakespeare Martineau—10 newly qualified solicitors
Shakespeare Martineau appoints newly qualified solicitors
NEWS
The Thirlwall Inquiry has exposed a ‘complete failure’ to protect babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital, but its recommendations must now be put into practice
More than 500 former rugby players can pursue brain injury claims despite serious failures to disclose documents ordered by the High Court
When does a solicitor’s retainer become a contentious business agreement? The Court of Appeal’s decision in Broadfield Law UK LLP v Barnes shows that listing hourly rates alone will not do, leaving firms and clients uncertain about their rights over bills
Developers in areas with poorly performing councils can apply directly to the Planning Inspectorate for permission under section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990
A divorced woman has secured funding to participate in her former husband’s inquest after the Legal Aid Agency reconsidered repeated refusals
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