Family disputes that are resolved through mediation are cheaper, quicker and, according to academic research, less acrimonious than those that are settled through the courts. Despite these advantages, only some 20 per cent of people who are funded by legal aid for family breakdown cases (excluding those involving domestic violence) currently opt for mediation. Following on from a NAO report on this topic (HCP 256, session 2006-07; ISBN 9780102944525), the Committee's report examines the shortcomings of the current system for referring clients to mediation, and the actions the Legal Services Commission has in train to increase referrals to and take-up of mediation services, to improve the quality of mediation offered, and to strengthen the Commission's oversight of solicitors and mediation providers.
The Model Rules of Professional Conduct provides an up-to-date resource for information on legal ethics. Federal, state and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in solving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions and much more. In this volume, black-letter Rules of Professional Conduct are followed by numbered Comments that explain each Rule's purpose and provide suggestions for its practical application. The Rules will help you identify proper conduct in a variety of given situations, review those instances where discretionary action is possible, and define the nature of the relationship between you and your clients, colleagues and the courts.
This book includes the reforms proposed by the various Caribbean Commissions since 1985, making it a comprehensive guide to constitutional law in the Caribbean. It outlines sources of the law and developing changes in the doctrine of sovereignty of Parliament and the Conventions of the Constitution as well as in the role of the Public Service. There is also an expanded commentary on the Caribbean judiciary in which special reference is made to the proposed Caribbean Court of Justice.Caribbean Constitutional Law will be valuable to students of law and political science and practitione.
Clear, complete, and contextualized; this guide to the English legal system provides the strongest foundation for students at the start of their studies. Straightforward explanations of key topics are paired with learning features showcasing the law in its everyday context to give students a firm grasp on the fundamentals of the legal system.
The Bill has 4 parts and 16 schedules. It implements the proposals set out in 'Proposals for the reform of legal aid in England and Wales (Cm. 7967, ISBN 9780101796729 ) in part; 'Proposals for reform of civil litigation funding and costs in England and Wales' (Cm. 7947, ISBN 9780101794725 ); and 'Breaking the Cycle: effective punishment, rehabilitation and sentencing of offenders' (Cm. 7972, ISBN 9780101797221) in part. Part 1 abolishes the Legal Services Commission and places a duty on the Lord Chancellor to secure the availability of civil and criminal legal aid. Part 2 amends the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973; Civil Partnership Act 2004; and the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985. Part 3 sets out changes to some general sentencing provisions; plans to release more defendants on bail rather than holding them in custody; remand of children otherwise than on bail; release on licence; gives the Secretary of State to make rules in respect of the employment and payment of prisoners, making them work harder, longer and pay more compensation to their victims; out of court disposals and introduces a compulsory jail term for anyone threatening with a knife or offensive weapon
Lord Justice Jackson was required: to review the rules and principles governing the costs of civil litigation and to make recommendations in order to promote access to justice at proportionate cost; to review case management procedures; to have regard to research into costs and funding; to consult widely; to compare our costs regime with those of other jurisdictions; and to prepare a report setting out recommendations with supporting evidence by 31st December 2009. A preliminary report was issued in May 2009 and is also published alongside this final report (ISBN 9780117064034). Major recommendations cover: conditional fee agreements, of which "no win, no fee" agreements are the most common species, and which have been the major contributor to disproportionate costs; success fees and ATE (after-the-event) insurance premiums should cease to be recoverable from unsuccessful opponents in civil litigation; success fees should come out of the damages awarded to the client; awards of general damages should be increased by 10 per cent, and the maximum amount of damages that lawyers may deduct for success fees be capped at 25 per cent of damages; lawyers should not be permitted to pay referral fees in respect of personal injury cases; qualified one way costs shifting, taking away the need for ATE insurance; fixed costs in fast track litigation; establishment of a Costs Council. Other sections of the report deal with: other funding issues; personal injuries litigation; some specific types of litigation; and controlling the costs - including pre-action protocols, greater use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), disclosure, case and costs management by the judiciary.
Designed for students who may not have ready access to a law library, and for students on part-time and distance learning courses, the Sourcebook series offers a collection of material from a diversity of sources. The sources are annotated to set the materials in context and to explain their relevance and importance. This volume contains a representative selection of cases and statutes which cover such topics as the nature of law, sources of law, and the structure and jurisdiction of the civil and criminal courts. The legal profession and the interpretation of statutes are also discussed.
This book is a worldwide survey of legal aid containing more than seventy responses from ministries of justice, attorney generals, law societies, bar councils and individual lawyers to a detailed questionnaire. The results, set out here in summary form, are probably the most complete survey of its kind since the Lane and Hillyard edition of the Directory in 1985. The Editor of The New International Directory of Legal Aid, former legal aid solicitor Peter Soar, says: `In preparing this new edition I have learnt from previous users that the Directory is a valuable aid for Legal Aid Boards and law schools as well as individual lawyers.' In these pages you will find the ground work of legal aid systems in some of the most diverse legal jurisdictions from the Common Law countries of England and the Commonwealth to those which employ the approach of the Napoleonic Code. Here are systems adapted to the needs of the inhabitants of Caribbean islands, central European and Baltic states, emerging African peoples, the successors to ancient Indian empires, and countries of the Pacific Rim. The different forms of legal aid are of interest to practitioners and academics but the claims of the book go further than that. Just and fair societies depend on the maintenance of the rule of law. If the legal system, and in the last resort, the courts themselves are not within the reach of all citizens then talk of their rights is empty. If poor, weak, or powerless members of society are denied access to the courts because of lack of means, or if that access depends on the willingness of some lawyers to undertake cases pro bono, it is difficult to argue that in that state human rights are any more than forms rather than reality. If lawyers themselves exchange their independence for involvement in the very process of litigation (so-called `no win, no fee'), can it be said that freedom is not compromised? Here the reader can judge what in his or her opinion is the standing in these debates of each of the jurisdictions surveyed, with the help of editorial comments and the Editor's Introduction.
Presents commentary on, and analysis of, the European Union and its substantive law. This book covers the constitutional structure of the EU, examining the functioning of the institutions, the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, and the nature of the European legal order. It serves as a reference work for legal practitioners.
