Awareness of the damage that forced marriage can cause to individuals has grown in recent years, and now the Forced Marriages Act recognises for the first time the abuse of power by those enforcing their wishes against family members. Cris McCurley reports
Lord Laming's latest report on England's child protection system highlights ongoing deficiencies in the system and advocates, among other recommendations, the abolition of court fees. Noel Arnold reviews the findings
The current climate is likely to create more work for litigators but lawyers themselves could increasingly end up as defendants in professional negligence claims brought by lenders, says Georgina Squire
Justin Bates discusses the strained relations between local authorities and government over the move towards unitary authorities, and disputes between authorities over provision of services to asylum seekers
David Oldham has a mission, he says in the notes accompanying the news of his appointment as president of the association of district judges. “It is to persuade the government to return to funding our civil courts to a realistic level.â€