13 January 1997

The sloping playing field

Stephen Sidkin’s review of the European Commission’s report on compensation/indemnity for commercial agents highlights the inadequacies in the EU agency directive and its national implementation. Reading it the same morning as I took Italian law advice on behalf of a UK agent whose principal is insisting on Italian law, the article struck home. National laws […]

Owen sets the tone for the Bar

Barely hours into his new role as Bar Council chairman, Robert Owen QC was making waves. Radio waves, that is. His attack on proposed legislation to allow police unchecked powers to tap phones, in an interview on Radio 4’s Today programme on 1 January, received nationwide press coverage. His is something of a voice in […]

A dangerous Bill for confidentiality

The nature of the relationship between solicitors and their clients will take on new meaning if the Police Bill goes through parliament in its current guise. Under the proposed provisions, police will be free to bug solicitors during their conferences with clients. But who will authorise this? After initially proposing that the police should have […]

Financings

Richards Butler acted for Emirates in connection with a US$126m financing for Emirates’ third Boeing 777 aircraft.

Property

Linklaters & Paines represented Hong Kong-based CCA Holdings on its acquisition of Brocket Hall, the 550-acre estate in Hertfordshire. Clifford Chance acted for Brocket Hall and Wedlake Bell acted for the trustees of the estate.

Japan gives all-clear to UK practice

Baker & McKenzie has been granted regulatory approval by the Ministry of Justice to operate as a foreign law firm under its own name in Japan, while continuing a relationship with its former joint venture Tokyo Aoyama. The firm has had a presence in Japan since 1970 when it opened an office and shared a […]

CCT: a little local difficulty

Private law firms specialising in local government work no doubt hoped that the Compulsory Competitive Tendering (CCT) of local authority legal services would lead to a surge in work, as more legal work in local authorities was exposed to external competition. The Department of the Environment (DoE), however, is less than pleased with the amount […]

Litigation Disciplinary Tribunals 14/01/97

Giuseppina Stefania Silvio, 37, admitted 1990, practising at material time as an assistant solicitor with Hudson Freeman Berg, London W1, fined £2,000 and ordered to pay £1,440 costs. Allegations substantiated she sought to deceive her principals about the performance of her professional duties by entering fictitious entries in a court diary and representing she attended […]

Softly, softly approach

I read with interest your leader in The Lawyer, 17 December, headed “A firm emphasis on good management”. As a consultant to professional firms, I have observed on many occasions that while lawyers are excellent at advising clients they are generally poor at looking after their own practices. Too often department heads are promoted because […]

An ideal solution – or commission impossible?

The Criminal Cases Review Commission has a daunting brief – to restore public confidence in a discredited criminal justice system. And now that it is about to swing into action, the question on everybody’s lips is whether the new commission will be up to the job or, in the words of one sceptic, whether it […]

CCT comes under fire from solicitors

The compulsory competitive tendering (CCT) regime has been slammed as inconsistent and confusing by solicitors from 30 local government authorities in London. In a report forwarded to the Government, the London Boroughs’ CCT Lawyers Group says it is working in demanding circumstances against a legislative back-drop that is subject to change on an almost monthly […]

Kendal appoints legal veteran

Local government lawyer Hugh McClorry has been appointed Kendal Town Council town clerk. McClorry, who has 24 years’ experience with local authorities, has been in private practice since 1993. He will replace CG Thomson Wilson partner Robert Metcalfe, who retired from the part-time position after eight years because of an increasing workload in his practice […]