Small legal aid firms must embrace new ways to deliver their services if they are to avoid closure. William Flack considers the main two models and how these might evolve in the future
Recruiters looking for staff with 'chartered' qualifications may seek legitimate assurances about professional skills but they could be breaking the law, say Shiva Shadi and Kai Graf von Pahlen
Last week's rape trial shows a youth justice review is not enough – we need to rip up the whole system and start again, say campaigners. Ailsa Dixon reports
It is a fine excitement, election time. Because of the exigencies of a tough trial I missed most of it, but was found crouching in front of the telly at 5am demanding of it “But who are our masters now?†The suspense was killing me – but eventually fevered impatience was rewarded, and the quintennial rush to the Ministry of Justice website could begin. I'm surprised it didn't crash, with the sheer weight of lawyers anxious to know who their new line managers were and what life under them would be like.
The last few months have produced contrasting decisions about the court's power to remove executors, a reappraisal of the criteria of testamentary capacity and a useful ruling on inheritance tax, says Helen Bryant
Welsh firms are still battling the recession, but, by joining forces with others and moving towards greater specialisation, they are also gearing up to take on the challenges of the evolving legal services market. Jean-Yves Gilg reports
