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03 November 2023 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 8047 / Categories: Opinion , Profession , Costs
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The insider: 3 November 2023

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Fixed costs, forced ADR, and animal exploitation jostle for space with legal superstars, good deeds, and a whiff of hope in this month’s update by Dominic Regan

Judicial review! An injunction! Kidnap Lord Justice Birss! Some desperate measures were mooted to preclude the implementation of Fixed Recoverable Costs on 1 October. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) did not blink and the Intermediate Track is now open for business.

It is inevitable that 107 pages of measures will generate teething problems. Costs management, now an everyday occurrence, endured a grim childhood. Indeed, potential problems within the new measures triggered a further consultation back in July which was astonishing because it was looking at rules that were not even in force! I am certain that we will see tweaks by way of amendments in April 2024. The proposed changes and outcome of the consultation should be published next month. I believe that the concern of clinical negligence lawyers about such cases falling into the bottom rung of the Intermediate Track will be

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

NLJ Career Profile: Stephen Ward, The Barrister Group

NLJ Career Profile: Stephen Ward, The Barrister Group

From mowing lawns to life at the Bar: Stephen Ward reflects on an unconventional career

Clarke Willmott—Ben Loosemore

Clarke Willmott—Ben Loosemore

Commercial property partner joins Clarke Willmott in Southampton

Ellisons—Robert Tiffen

Ellisons—Robert Tiffen

Robert Tiffen joins Ellisons as Partner in growing Norwich office

NEWS
The Law Society RFC Festival of Sport returns next month, bringing together legal and financial services professionals for one of the sector’s largest annual sporting events
Legal aid deserts leave almost one in four without adequate access to justice
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned solicitors and law firms that using artificial intelligence does not alter their professional obligations, amid concerns over inaccurate legal material and client confidentiality
From forgotten interest claims to case-management appeals, a string of procedural developments offers useful—and occasionally cautionary—lessons for practitioners

Jonathan Fisher KC highlights that it now accounts for around 40% of criminal offences, with roughly 70% involving technology, and argues that the UK cannot simply prosecute its way out of the problem. Detection, investigation and prosecution all require improvement, while different fraud types demand tailored responses.

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