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Sustainable justice first

08 December 2017 / Matthew Smerdon
Issue: 7773 / Categories: Features , Profession
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Aspiring social justice lawyers have an opportunity to qualify & build lasting careers, as Matthew Smerdon explains

Social welfare law, the ‘law of everyday life’, which covers everything from welfare benefits, debt, housing, employment, community care, and immigration and asylum, may not be the most financially rewarding area of practice to some wannabe lawyers, but it remains a crucial element of the UK’s legal sector with a vital role to play in supporting people to secure their rights.

Following passage of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and wider reductions in local authority support, the Legal Education Foundation (TLEF) became concerned about the funding pressures on the legal aid and advice sectors, reducing the ability of those with legal problems to obtain help. Alongside this was the virtual collapse in the ability of the sector to offer training contracts.

With a lack of public funds squeezing law centres and private practice law firms TLEF looked to create a scheme that would help aspiring social justice lawyers qualify and build sustainable careers in

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
Artificial intelligence may be revolutionising the law, but its misuse could wreck cases and careers, warns Clare Arthurs of Penningtons Manches Cooper in this week's NLJ
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