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The insider: 11 August 2023

11 August 2023 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 8037 / Categories: Opinion , Profession
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Dominic Regan highlights some key dates for your post-summer diary, & recounts the curious case of a particularly light-fingered solicitor…

The final countdown has begun. On 1 October, the new intermediate track comes into existence. A vast number of cases worth between £25,000 and £100,000 will be subject to a fixed costs matrix. No more costs management or detailed assessment. The way out is to issue proceedings before the date of implementation. That would appear to be easier said than done. On a recent trek around England, I was told over and over again that it was common for courts to take something between 40 and 50 days to get proceedings issued. On that basis—and appreciating that you may not be alone in making a final sprint to issue—one might be too late before this month is out!

For disease cases, one must fire off a compliant formal letter of claim before October. Injury claimants are in the best position for now. The new measures only apply where their cause of

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Freeths—Ruth Clare

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National real estate team bolstered by partner hire in Manchester

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Partner appointed head of family team

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

Firm strengthens agriculture and rural affairs team with partner return

NEWS
Regulators differed in the clarity and consistency of their post-Mazur advice and guidance, according to an interim report by the Legal Services Board (LSB)
The next generation is inheriting more than assets—it is inheriting complexity. Writing in NLJ this week, experts from Penningtons Manches Cooper chart how global mobility, blended families and evolving values are reshaping private wealth advice
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming sport, from recruitment and training to officiating and fan engagement. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dr Ian Blackshaw of Valloni Attorneys at Law explains how AI now influences everything from injury prevention to tactical decisions, with clubs using tools such as ‘TacticAI’ to gain competitive edges
The Solicitors Act 1974 may still underpin legal regulation, but its age is increasingly showing. Writing in NLJ this week, Victoria Morrison-Hughes of the Association of Costs Lawyers argues that the Act is ‘out of step with modern consumer law’ and actively deters fairness
A Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) ruling has reopened debate on the availability of ‘user damages’ in competition claims. Writing in NLJ this week, Edward Nyman of Hausfeld explains how the CAT allowed Dr Liza Lovdahl Gormsen’s alternative damages case against Meta to proceed, rejecting arguments that such damages are barred in competition law
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