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Look out litigants!

Are litigants the latest victims of the government’s austerity measures, asks Georgina Squire

Almost two years since the Jackson reforms, the effects of the new regime are still unfolding. 2014 will be remembered by many as the year the Court of Appeal clarified Mitchell, ending the flood of pre-emptive applications (lest we be in breach!) and helping litigators sleep easier at night. However, we have yet to see the full impact of the Jackson reforms. With 2015 already presenting further challenges to litigators, we continue to attempt to navigate Jackson’s brave new world. So, five months into 2015, what developments should litigators be alive to? 

Courts, forms & procedure

As we know, in 2014, the rules changed so that only claims in excess of £100,000 could be issued in the High Court, leading to a lot of cases being transferred to the county courts. We are seeing many claims well in excess of the £100,000 threshold being transferred to the county court. All county court claims are now processed by a central

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Group partner joins Guernsey banking and finance practice

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

London labour and employment team announces partner hire

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Double partner appointment marks Belfast expansion

NEWS
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
Boris Johnson’s 2019 attempt to shut down Parliament remains a constitutional cautionary tale. The move, framed as a routine exercise of the royal prerogative, was in truth an extraordinary effort to sideline Parliament at the height of the Brexit crisis. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC dissects how prorogation was wrongly assumed to be beyond judicial scrutiny, only for the Supreme Court to intervene unanimously
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