Justice minister Jonathan Djanogly has ruled out a change in the law on compensation for pleural plaques – despite admitting flaws in the current system.

Djanogly told a House of Commons debate this week that ‘it could be seen as unfair’ that compensation is available in Scotland and Northern Ireland but not in England. Compensation for pleural plaques victims was barred as a result of a case taken to the Law Lords in 2007. But the governments in Scotland and Northern Ireland have since voted to overturn that ban – a decision upheld by the UK Supreme Court last year.

Critics accuse the government of overseeing a ‘postcode lottery’, but Djanogly has rejected calls to bring English law in line with the rest of the UK.

He said: ‘In light of the medical evidence, the government do not consider it appropriate to overturn the House of Lords’ judgment that the condition of pleural plaques is not compensable under the civil law.’ He added that people with pleural plaques who go on to develop asbestos-related disease were still able to make a claim for compensation.

Pleural plaques – caused by exposure to asbestos – have long been a source of controversy between insurers and claimant groups.

Found on the inner surface of the chest, they are benign and not associated with any symptoms, but many people who develop pleural plaques go on to develop asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.

Construction union UCATT claimed the government had ‘washed its hands’ of pleural plaques sufferers in England.

General secretary Steve Murphy said: ‘On the one hand they admit that it is unfair that all sufferers won’t receive compensation and in the next breath they reveal they intend to do nothing about it.

‘Plaques victims have suffered irreparable scarring to their lungs due to prolonged exposure to asbestos. Employers knew the risks workers faced but didn’t care.

‘The fact that pleural plaques sufferers in England and Wales are still denied compensation while those in Scotland and Northern Ireland can claim, has created a postcode lottery for asbestos victims.’

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/djanogly-dismisses-calls-scottish-style-deal-pleural-plaques

Lawyers need to do more to bridge the gaps in access to justice caused by legal aid reforms, the Law Society president told an international conference in Russia. However he stressed that pro bono work is no substitute for a properly funded legal aid system.

John Wotton, speaking at a forum attended by the justice secretary Kenneth Clarke, said the legal aid cuts in England Wales, made in the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act, pose challenges in ensuring that the most vulnerable can obtain legal advice.

Wotton said the act, which removes large areas of civil law from public funding, means that lawyers will need to do more pro bono work.

‘We need to involve more stakeholders, both within the profession and outside, to find new ways of bridging the access to justice gap which has been created by the LASPO,’ he said.

Wotton said pro bono work not only provides people with the legal help they might otherwise not get, but helps develop solicitors skills, boost morale, enhance recruitment and retention, and helps firms win business from clients who expect their suppliers to support the community.

He pointed to Law Society research which indicated last year solicitors did an average of 55 hours pro bono work, which based on charge out rate is valued at £518m – the equivalent of 2.4% of gross fee income.

‘Pro bono is an important element in the provision of access to justice, with a long and venerable tradition that benefits the public and the profession,’ he said. But he stressed that it should only be an ‘adjunct and not a substitute for a properly funded legal aid system’.

Wotton highlighted the series of debates that will be hosted by the Law Society on the theme of Protecting Access to Justice in a post-LASPO World.

They aim to bring together potential funders, voluntary organisations and lawyers to find the best and most innovative ways of ensuring that the most vulnerable members of society are not left unprotected and unrepresented.

The event in Russia provided an opportunity for representatives of the Law Society, Bar Council and UK government to press the benefits of London’s legal, arbitration and mediation services.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/pro-bono-no-substitute-legal-aid-wotton

The 18th of May 2012 is the UK’s national Spinal Cord Injury day.  Charities Aspire, Back Up, the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA), SIS and Spinal Research are marking the occasion with their ‘every 8 hours’ campaign, inspired by the fact that every 8 hours someone is told they will never walk again because of a spinal cord injury.  The ‘every 8 hours’ campaign aims to remind the UK that there is a positive future for people who are paralysed by spinal cord injury. 

 Events are being hosted at spinal injury centres all over the country on Spinal Cord Injury Day.  Amongst other fun activities, the spinal centres will be competing in a nationwide quiz.  Stoke Mandeville are the current champions but this may be set to change!  Twitter users can also show their support by adding an ‘every 8 hours’ twibbon to their avatar.  To do so, click here.

National Spinal Cord Injury day is a fantastic way of raising awareness about spinal cord injury and is wholeheartedly supported by Pannone.  As specialist spinal injury lawyers we know only too well that a spinal cord injury caused by an accident, illness or surgery dramatically changes the lives of the individual and those close to them.   Injury to the spine causes paralysis that can mean sufferers are unable to walk or, in cases of tetraplegia, move their limbs at all.  In addition to the obvious problems with mobility, spinal cord injury also affects bladder and bowel control, temperature regulation, sexual function, respiration and blood pressure.  Events like those being held at spinal centres across the UK today are absolutely vital to educating people about the difficulties spinal cord injured people face and, most importantly, reminding spinal cord injured people that they do not face them alone.

To find out more about how you can support Spinal Cord Injury day, click here. 

If you or a member of your family are affected by spinal cord injury, please call 0800 0384 384 for a no obligation discussion with one of our specialist serious injury lawyers.

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Article source: http://www.pannone.com/blog/personal-injury-listing/personal-injury-blog/spinal-cord-injury-awareness-day2

Nine out of 10 criminal barristers are prepared to take direct action in protest against low and late payments, a survey by the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) has revealed as their leader for the first time sanctions ‘strike’ action.

CBA chair Max Hill QC will tell members today: ‘The time has come to bypass our political masters. If they won’t listen to us, let us go to the public, because that is where governments are vulnerable.’ In unprecedentedly strong language, he will say: ‘Let us fight, and let us remember the option to strike.’

A survey of association members shows 89% of respondents would be prepared to take lawful direction, such as not attending court, in protest over the situation and future proposed changes to the delivery of criminal defence services. About half the CBA’s membership responded to the survey.

According to the survey 89% of respondents said payment levels of publicly funded criminal work are not ‘proper and fair’ and 88% would be prepared to refuse to accept instructions over them. And 85% said the same in respect of prosecution fees.

Most, 82%, said they had had to wait more than nine weeks for graduated fee payments, while 69% had waited more than four weeks for very high-cost cases payments.

In 2013, the government is to consult on the introduction of price competitive tendering for the delivery of publicly funded criminal defence services.

This may involve tendering for contracts of blocks of cases with the provider receiving a single fee per case covering both the litigation and advocacy fee, under a payment scheme called one-case one-fee.

Asked about the planned scheme, 92% of respondents said they would be against it on the basis that the advocacy fee is not ring-fenced.

More than half (61%) of the criminal barristers who responded said they would oppose the introduction of the quality assurance scheme for advocates if it allowed for assessments methods other than judicial evaluation, and 78% said they would oppose it if plea-only advocates had a separate grade.

Commenting on the findings at the CBA’s annual dinner in London tonight, Hill will warn the government that the criminal justice system is at risk because the role of barristers within it is becoming increasingly less viable. He will say that it is criminal barristers who uphold the public interest in access to justice and the maintenance of a proper criminal justice system, while the government, which wrongly accuses lawyers of being greedy, is itself ‘obsessed with money’.

On the payment delays, Hill will criticise the ‘wanton failure’ of central government to shore up the Legal Services Commission to ensure it paid barristers in a reasonable time had caused ‘heartache, depression and personal bankruptcy’.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/criminal-bar-unfurls-strike-banner

West London firm Lovell Chohan says it is leading the fundraising league table of 408 teams taking part in next Monday’s London Legal Walk. The firm has already raised £6,000 for the London Legal Support Trust and aims to reach £7,500 by the end of the event, solicitors clerk Chris Shearwood said. Some 5,000 legal figures, including the lord chief justice and master of the rolls, are expected to take part in the 10km walk around London legal landmarks. See tinyurl.com/bwbc6d5.

Early plea extension

The next batch of Crown courts to join the early guilty plea scheme has been agreed, attorney general Dominic Grieve QC said. The scheme began in Liverpool in 2009 and has been trialled in Reading, Winchester and Bristol.

The aim is to identify cases that will end up as guilty pleas. The 24 new court centres to adopt the programme include Oxford, Southampton, Manchester, Taunton, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Nottingham and Aylesbury.

Phillips off to Qatar

The first president of the Supreme Court, Lord Phillips, will succeed Lord Woolf as president of the Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Centre in September. Phillips, who retires from the Supreme Court in the autumn, has also been recommended for the role of non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong.

Tougher sentences

More dangerous dog offenders will face jail and community orders under new Sentencing Council guidelines published this week.

Global quality mark

International firm Trowers Hamlins has been awarded the Law Society Lexcel legal quality mark across all of its international offices. It is the first firm to gain the award in the Middle East.

In-Deed acquisition

Online property company In-Deed has bought conveyancing firm Runnetts for £225,000. In-Deed said it is in continuing acquisition discussions with other law firms, conveyancers and estate agents.

Council’s Fiji concern

A damning report on the rule of law in Fiji was set to be approved by the Law Society Council as the Gazette went to press. The report, by council member Nigel Dodds, highlighted government interference with the legal profession and the courts. Following the motion, Chancery Lane is expected to challenge Fiji’s DPP to admit an international delegation through the involvement of the International Bar Association. Fiji’s ‘interim’ government has been in power since a military coup in 2006 and refused entry to an IBA delegation in 2009.

Fining power plea

The Law Society has told the SRA it cannot apply the same fining powers to traditional law firms that it has for alternative business structures. The SRA is considering imposing a £250m limit on fines for all firms, but the Society, in a letter to the Ministry of Justice, said more serious matters should be left to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

Committee members

The Law Society’s family law committee and children law sub-committee are seeking new members. The deadline for applications is 21 May.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/news-in-brief/legal-walk-lineup

A Court of Appeal judge has criticised a defendant for rejecting mediation offered at a previous hearing – warning it will be a costly decision.

Lord Justice Longmore said it was a ‘great pity’ that appliance supplier Indesit, instructed by Plexus Solicitors, had not pursued the option of mediation as advised by Lord Justice Toulson in a personal injury case. Indesit had successfully defended a personal injury claim by employee Ali Ghaith, but Ghaith was subsequently given permission to appeal.

It was then that the appeal judge encouraged Indesit to pursue the option of mediation.

The company opted not to follow that advice on the grounds that costs had already exceeded the likely amount at issue. In a judgment given today, LJ Longmore said this was an ‘inadequate response’ that will ‘inevitably result in a substantial increase in costs’.

He added: ‘Indesit’s reaction is all too frequent and the court has, since April of this year, decided that any claim for less than £100,000 will be the subject of compulsory mediation.

‘It is devoutly to be hoped that such mediation will mean that these comparatively small claims will not have to be adjudicated by this court so frequently in future.’

His endorsement of mediation was backed by another member of the Court of Appeal panel, Lord Justice Ward, who said that ‘if [both parties] have any sense, they will heed a recommendation to mediate’.

He explained that the mediator had a ‘canny knack of transforming the intractable into the possible’ and that mediation should not be spurned when it is offered.

Ghaith, who had aggravated a back injury while lifting washing machine parts for a stock-take in 2007, sued his employer for personal injury, alleging a breach of manual handling regulations. It was agreed that liability (if any) would be no more than £60,000 because of the nature of the injury.

The claim had failed in the civil court on the grounds there was nothing more that could have been done on the part of the defendant.

But after Ghaith was given permission to appeal, LJ Longmore concluded he would allow the appeal and sent the matter to the County Court for an assessment of quantum.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/coa-judge-raps-defendant-spurning-mediation

Long-expected plans to enable US-style deferred prosecutions for white-collar crimes take a step forward with the publication of a Ministry of Justice consultation today.

Under a deferred prosecution the authorities and a malefactor business can agree a penalty to be imposed if the business does not comply with ‘good behaviour’ measures over a set period of time. The previous director of the Serious Fraud Office, Richard Alderman, had called for their adoption to curb corporate crime in the UK.

The new consultation, was developed jointly by the MoJ and the Law Officers’ departments. In a statement to parliament today, the junior justice minister, Crispin Blunt, said: ‘We need to develop new tools for prosecutors to use alongside existing methods, to give them the flexibility to secure appropriate penalties for wrongdoing, at the same time as achieving better outcomes for victims.’

He said that deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs) ‘would contribute to a just outcome, securing appropriate penalties for and the surrendering of the proceeds of wrongdoing, and benefits for victims in a way that is sanctioned by a judge, without the uncertainty, expense, complexity or time of a full criminal trial’. He pledged that the process will be transparent: ‘as DPAs will be public, the public will always know what wrongdoing has taken place, and the penalty that has been paid’. However the proposals are likely to attract criticism for undercutting the role of the judiciary.

Barry Vitou, partner at national firm Pinsent Masons, commended the move. ‘The UK prosecutors toolkit is in serious need of the deferred prosecution agreement regime. The present system encourages enforcement arbitrage with companies preferring to enter into deferred prosecution agreements in the United States to avoid the UK enforcement process. This makes no sense. The launching of the formal government consultation today is a welcome step.’

The consultation closes on 9 August.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/government-moves-adopt-deferred-prosecutions

The logistics company known for its distinctive Eddie Stobart lorries has launched a legal service to help the public cut the cost of legal disputes by linking clients directly with barristers without the need for a solicitor.

Stobart Barristers, part of the Stobart Group, says it has a panel of over 1,000 barristers, juniors and QCs, across the UK offering businesses and individuals help in all areas of law. It provides a fixed-fee service, through a ‘pay-as-you-go’ model during the litigation process, giving the client control of the process and enabling them to end it after each stage.

Stobart’s business model spurns the structures introduced by the Legal Services Act. It is not a ProcureCo and chief executive Trevor Howarth, who is group legal director, said it has no plan to become an alternative business structure. Instead, Stobart Barristers operates under the direct public access (DPA) legislation introduced in 2004, which licensed direct access to barristers.

Howarth told the Gazette that the Stobart Group has itself instructed barristers without using solicitors since 2008, cutting legal costs by 50% ‘on a conservative estimate’. He said over the years, the company has honed the model, which is suitable for private individuals as well as companies, and is now offering it to others.

The venture aims to achieve a £10m turnover in its first three years, Howarth said. A sister company, Stobart Support Services, provides the necessary paralegal services to support barristers and help prepare cases, and Stobart Group will provide the marketing service.

Howarth pointed to research carried out by the Populus Omnibus in April, which showed that 55% of the 2,036 adults interviewed were put off pursuing legal action due to uncertainty over total costs and 36% said the lack of control of a litigation process would stop them taking action. He said just 14% were aware of DPA legislation and only 22% of people said they would know how to engage a barrister without using a solicitor.

Howarth said: ‘Our fixed-fee, pay-as-you-go approach gives back control to the individual client and for the time they can stop the process at any stage. From the bar’s point of view, they don’t have the infrastructure or ability to provide the preparatory and litigation work, or the marketing, so we provide that,’ he said. ‘We are one of the first companies to look at the bar and see the benefits it offers,’ he said.

But he added: ‘We are not offering it to the bar at large, only to selected barristers that we want to work with. All panel barristers have to be licensed to make public access work.’

The group’s website explains why the FTSE 250 transport company is offering the service, stating: ‘We hate waste. We work hard to minimise non-productive time and maximise the utilisation of our fleet. It’s the same with the law – we think dealing with legal issues the old way is just wasting money.’

The site features a promotional film featuring Mark Windgate, known to viewers of TV series The Bill as DC Carver, says the service ‘saves times, money and worry compared with doing it the old way. You’ve got nothing to lose except the solicitor’s bill’.

Article source: http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/stobart-offers-pay-you-go-barristers-no-plans-be-abs

I was on a stag do the other week (yes, divorce solicitors do still get invited to weddings and the associated festivities) and I was chatting to a chap who was convinced that the only thing solicitors wanted to do in divorce cases was go to court. He was absolutely adamant that this is the norm, all cases end up before a judge and that solicitors actively promoted this because they made more money out of it. It took me some time to convince him that this was not correct.

I would guess that in excess of 95 per cent of cases at Woolley Co are settled without the need to go into a courtroom. Of course, certain papers need to be lodged, but that does not mean a day in court for anyone. This fact absolutely staggered my new friend. But is this what most people think? Is the perception that solicitors love being in court and will go out of their way to get cases in there?

As I have said many times in these blogs, we would always try and reach an amicable solution and agree on the details of both financial settlement and contact and residence issues for the children without the need for going to court. Why? Well, firstly it is the most professional – and adult – way to do it. Shouting, screaming, trying to get revenge or washing dirty laundry in public will do nothing to help reach agreement. Getting all parties to a court date will only lengthen the process and make it more expensive.

This final point is key. If you go to court, costs go up considerably because of the time involved on all sides. If you want to keep costs down, do not go to court. But, some may say – including my new friend on the stag do – that’s what solicitors want, isn’t it? Well, we are not motivated entirely by money. An agreeable solution for the client is what we are after. We offer the best advice to help achieve the best solution for our client. Rarely does that involve a formal hearing.

However, even if we were driven solely by earning as much in fees as possible, taking cases to court would not be the most effective way to do this. I would estimate that we can probably complete three cases out of court for every one that goes to court and often with less stress and upset and hence a greater likelihood of recommendation and referral from the client.

As any family solicitor will tell you we rely heavily on satisfied clients who recommend us to others, so why would we choose court proceedings over a more straight-forward, less costly, less stressful route, if there’s a choice?

I am concerned that people are not taking legal advice in divorce because of their perception that they can’t afford it or that they will have to go to court. Spreading the message that this does not have to be the case is key to changing opinion.

Andrew Woolley
Family solicitor

Article source: http://www.family-lawfirm.co.uk/Blog/2012/05/Perceptions-of-solicitors/

Following my earlier blog back in March I am pleased to report that this week Charlotte Roberts was given a custodial sentence of 15 months at Manchester Crown Court following her conviction for the offence of causing death by careless driving whilst she was under the influence of drink.  You can read the MEN news report here.

 Early on the morning of 4th November 2010 she hit and killed 79 year old Antonio Ricci, also of Heald Green whilst he was crossing the road en route to buy his morning paper.  Tragically evidence showed he had almost crossed the road at the point of impact.

Mr Ricci fought for his life for 12 days in hospital, but sadly succumbed to his injuries.  He was robbed of his final years. 

I represent Mr Ricci’s daughter, Lucia Delkhoshnavaz, who lived with her father, she explains:-

“I have pursued justice for my father and I am pleased that a custodial sentence has been handed down. This sends a message to people that they cannot drink to excess and then get in a car and drive early the next day when they are still over the limit.  However, a 15 month sentence does not reflect the loss to our family.  When the defendant is released she will be able to return to her family life, but ours has been changed for ever”.

 I hope the custodial sentence, although short, acts as a deterrent and reminds people of the dangers of getting into the driver seat the morning after a drink.

If you or a member of your family have suffered a loss as a result of a drink driver or other road traffic collision click here or call us on 0800 0384 384 to speak to a specialist personal injury solicitor. We are available to take your call twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

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Article source: http://www.pannone.com/blog/personal-injury-listing/personal-injury-blog/the-morning-after-the-dangers-of-drink-driving