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03 April 2008 / Roger Smith
Issue: 7315 / Categories: Features , Public , Legal services , Constitutional law
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The NLJ Column

Constitutional Reform

Crime, punishment and lacklustre constitutional reform

Ian Norris always had a better case to resist extradition to the than the “Nat West Three”. His reward was to succeed where they did not: halting—or at least delaying—his departure for trial in the . The Nat West Three—David Bermingham, Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby—ran a highly visible, but ultimately unsuccessful, campaign against their extradition requests. However, in the end, the three pleaded guilty to the district court in and, on 27 February, were jailed for 37 months each in relation to a £7.3m fraud. In doing so, a considerable amount of humble pie was consumed as the defendants respectively told the court: “My conduct in this matter fell well below the standards expected”; “We lacked integrity“; and “I didn’t realise the implications”. The threesome’s case was based on the fact that the US–UK extradition treaty does not require the authorities to show any prima facie case against them to a court and,

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Keystone Law—Milena Szuniewicz-Wenzel & Ian Hopkinson

Keystone Law—Milena Szuniewicz-Wenzel & Ian Hopkinson

International arbitration team strengthened by double partner hire

Coodes Solicitors—Pam Johns, Rachel Pearce & Bradley Kaine

Coodes Solicitors—Pam Johns, Rachel Pearce & Bradley Kaine

Firm celebrates trio holding senior regional law society and junior lawyers division roles

Michelman Robinson—Sukhi Kaler

Michelman Robinson—Sukhi Kaler

Partner joins commercial and business litigation team in London

NEWS
The Legal Action Group (LAG)—the UK charity dedicated to advancing access to justice—has unveiled its calendar of training courses, seminars and conferences designed to support lawyers, advisers and other legal professionals in tackling key areas of public interest law
As the drip-feed of Epstein disclosures fuels ‘collateral damage’, the rush to cry misconduct in public office may be premature. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke of Hill Dickinson warns that the offence is no catch-all for political embarrassment. It demands a ‘grave departure’ from proper standards, an ‘abuse of the public’s trust’ and conduct ‘sufficiently serious to warrant criminal punishment’
Employment law is shifting at the margins. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ this week, Ian Smith of Norwich Law School examines a Court of Appeal ruling confirming that volunteers are not a special legal species and may qualify as ‘workers’
Criminal juries may be convicting—or acquitting—on a misunderstanding. Writing in NLJ this week Paul McKeown, Adrian Keane and Sally Stares of The City Law School and LSE report troubling survey findings on the meaning of ‘sure’
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has narrowly preserved a key weapon in its anti-corruption arsenal. In this week's NLJ, Jonathan Fisher KC of Red Lion Chambers examines Guralp Systems Ltd v SFO, in which the High Court ruled that a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) remained in force despite the company’s failure to disgorge £2m by the stated deadline
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