A dispute over unregistered design rights in the Court of Appeal has broken new ground in intellectual property law. The machine at the centre of the dispute is a slurry separator, designed to displace the dung heap and the muck-spreader from the English rural landscape. In March 1997, Farmers Build, which marketed the separator, claimed […]
The Law Lords are considering whether to allow the battle over the development of Downe Hall to go to a full House of Lords appeal. The case focuses on the rights of local authorities to weigh the practical advantages of development against listed building policies when deciding whether to allow schemes to go ahead. So […]
It was bad news for Mick, but good news for Jerry’s lawyer, the high-profile Sandra Davis. Supermodel Jerry Hall, who filed for divorce from her adulterous Rolling Stone husband Mick Jagger, has appointed Davis at niche media law specialists Mishcon de Reya as her legal representative. Davis, who has also handled the divorce of Princess […]
Jonathan Nash 3 Verulam Buildings Called to the Bar: 1986 Professional achievements/associations: Member of Combar and of the European Society for Banking and Financial Law. Areas of practice: All aspects of banking operations; financial services; insolvency; professional negligence; insurance; commercial fraud; arbitration. Recent reported cases: Target Home Loans v Redferns (1998); Barclays Bank v Weeks […]
Baker & McKenzie is to open a new office in Germany to accommodate a rapidly expanding market. The office will open in Dusseldorf on 1 April and will be the firm’s fourth office in Germany’s regionalised market and its 60th worldwide. Baker & McKenzie’s objective is to fight its way back up the ratings. In […]
Judges are ignoring rules that cut defendants’ jail terms for early guilty pleas, it has been revealed to The Lawyer. The Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) says that, according to anecdotal evidence, some judges are failing to use the powers, which date back to the 1994 Criminal Justice Act. As a result, it says […]
Titmuss Sainer Dechert, a leading London property firm, has taken the unusual move of appointing a legal executive to head up its planning department. The highly-rated Jason True takes over responsibility from Graham McGowan who will continue at the firm as head of the public sector unit. The planning department’s clients include Dixons, Fairview New […]
The Portuguese legal representative of imprisoned British lawyer Professor David Lowry believes the odds are against him being released, despite widespread protest over his arrest. Lowry’s fraud trial, described by UK lawyers as “a very serious potential miscarriage of justice”, ended in Lisbon’s Boa Hora court last week with addresses by the prosecution, defence lawyer […]
The New Year has witnessed an unusual amount of movement at the Bar, especially at senior level. The most recent shift has seen five silks and six juniors changing addresses in the last two weeks. Geraldine Clark, who has accepted a tenancy at 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square, says she has left because of clerking and […]
The Bar Council is requesting an amendment to the Access to Justice Bill, making subscriptions to the body compulsory. Raising membership from 90 to 100 per cent will have obvious economic advantages and will strengthen the institution generally, says the Bar. However, it faces stiff opposition, particularly from the employed and non-practising Bar, of whom […]
Spare a thought for the Director of Public Prosecutions. The image of his service is in tatters and morale is at an all-time low. Now, faced with the Herculean task of implementing reform, half his chief crown prosecutors have quit. Surely things can only get better. Robert Mendick reports. David Calvert-Smith admits to suffering sleepless […]
The proposed merger of Richards Butler and Theodore Goddard broke down due to objections by Theodore Goddard partners, it is claimed. The merger would have created the 12th largest City firm in terms of fee earners. Peter Kavanagh, managing partner of Richards Butler, says certain partners raised objections to the proposed merger when it was […]