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NLJ this week: Fast and efficient summary judgment or slow path to trial?

23 February 2024
Issue: 8060 / Categories: Legal News , Procedure & practice
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Does the slow route deliver better justice, asks Dr Anil Balan in this week’s NLJ

Balan is referring to summary judgment under Pt 24 of the Civil Procedure Rules, a ‘legal procedure that allows judges to rule on cases without a full trial if one party’s claim has no real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason to have a trial, saving time and money for all involved’.

‘But like any shortcut,’ Balan notes, ‘it raises concerns: does it trample on the fundamental right to a fair trial?’

Balan sets out recent case law illustrating the pitfalls and safeguards at play. He highlights the advantages of a ‘robust appeal system’ and of judges working within a well-defined framework to ensure clarity and transparency. He writes that, with clear guidelines in place, the ‘crucial balance’ can be maintained.

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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