News in brief: week beginning 13 October 2014

REGULATOR

Constitutional champion: Nicholas Lavender QC, chairman of the Bar Council, has said the Lord Chancellor should be a "very senior lawyer". His statement follows the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, explanation to the House of Lords constitution committee that in his opinion there were "no disadvantages" to the Lord Chancellor being a non-lawyer. However, Lavender QC responded by saying that "legal expertise is essential to fulfil such a unique role" and the holder of the post must be a "champion of the justice system" and guardian of the constitution.

INTERNATIONAL LAW

Marble dispute: Human rights barrister, and new adviser to the Greek government, Amal Clooney, has argued the country has 'just cause' in its fight for the return of the Elgin Marbles from the British Museum. "It's time for the British Museum to return [the Marbles] to Greece. The injustice has persisted for too long. The Greek government has the right to ask for the return of the marbles, 200 years after they were taken to the United Kingdom," she said.

HUMAN RIGHTS

Renegotiating powers: The government's newly appointed attorney general, Jeremy Wright QC MP, has insisted the Conservative party is not advocating the loss of any rights following its proposals to scrap the Human Rights Act. However, Wright indicated that a Tory government would be prepared to pull the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights if reforms to the Strasbourg court could not be agreed.

COSTS

Phone hacking: Rebekah Brooks' husband has lashed out at the justice system after Mr Justice Saunders, dismissed a claim for £500,000 of legal costs. Charlie Brooks, a former racing trainer, who was one of the defendants in the recent highly publicised phone hacking trial, said: "At least on a racecourse, when you back a winner the bookmakers pay you." Mr Justice Saunders told Brooks that although he had been cleared he had brought suspicion on himself.

SPORTS LAW

Employment discrimination: Top US sports discrimination lawyer, professor Jeremi Duru, has suggested British football may be reaching a "breaking point" over the introduction of a 'Rooney Rule'. The rule, which originated in the US, requires NFL American football franchises to interview at least one black or ethnic minority candidate for senior coaching roles. Duru said that though the debate was moving in the right direction, "further steps" including legal action may be required if there was "no progress".

FAMILY

Lawyer-free: More than half of all parents are going to court without legal representation when seeking to contest arrangements for their children. Figures from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) show that in England and Wales between April and June 2014, two out of three parents went to court without a lawyer to decide issues such as child contact, residency and maintenance payments. In the period of 2012/13, before legal aid was withdrawn from lawyers in most family disputes, the proportion of unrepresented parents at court for the same matters stood at 42 per cent. The latest quarterly figures for 2014/15 show this has increased to 62 per cent. Read more here.

EMPLOYMENT LAW

Disability discrimination: Well-known Midlands solicitor, Jeremy Geere, has made claims for disability discrimination and harassment at Birmingham's Employment Tribunal against his former employers, Anthony Collins Solicitors. The firm employed Geere for ten years. He then became a caseworker for the Citizens Advice Bureau dealing only with race discrimination cases and later ran an independent charity to help migrant workers. The former employee accused Anthony Collins of post-employment victimisation, disability discrimination and harassment after alleging derogatory remarks had since been made against him. The claims had been brought under the Protection of Harassment Act. Read more here.

COURTS

Lost in translation: The government's decision to privatise the court translation service has come under fresh criticism after figures from the MoJ revealed hundreds of complaints after interpreters failed to turn up to court. According to the figures, 47 per cent of the 700 complaints this quarter are down to 'no shows' or lateness, leading to trials being delayed or halted.

SOLICITORS

Mortgage fraud: Former solicitor, Jonathan Martin Gilbert, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for his involvement in a mortgage fraud which netted £30m over four years. Gilbert was struck off the roll in 2010 after the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal described his case as 'one of the worst' brought before it. His activities caused the failure of Berkshire firm Willmett, where he was a partner.

HUMAN RIGHTS

Repressing rights: Russia's justice ministry has asked the country's supreme court to close Memorial, the nation's best-known human rights organisation. Founded in 1989, Memorial has been celebrated for leading efforts to uncover communist-era repressions and fight discrimination in modern day Russia. Reports have not mentioned on what grounds the ministry is seeking to have Memorial closed. A hearing to liquidate the group is set to be held on 13 November, according to the court's website.

CONVEYANCING

Property online: A new home conveyancing portal is scheduled to be launched to the legal profession in Spring 2015. The online service, called Veyo, is a joint venture between the Law Society and global IT solutions specialist, Mastek UK. It is designed to bring together all the processes, checks and documentation prepared by solicitors and licensed conveyancers in the sale and purchase of residential properties. Read more here. SJ