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18 January 2018 / David Greene
Issue: 7777 / Categories: Opinion
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New year, new Lord Chancellor

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David Greene hopes David Gauke is allowed to stay in the role long enough to make a difference

A new year; a new team at the Ministry of Justice. The great office of Lord Chancellor appears these days simply to be one stop for the train running up the ministerial track. David Lidington, the last incumbent, for just a few months, has gone on to other (perhaps greater) things which possibly he regrets since he appears to have the role as chief apologist for the Carillion problem.

We rather liked Lidington in comparison to previous incumbents. He seemed sensible and committed, with some knowledge and understanding of the job so it was disappointing to see him go. But hurrah, the King is Dead, Long Live the King, we have at last a lawyer as Lord Chancellor and hurrah hurrah because for the first time in the 1,400 year history of the office he’s a solicitor.

David Gauke was at Macfarlanes; hardly a high street legal aid firm, the business of which is daily fodder

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Bell Yard Kysen—Liz Giles

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Lime Solicitors—four promotions

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Lime Solicitors announces four promotions

NEWS
The Attorney General, Ellie Reeves KC MP, and Solicitor General, Andy Slaughter KC MP, marked the 25th anniversary of Pro Bono Week by joining lawyers, charities, students and parliamentarians at events celebrating voluntary legal work
Witness evidence can be compromised by AI before a solicitor sees the draft, leaving safeguards focused on authorship incomplete
Possession claims are entering a new digital era, with procedural traps awaiting practitioners who assume familiar rules still govern every step
The Environment Agency can prosecute offences beyond environmental legislation where proceedings support its statutory functions, the Divisional Court has confirmed
A polished legal defence may owe more to artificial intelligence than legal merit—and creditors risk paying the price in delay and expense
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