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03 May 2013
Issue: 7558 / Categories: Case law , Law digest , In Court
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Solicitor

Magical Marking Ltd and another v Ware & Kay LLP and others [2013] EWHC 59 (Ch), [2013] All ER (D) 213 (Apr)

Whether expressed in terms of contract or tort, a firm of solicitors was required to apply reasonable care and skill in the discharge of the express and implied terms of its retainer by the client, both in terms of the giving of requested or necessary advice and in terms of carrying out the tasks called for by the clients’ instructions. It was often said that solicitors were not liable for mere errors of judgment. That reflected the reality that in any given situation there might be a range of different advice which could be given by solicitors without a breach of their duty of care. Furthermore, in particular where solicitors were resorted to for advice as to the vindication of their clients’ rights, it might be incumbent upon them to identify a range of alternative responses, with advice about their respective costs and risks, rather than simply to advocate a single solution and say nothing about

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NEWS
Children can claim for ‘lost years’ damages in personal injury cases, the Supreme Court has held in a landmark judgment
The cab-rank rule remains a bulwark of the rule of law, yet lawyers are increasingly judged by their clients’ causes. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian McDougall, president of the LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation, warns that conflating representation with endorsement is a ‘clear and present danger’
Holiday lets may promise easy returns, but restrictive covenants can swiftly scupper plans. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Francis of Serle Court recounts how covenants limiting use to a ‘private dwelling house’ or ‘private residence’ have repeatedly defeated short-term letting schemes
Artificial intelligence (AI) is already embedded in the civil courts, but regulation lags behind practice. Writing in NLJ this week, Ben Roe of Baker McKenzie charts a landscape where AI assists with transcription, case management and document handling, yet raises acute concerns over evidence, advocacy and even judgment-writing
The Supreme Court has drawn a firm line under branding creativity in regulated markets. In Dairy UK Ltd v Oatly AB, it ruled that Oatly’s ‘post-milk generation’ trade mark unlawfully deployed a protected dairy designation. In NLJ this week, Asima Rana of DWF explains that the court prioritised ‘regulatory clarity over creative branding choices’, holding that ‘designation’ extends beyond product names to marketing slogans
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