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31 January 2019 / Fiona Bawdon
Issue: 7826 / Categories: Features , Profession
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Once a Justice First Fellow, always a Justice First Fellow

What can social justice lawyers in the UK learn from across the Atlantic about innovative ways to fund and deliver legal services? Fiona Bawdon explains 

In 2006, when barrister Shauneen Lambe and solicitor Aika Stephenson were setting up the youth justice charity Just for Kids Law, they decided to go on a week-long visit to America.

Shauneen admits that the decision to spend some of their initial £15,000 grant on the trip might have raised eyebrows, but says it was invaluable in helping to shape the new organisation.

Earlier in her career, Lambe had worked as an attorney in the US, and was aware of the campaigning work done by the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. New York had just created a special district attorney for young offenders, and implemented a ‘can we not prosecute?’ policy. She says: ‘We’d just got our first grant, and I said to Aika, “Let’s go and check out what’s being done

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Newcastle & North of England Law Society—Lesley Fairclough

Newcastle & North of England Law Society—Lesley Fairclough

Ward Hadaway partner becomes bicentennial president following regional merger

Devonshires—four promotions

Devonshires—four promotions

Firm promotes four senior associates to partner in annual round

Fieldfisher—John McElroy & Daniel Hayward

Fieldfisher—John McElroy & Daniel Hayward

Co-heads of dispute resolution practice appointed alongside partner promotions

NEWS

From blockbuster judgments to procedural shake-ups, the courts are busy reshaping litigation practice. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School hails the Court of Appeal's 'exquisite judgment’ in Mazur restoring the role of supervised non-qualified staff, and highlights a ‘mammoth’ damages ruling likened to War and Peace, alongside guidance on medical reporting fees, where a pragmatic 25% uplift was imposed

Momentum is building behind proposals to restrict children’s access to social media—but the legal and practical challenges are formidable. In NLJ this week, Nick Smallwood of Mills & Reeve examines global moves, including Australia’s under-16 ban and the UK's consultation
Reforms designed to rebalance landlord-tenant relations may instead penalise leaseholders themselves. In this week's NLJ, Mike Somekh of The Freehold Collective warns that the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 risks creating an ‘underclass’ of resident-controlled freehold companies
Timing is everything—and the Court of Appeal has delivered clarity on when proceedings are ‘brought’. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ, Stephen Gold explains that a claim is issued for limitation purposes when the claim form is delivered to the court, even if fees are underpaid
The traditional ‘single, intensive day’ of financial dispute resolution (FDR) may be due for a rethink. Writing in NLJ this week, Rachel Frost-Smith and Lauren Guiler of Birketts propose a ‘split FDR’ model, separating judicial evaluation from negotiation
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