News in brief: week beginning 8 September 2014

COURT

Legal controls: Ashya King, the five-year-old boy at the centre of a debate surrounding parental rights and European arrest warrants, has ceased to be a ward of the court. Mr Justice Baker said that Portsmouth City Council had been correct to apply for Ashya to become a ward of the court based on the medical evidence it had concerning the five-year-old's condition and the risks he faced at that time.

REGULATOR

Plot thickens: The SRA has indicated that it may investigate solicitor-advocate Dr Alan Blacker, also known as 'Lord Harley of Counsel', amid questions concerning his LinkedIn profile. Judge David Wynn Morgan recently asked why Blacker was wearing colourful ribbons and badges on his gown when he appeared before him. Blacker explained that he had earned the ribbons for voluntary medical service with the St John Ambulance service. Judge Morgan was less than impressed and described Blacker's appearance as "something out of Harry Potter".

CRIME

Court disorder: A family court magistrate was injured after a father hurled a heavy jug of water across a court room. John Crawley threw a two-litre carafe at his former partner, but instead it struck presiding magistrate, Janice Piper, on the head. Crawley pleaded guilty to assault causing actual bodily harm, common assault and affray following the incident at the family court in Vernon Street, Liverpool.

REGULATOR

Super network: The Legal Services Board (LSB) has joined the UK Regulators Network (UKRN) as an observer member. It will take a specific interest in UKRN projects that support the LSB's regulatory objectives in particular: understanding affordability across sectors; regulating for quality; consumer engagement; and organisational development.

EMPLOYMENT

Religious discrimination: An appeal judge has allowed 51 Goan housekeeping staff at Great Western Hospital in Swindon to proceed with their claims of race and religious discrimination, harassment and victimisation for trade union membership and whistleblowing against their employer Carillion Services Ltd. Mr Justice Wilkie found that the original Employment Tribunal Judge had erred in law by not allowing claims of harassment and indirect race discrimination to proceed.

CHARITY

Mass soaking: Staff at Leicester law firm Douglas Wemyss Solicitors have taken the ice bucket challenge, raising £1,000 for the Macmillan charity in the process. The firm has also nominated former Leicester cricket star Paul Nixon, fashion guru Gok Wan and music stars Kasabian for a soaking.

REGULATOR

Committed reform: The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has emphasised its commitment to delivering its programme of regulatory reform to support innovation and reduce regulatory burdens. Chief executive Paul Philip used his recent speech at the Westminster Legal Policy Forum to repeat the commitments made in the SRA's Regulatory Reform Programme. The SRA said in May that it would look to make it simpler for firms wishing to integrate the delivery of legal services with other professional services by adopting a different approach to licensing multi-disciplinary practices.

AWARDS

Legal pioneer: An online legal directory of more than 15,000 lawyers has been shortlisted as a Legal Industry Pioneer from over 500 applicants from across Europe in the FT Innovative Lawyer Awards 2014. Accesssolicitor.com was launched in August 2013 with the aim of making it as easy as possible for consumers and small business owners to find the right lawyer for their needs, while also enabling law firms to reach clients online.

CHARITY

Legal eagles: Sixteen staff members from Liverpool-based solicitor Jackson Canter took part in a death-defying 100ft-high zip wire challenge across Liverpool City Centre for Woodlands Hospice. They have raised more than £4,000 for charity in the past, and hope this will rise to more than £5,000 with the completion of their latest challenge.

LITIGATION

Libel victory: Listed legal services company Quindell claims it has won a libel action against Gotham City Research after the US-based analyst questioned the accuracy of its financial statements, which led to a sharp fall in Quindell's share price. Gotham, based in the US state of Delaware, failed to provide either an acknowledgement of service or a defence to an out-of-jurisdiction claim form and particulars of claim. Quindell has now received judgment in their favour from the High Court with the process of assessing damages to begin in November.

CRIME

Jailed solicitor: A Birmingham solicitor currently serving five years in prison for property fraud offences has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. Kamran Malik, formerly of AKZ Solicitors, was sentenced in criminal proceedings at Birmingham Crown Court at the start of the year for four counts of money laundering, four counts of mortgage fraud, and one count of perverting the course of justice.

PERSONAL INJURY

New whiplash: Citadel Law has warned of the significant risk in building the PI market around industrial deafness as road traffic practitioners look for more lucrative areas of work. The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has also argued that such claims are becoming a 'cash cow'. for specialists.

LITIGATION

Suit you: The Harris Tweed Authority (HTA), the statutory body tasked with protecting the authenticity of Harris tweed, has claimed victory against US department store chain Crate and Barrel. The 170 branch store had been selling a selection of chairs from a 'Harris tweed' collection. However, none of the material was actually Harris tweed. Crate and Barrel have agreed to pay damages. The Harris Tweed Act 1993 safeguards the authenticity of the cloth, made in the Outer Hebrides, to prevent forgery. SJ