header-logo header-logo

The urban spaceman

10 June 2016 / Richard Harrison
Issue: 7702 / Categories: Features
printer mail-detail
nlj_7702_harrison

Richard Harrison considers how to achieve the status of ideal litigator

We all strive towards perfection. As litigators we want to achieve the ideal: to have our letters commended by judges and all our time allowed by the costs office.

Technical abilities

We can all have an understanding of the substantive law. We can all have a grasp of the underlying commercial realities. We must then get to grips with the multitudinous procedural requirements laid down in rules, practice directions, guidance notes and an entire panoply of full-blown court guides. We can follow, and religiously apply, the ample material contained in Gordon Exall’s comprehensive blog Civil Litigation Brief. But, to achieve the status of ideal litigator, something more is needed.

Prophetic abilities

It seems to be expected that each problem we confront, each response we plan, every move we make, we have experienced before. Our practices will be set up to ensure that all steps are taken following properly considered guidelines and that actions are implemented at precisely the right level of fee earner.

Categorisation

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

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
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
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
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
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
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
back-to-top-scroll