I recently had the pleasure to attend a webinar to discuss the work the Group Transformation Division at Lloyds Banking Group have been doing to support colleague’s mental, physical & emotional wellbeing during this difficult
The new National Adoption Strategy is welcome news, but I wonder whether we have been down this road before. In May 2015 the Adoption Support Fund was rolled out, and whilst there have undoubtedly been
A major call for evidence has been launched by the Government seeking views on the best ways to settle family, business and other civil disputes away from the court room. The Responses will shape future
A report investigating the feasibility of post-pandemic remote hearings in the family courts has been published by Nuffield Family Justice Observatory. Commissioned by the President of the Family Division in anticipation of the easing of
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that there were an estimated 4.6 million fraud offences in the year ending March 2021, a 24% increase compared with 2020 figures.
Channel 4’s “Dispatches” has revealed how family courts can order the police to forcibly remove children, who are not in danger, from loving homes. The programme showed disturbing and never before seen footage of police
Professional jobs are on the up, but the lack of diversity is stalling progression in professional services. Hybrid and flexible working could provide an opportunity to change the current status quo in the legal profession,
Our ‘Technical Corner’ brings you information that will help you to continue to grow and develop in your career. This month’s technical corner article comes from Amy Bell, Director at Teal Compliance If you have
The fines levied by the SRA on 13 firms in recent weeks continue to demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding around responsibilities when it comes to the money laundering regulations. The firms in question had
The latest statistics from the Ministry of Justice show that disputes regarding the arrangements for children following their parents’ separation are now taking an average of 40 weeks to resolve; a startling rise of 35%
The House of Commons Justice Committee has published published its latest report on the Future of Legal Aid In its latest report, the Justice Committee discusses the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act
A major independent study into innovation in the legal sector has revealed that while the majority of law firms are making increasing use of day-to-day technology, the development of bespoke legal technology is largely focussed
Whilst complex and sophisticated cybercrime stories continue to make all the headlines on personal data theft, experts warn that the risks to our personal privacy are often much closer to home. In fact, right inside
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has announced a major shake-up of the Competition and Markets Authority’s powers. The CMA has been instrumental in the drive toward greater pricing transparency for consumers and more recently has intervened
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has published its annual reports on its operational work during 2019/20. The reports cover areas such as its regulatory role, preventing money laundering, and enforcement. Key facts highlighted within these
The Legal Services Board has published a response to the submissions it received to its discussion paper on quality indicators. Published in February 2021, the paper prompted a wide-ranging debate over what quality means in
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched formal enforcement cases against Amazon and Google in relation to possible breaches of consumer protection law. The CMA has concerns that Amazon and Google have not been
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has issued fines to seven practices that have failed to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) requirements. The firms affected are Manchester practice Law Together LLP, Telford-based Picasso Legal Limited, Smooth
Over three-quarters of people found their divorce stressful while a quarter wished they’d chosen another way to end their marriage, a new report has found as part of Irwin Mitchell’s campaign to do divorce differently.
The discordant and disproportionate ways the criminal law, private law children and public law children systems treat domestic abuse The criminal law, private law children, and public law children systems treat domestic abuse cases and
The government has confirmed that the legal requirement for social distancing in England will be removed from Monday 19 July 2021, as well as the detail of which other aspects of step 4 on the
Draft plans brought forward have proposed that co-habiting couples with children could become eligible for bereavement support in the event of their spouse’s death. Department for Work and Pensions minister, Baroness Stedman-Scott will set out
Cafcass demand has increased significantly resulting in the second highest June figures recorded, but care applications have decreased and open outstanding cases are reducing slowly. Last month, the children and family courts service (Cafcass) received
Just 1% of England and Wales’s judiciary is Black – a figure that hasn’t shifted since 2014 despite an increasingly diverse pool of applicants, according to official figures. Across all appointment rounds for legal judicial
The Office for Legal Complaints today published its Annual Report and Accounts for 2020/21 alongside an Annual Review of Complaints. This Annual Report covers the year from April 2020 when the impact of Covid-19 was
Most of the remaining coronavirus restrictions in England are set to be lifted on Monday (19 July) but some may need to be retained to allow courts to run safely and efficiently, the Law Society
The negative impact of the pandemic on mental health has been in the headlines since the first lockdown, and official statistics[1] for the first quarter of 2021 show that the incidence of depression in the
Statistics published by the Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) reveal a 44% decrease in the number of cases handled in 2020. Figures show that the FMU handled 759 cases in 2020 and an average of 1359
Sajid Javid, the former Chancellor, has recently introduced a private member’s Bill to be continued by Pauline Latham MP to Parliament which is set to be debated in November 2021. That Bill proposes to make
HM Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) is seeking feedback about how it communicates and engages with professionals that work in courts and tribunals. The 2021 communications and engagement survey closes this Friday (16th July) can
In January 2021, the Master of the Rolls asked the Civil Justice Council to report on the legality and desirability of compulsory ADR. The results have been published in the “Compulsory ADR” report which concludes
The Legal Services Consumer Panel Tracker Survey reveals a general 4% increase in consumer satisfaction levels in 2021. Despite most legal services currently being provided remotely due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, the Legal Services Consumer
New research commissioned by the Legal Services Board highlights the importance the public places on lawyers having the right knowledge, up to date skills and attributes to provide good quality legal services. However, the research
A white paper on The Future of Working From Home shows that while remote working increases wellbeing and productivity in employees, lack of support from employers may be costing businesses an even more productive workforce.
A recent report published by Resolution in partnership with LawCare has found that 89% of professionals working in the family justice sector have experienced negative wellbeing issues as a result of their work, with 1
The number of private hearings and arbitrations for divorce cases has risen by more than a third since January 2020, it has been reported. The Institute of Family Law Arbitrators has revealed that since the