header-logo header-logo

09 November 2012 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 7537 / Categories: Blogs
printer mail-detail

Where have they gone?

Dominic Regan yearns for some long-abandoned pastimes

I would not be best pleased if someone were to steal my penis. Sadly, both Napoleon and Tutankhamun have had their bits stolen, albeit post mortem. Worse still, another souvenir hunter swiped the head of Ned Kelly. Imagine the difficulties of going to the local police station to report the loss of one’s head. Strange but true.

Rogues gallery

These tales tell us that there are, and always will be, some disreputable types out there. The leading contract textbooks contain tales of a breed we no longer hear about, namely, the rogue. Where have they gone? Along would come a rogue flashing a cheque-book and perhaps impersonating a television star. They would smoothly separate the car owner from the vehicle and slide off leaving a stolen, worthless cheque with the hapless vendor.

When I was a child, one would regularly come across characters who took it upon themselves to stand in the road and direct traffic. Their invariable uniform was a pair of trousers too short

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

Sidley—James Inness

Sidley—James Inness

Partner joins capital markets team in London office

Haynes Boone—William Cecil

Haynes Boone—William Cecil

Firm announces appointment of partner as UK general counsel

Devonshires—Nicholas Barrows

Devonshires—Nicholas Barrows

Firm appoints first chief marketing officer to drive growth strategy

NEWS

The Court of Appeal has slammed the brakes on claimants trying to swap defendants after limitation has expired. In Adcamp LLP v Office Properties and BDB Pitmans v Lee [2026] EWCA Civ 50, it overturned High Court rulings that had allowed substitutions under s 35(6)(b) of the Limitation Act 1980, reports Sarah Crowther of DAC Beachcroft in this week's NLJ

A seemingly dry procedural update may prove potent. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold explains that new CPR 31.12A—part of the 193rd update—fills a ‘lacuna’ exposed in McLaren Indy v Alpa Racing
The long-running Mazur saga edged towards its finale as the Court of Appeal heard arguments on whether non-solicitors can ‘conduct litigation’. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School reports from a packed courtroom where 16 wigs watched Nick Bacon KC argue that Mr Justice Sheldon had failed to distinguish between ‘tasks and responsibilities’
Cheating in driving tests is surging—and courts are responding firmly. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort Law School charts a rise in impersonation and tech-assisted fraud, with 2,844 attempts recorded in a year
As AI-generated ‘deepfake’ images proliferate, the law may already have the tools to respond. In NLJ this week, Jon Belcher of Excello Law argues that such images amount to personal data processing under UK GDPR
back-to-top-scroll