Biblio 5 online edition

Issue 5 - Summer 2018

Biblio Berkshire • Buckinghamshire • Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society

BB&O Annual Dinner & Awards Ceremony 2018 Full report on page 6 In this issue: Revitalising Dormant Charitable Trusts • making a difference in the Thames Valley & more...

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Issue 5 - Summer 2018

From the President...

Berkshire Buckinghamshire Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society Magazine

Contents

Welcome to the latest edition of Biblio.

Whether you are reading this in a break or even if it was left in the ‘wee small library’ There is something to catch your attention!

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From the President

4

Committee Members

4

A word from the Editor

6

Annual Dinner and Awards Report

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AGM Booking Form

If you have anything that you’d like to contribute to Biblio please do not be shy. Liberate your light from under that bushel and send us copy.

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Revitalising Dormant Charitable Trusts

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Tracking study indicates steady rise in legacy giving

Wishing you health and happiness,

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Access Legal Solicitors - making a difference in the Thames Valley

Simon Stone President, BB&O Law Society 2017/2018

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BBO Law Society Membership Application Form

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'Super Regulator' must reject uneven rules for solicitors

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Wanted! Volunteers for the SBA

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The Open Spaces Society

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Dreamvar - from the PII Perspective

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Con29DW

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Dormant Accounts and Good Causes

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What are the emaerging risks for law firms?

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Experts Under The Microscope

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Outsourcing - the solution to in-house staffing problems!

Thanks to all of you who made the Annual Dinner and Awards evening such a success. We look forward to something similar next year so please do think about nominations as soon as you can and put a date in the diary June 14th 2019.

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membership

Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society

Committee 2017-18 President Simon Stone Kingsley David DX 45801 Woburn Sands simonstone@kingsleydavid.com Vice President Jane Whitfield Barrett & Co DX 4033 Reading Email : jane.whitfield @barrettandco.co.uk Immediate Past President Cyrus Medora Kidd Rapinet DX 42269 Slough West CMedora@kiddrapinet.co.uk

Buckinghamshire Richard Sauvain Parrott & Coales DX 4100 Aylesbury richard.sauvain@parrott& coalesllp.co.uk Roderick McCulloch Reynolds Parry Jones DX 4407 High Wycombe roderick.mcculloch@rpj.uk.com Jonathan Warbey Horwood & James DX 4102 Aylesbury jonathan.warbey@ horwoodjames.co.uk

Oxfordshire Tracy Norris-Evans Royds Withy King DX 4314 Oxford 1 tracy.norrisevans@roydswithyking.com Edward Pilling Royds Withy King DX 4314 Oxford 1 edward.pilling@roydswithyking.com Richard Coleman Royds Withy King DX 4314 Oxford 1 richard.coleman@roydswithyking.com Special Members Council Members Razi Shah Appleby Shaw DX 3830 Windsor rshah@applebyshaw.com

A word from the Editor

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elcome to the Summer issue of Biblio. As you will see the focus of this issue is our very successful Awards Dinner held on 15th June at the Spires Hotel Oxford. I do hope all who attended enjoyed the evening where good food, worthy nominees and winners and excellent speeches were provided in abundance. For all those who did not attend I urge you to consider both nominating worthy colleagues for next year’s awards and to attend the event. Our AGM will take place on 16th July at the Holiday Inn High Wycombe and we do hope as many of our members as possible will attend. There will be a presentation before the AGM by speakers from The Community Foundations of Berks Bucks & Oxon. Refreshments will be provided. Please contact admin@bbolawsoc.org.uk for further details.

Finally, we are now on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram so do please follow us.

Amanda Jopson Administrator Amanda@bbolawsoc.org.uk

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Nawaz Khan Abbott Forbes Council Member DX 45410 Cowley nawazkhan.gb@gmail.com

Local Authority Solicitors Nick Graham Oxfordshire County Council DX 4310 Oxford Local Authority Solicitor Nick.Graham@Oxfordshire.gov.uk Administrator Amanda Jopson BB&O Law Society DX 45803 Woburn Sands admin@bbolawsoc.org.uk

SAVE THE DATE! FRIDAY 12TH OCTOBER 2018 PAST PRESIDENTS LUNCH PHYLLIS COURT HENLEY-ON-THAMES

Private client solicitor required 2 days per week for small friendly practice near Oxford.

Please apply with CV to: Joanna Pellman joanna@pellmans.co.uk or contact to discuss further. • Joanna Pellman, Partner/Solicitor PELLMANS Solicitors Pellmans LLP, 1 Abbey Street, Eynsham, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX29 4TB Tel: 01865 884400 Fax: 01865 884411 Email: joanna@pellmans.co.uk Web: www.pellmans.co.uk

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AWARDS

BB&OAnnual Dinner & Awards Ceremony 15th June 2018

The Top Table, 2018

PrĂŠcis of the speech given by the President of the BB&O at the Annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony on 15th June 2018.

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onight is about fellowship and good company and to celebrate the local legal profession. In preparing this talk I have taken inspiration and words from others and I want to start by making an important comment (which I know has been said before and no doubt many times) about the legal profession (and I include the Judiciary) that it is one of the main factors that stands between order and chaos. The others in my opinion are good people and a good press. When the rights of our fellow citizens are threatened, when governments behave in ways which are beyond their authority, or when citizens are caught within turbulent waters of legislation, it is the legal profession which takes up the cause and ensures that justice is done and a life-boat is to hand.

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In Henry VI, Shakespeare gave an often quoted and misquoted line to Dick the Butcher that read: "the first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers". Of course this was not a comment because Shakespeare was unimpressed with lawyers but instead he recognised that disposing of all lawyers was the first step towards the creation of a despotic state or totalitarianism.

Throughout history we have learned of this behaviour. States or those seeking to create totalitarian regimes have always sought to suppress the legal profession (and the press) in furtherance of their aims. Hitler did it in 1930s Berlin, harrying the lawyers of the time with his thugs and using tame media.

Some brave lawyers resisted, in particular Hans Litten, who managed to cross-examine Hitler for 3 hours in 1931 in an attempt to have the Nazi party declared illegal. Sadly, Litten died aged just 36 in Dachau after awful experiences, but is not his brave commitment to the rule of law an inspiration to us all? I am humbled in just remembering his attempts this evening. I wonder if I could be so brave.

Even today, oppressive regimes seek to

intimidate and destroy the effectiveness of the legal profession in an effort to protect pernicious activities from scrutiny and challenge. We can think of the likes of Turkey here. I understand that our National Law Society has tried to assist lawyers thrown into jail there, without trial or charge. Even if our own country does not (currently) indulge in like practice, there is never cause for complacency on the part of our profession. We must remain vigilant.

The legal profession uses its sword and shield. It fights and defends against unjust or unworkable laws and to ensure that our fellow citizens are treated equally under the law and have adequate access to justice. Sometimes this can be made all the more difficult by attack from government departments and media suggesting that your purpose is not one of integrity but it is commercial. I am of the opinion that I can take the example here of Leigh Day. What must it be like for those who have to suffer because they cannot afford to seek justice? We are a first world country and access to justice should be regarded as a given.

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AWARDS

If we are a lawyer are we not inherently a human rights lawyer? It is in our DNA.

but from their emotions, their weaknesses, themselves.

I became a lawyer because injustice makes me seethe and because my god-father who was a role model to me (a partner in an Essex solicitors’ firm) … had a Jensen Interceptor.

Such seduction!

To function as we must in this first world civilization we can only do so by aspiring to the highest of standards. Not to appease clients or the SRA (good enough reasons in themselves) but because it is required as a point of principle. In leading the profession in this vital role, the local and National Law Socs can only be as successful as its membership is strong. I call upon those of you who are not members of the BB&O to become so, this week, as the more we do together the stronger will be our voice and the more effective we can be in our communities and society.

We are not always going to make ourselves popular in doing what we do. But there are bigger issues at stake and we must sometimes have these in mind.

Often clients seek our help at times of high anxiety, crisis and trouble. We have to learn to deal with clients in such frames of mind in order to help them through. It is often our role to protect our clients not from the state, their employers or neighbours (as taught us

by Lord Atkin in Donoghue and Stevenson)

The legal profession has a long heritage. Of much of this we can be proud. I am in favour of the Bar and prefer the two sides to the

profession. I think it works in the bigger picture although it is not always plain to see by clients. But whether the bar or us or Legal Executives we need constantly to be adapting our ways to be better lawyers and better people; to question how we can better discharge our duties.

I’m going to close now. I want to say a big thank you to the Committee for your support.

In particular this Dinner takes a huge amount of work and the ‘Dinner Ladies’ Jane, Olivia and Amanda - as an expression of my gratitude … I say it with Flowers.

Well done to you who have been nominated for an award; well done to you, those firms who fight for the rights of those hurt and injured by life’s events and those of us who navigate challenging transactional waters for our clients.

Appleby Shaw

BP Collins Solicitors

Sarah Pooley, Helen Watson, Jane Whitfield and Gary Sieling

President of the Law Society with The President of the BB&O with Jane Whitfield, Amanda Jopson and Olivia Shenton-Taylor

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AWARDS

Kingsley David Solicitors

Joe Egan, President of the Law Society

Simon Carroll B P Collins Finalist of the Solicitor Advocate of the Year

Jill Swift Finalist Lawyer of the Year with Joe Egan

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Mr & Mrs Syvil Lloyd-Morris

Junior Lawyer of the Year Jennifer Sampson of Royds Withy King with Joe Egan

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AWARDS

The President's Award 2018: Edward Pilling Edward Pilling has been in practice as a conveyancing solicitor for over 45 years and founded his own solicitors firm Ed Pilling & Co in 1992. In this time Edward has provided outstanding service to the Oxfordshire population and has probably bought and sold more houses and flats for clients than anyone else still in practice in the three Counties of Berks, Bucks & Oxon.

Edward Pilling (L), Recipient of The President’s Award 2018, with Simon Stone (R).

Edward was the go-to conveyancing solicitor for Headington in Oxford acting on matters of all size and value and was widely known in the local community. He has handled not only repeat transactions for many clients throughout their lives but also for different generations of the same family. His knowledge and experience of conveyancing practice is vast and he now shares this with senior and junior colleagues alike at Royds Withy King.

Edward has also been a committee member

for the Berks Bucks & Oxon Law Society for many years and, as the Sole Practitioners representative, has devoted much time and energy to assisting, developing and supporting his colleagues not matter what area of law they practice in.

Of Edward Michael King a previous president of the BB&O and Council Member said “What good news. I cannot think of a more worthy recipient. He and I grew up in practice together albeit in different firms and I always had and still do a high regard for his legal expertise and skill as a lawyer and for many years as a sole practitioner.

The legal world will be hugely the worse when he finally decides to call it a day whenever that is. He would be much missed both as a lawyer and a person by all and sundry which is probably the best tribute I can pay him. Lest this may seem to be an obituary it is far from it and I am sure he will be adorning the solicitors fraternity for many a year yet”

The Shoosmiths Jason Hill Corporate Responsibility Award Jason joined Shoosmiths as a trainee in September 2009 and qualified into the Solent corporate team in 2011 specialising in M&A and private equity transactions. Jason relocated to Milton Keynes in 2016 where he was swiftly promoted to senior associate and took on the position as the corporate team’s team leader.

Jason, his brother Stuart and three of their friends tragically lost their lives in a helicopter crash in the Grand Canyon on 10 February 2018.

As well as being a highly respected and talented lawyer Jason was passionate about corporate

responsibility and the community. As an example, Jason planned to complete the Tower 42 challenge (a race up the 42 floors of London’s iconic Tower 42) in response to the worsening of the homeless crisis in the Milton Keynes area.

It was therefore with great pride that his many friends at Shoosmiths took on this skyscraper challenge in Jason's honour to raise money for a cause that he was so passionate about.

Shoosmiths were delighted to be offered the opportunity to sponsor the BB&O Law Society Legal Excellence Awards in Jason’s memory and considered that an award recognising corporate responsibility would be particularly fitting.

It was such an honour to know Jason and we will remember him always.

From all at Shoosmiths - because we miss you every day Jason.

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AWARDS

LEGAL TEAM OF THE YEAR

BBO Awards Nominees 2018 - Finalists

Jill Davies Shoosmiths

Jade Brooks (Blaser Mills) Junior Lawyer of the Year

Razi Shah, (Appleby Shaw) Solicitor-Advocate of the Year

Richard Follis Shoosmiths

Emily Halley (BP Collins) Junior Lawyer of the Year

Simon Carroll (BP Collins) Solicitor-Advocate of the Year

Gurvinder Kaur Shoosmiths

Jennifer Sampson (Royds Withy King) Junior Lawyer of the Year

Jill Davies (Shoosmiths) Pro Bono / Corporate Social Responsibility

Thank you to our sponsors:

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Barbara Papenfuss Shoosmiths

Jill Swift (Horwood & James) Lawyer of the Year

Denise Stephens Shoosmiths

Lucy Wood (BP Collins) Lawyer of the Year

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Jill Davies of Shoosmiths Pro Bono Corporate Social Responsibility Award

AWARDS

Shoosmiths and the Jason Hill Award

Razi Shah Solicitor Advocate of the Year with Joe Egan

The Winners with the President of the Law Society and the President of the Berks Bucks & Oxon Law Society

Reynolds Parry Jones

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advertorial

BERKS, BUCKS & OXON INC. LAW SOCIETY

AGM Event Booking Form A Presentation by: Jennifer Walker, Director of Development, Milton Keynes Community Foundation Peter Costello, Chief Executive, Heart of Bucks (Buckinghamshire Community Foundation) Jayne Woodley, Chief Executive, Oxfordshire Community Foundation Jim Fyfe, Philanthropy Director, Berkshire Community Foundation Monday 16th July 2018 – 5.30 p.m.

Holiday Inn High Wycombe Refreshments from 5 p.m. with Registration from 5.15 p.m.

There will be no charge for this event; light refreshments will be served We will not be issuing tickets but for catering purposes and to enable us to monitor attendance would you please complete and return the attendance slip below.

BB&O – AGM Event 16th July 2018 Holiday Inn , High Wycombe I/We will be attending on Name(s) of those attending:-

Firm name & address:-

Please return (by 7th July 2018) to: BB&O Inc Law Society DX 43850 Woburn Sands or Shelton House, 4 High Street Woburn Sands MK17 8SD or by email to : admin@bbolawsoc.org.uk

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advertorial

Revitalising dormant charitable trusts

C

ommunity foundations can help charity trustees use invested funds as originally intended – even if the trust is currently dormant or ineffective.

The question of dormant assets has received some scrutiny in recent months, with the Department Digital, Culture, Media and Sport announcing earlier this year that £330 million was being released from bank and building society accounts that have not been accessed for 15 years or more.

When it comes to dormant charitable trusts, these can be problematic to trustees, whether they are descendants of the original founders, or professional advisors. The Charity Commission is now taking increasing steps, both to make sure any assets are used for productive charitable purposes, and to prevent the unnecessary establishment of new charities that risk becoming dormant in future.

Reasons for dormancy A charity is considered dormant or ineffective in the following circumstances: • Trustees find it difficult to identify beneficiaries or spend the income of the charity.

• Grants are made to the same people or groups every year.

• The charity finds it difficult to attract new trustees.

• Trustees would like to be involved in how the money is spent, but do not want the legal responsibility that comes with it.

• The work of administering the charity and its investment is becoming onerous or disproportionate to the level of funding.

• There is a desire to know more about local issues and opportunities, and who else is funding what.

Community foundations can offer an effective mechanism to resolve all of these issues, whereby assets from a trust can be transferred into a ring-fenced fund under the auspices of the community foundation. Responsibility for governance and grant-making are also transferred.

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Recommendation from the Charity Commission

The Charity Commission has acknowledged that community foundations across the UK have a reputation for the effective management of charitable funds in order to maximise their impact at local level. All charities are being encouraged to ask themselves whether they should consider whether they truly need to operate as a dedicated trust.

Fundholders can be as involved as they wish in making decisions about grants awarded from their fund – or remain very ‘hands off’ if they prefer. Community foundations offer sophisticated systems for advertising, processing and monitoring grants, as well as comprehensive links with the charities and community groups carrying out the most impactful work in areas of need locally. This means they can make suggestions to fundholders about how best to tackle the issues they care about most – or in the case of trusts where the original donor has died, can ensure that grants are made in the spirit of the original charity’s objects.

The national representative body for community foundations, UKCF, has therefore been working closely with the Charity Commission in recent years to ensure that trustees seeking to revitalise dormant or ineffective trust funds, or who are looking for an effective way of carrying on their good work in future years, can easily release their funds to a community foundation.

How it works When a charitable trust is transferred, the assets are placed in a named fund held and managed by the community foundation, which is a charity in its own right. This means there is no need for the fundholders to retain a separate Board of Trustees, produce annual accounts, or report to the Charity Commission – all of the administration and governance are managed by the community foundation’s experienced team.

Assets can be invested, along with those of other donors, in the community foundation’s endowment fund. This pooling effect means that greater revenues can be expected than where the funds are invested individually.

One community foundation donor, who transferred a charitable fund in her father’s name, said: “I was a little sceptical at first, as I didn’t want our family trust to lose its identity; I wanted it to continue in the way that we had set it up and to retain some involvement in where the money was spent. To my relief, when I discussed my concerns with the foundation, I discovered that they were as keen as I was to ensure that the fund stayed true to its purpose, and that I could remain as involved as I wanted.”

Note that community foundations cannot give financial or legal advice, and always recommend that clients have a detailed conversation with their professional advisor before making any decisions.

To find out more about trust transfers, contact your local community foundation: • Berkshire www.berkshirecf.org • Buckinghamshire www.heartofbucks.org • Milton Keynes www.mkcommunityfoundation. co.uk • Oxfordshire www.oxfordshire.org

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training

Tracking study indicates steady rise in legacy giving

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9 APRIL 2018 – LONDON, UK – Over a quarter (27%) of charity donors are preparing to leave a charitable legacy or have already done so (up from 23% in March 2009), according to the latest consumer tracking figures from Remember A Charity. Only 9% reject the prospect of making a legacy donation, down from 13% when the consortium’s tracking study began in 2009.

The research also indicates that awareness of legacies is growing, with just 12% of those surveyed saying they are unaware of the option of donating to charity through their Will (down from 17% in 2009).

MEDIA QUERIES: Remember A Charity Jenny Turner: jenny@turnerpr.co.uk on 01932 859617/ 07940 472653 Lucinda Frostick: lucinda@turnerpr.co.uk Stages of Change The Stages of Change tracking study is carried out by nfpSynergy.

Conducted via an online poll, the study collates the views of over 1,000 charity donors aged 40+.

Six stages of change for legacy giving: active rejection, pre-contemplation (unaware), pre-contemplation (aware), contemplation, preparation and action.

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Rob Cope, director of Remember A Charity, says: “Legacy behaviour and attitudes are really starting to change. While we are likely to see some fluctuation year-on-year, now with nine years of comparable data, we can see a sustained shift in public attitudes towards legacies. This echoes findings from Legacy Foresight and Smee and Ford, showing longerterm growth in the number of gifts in wills and charities benefitting, as well as the amount given.

“Bearing in mind that only 6% of people that die currently leave a legacy, even a small percentage increase can make a big difference in terms of charitable returns.”

The research, carried out by nfpSynergy, looks at the attitude and awareness to legacy giving among 1,000 UK charity donors aged 40+ on a scale ranging from rejection to action1.

One in six (16%) of the over-40s questioned in 2017 say they have written a charity into their will (the second highest figure on record behind its peak of 17% in 2015) and 11% say they are preparing to do so (up from 7% in 2015 and 9% in 2016). A further 13% say they are contemplating it.

Cope adds: “It’s an exciting time for the sector, but with more and more charities coming into the marketplace, there is even greater need for organisations to invest in this area of fundraising and ensure they can continue to rely on such a vital income stream.”

For more information see Remember A Charity’s new Impact Report.

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advertorial

Access Legal Solicitors making a difference to lives in the Thames Valley The 20 strong Thames Valley medical negligence team has the expertise and determination to see the litigation through as well as expertise in all the related issues involved in a successful compensation claim - such as securing continuing entitlement to state benefits through appropriate Trusts, making a Will, appointing a professional deputy or making applications to the Court of Protection.

In medical negligence cases, clients require support beyond the legal process. This involves arranging rehabilitation, specialist aids and equipment as well as fighting for special educational needs provision and conveyancing if there is a need to move to more suitable accommodation. Injured parties cannot wait until the case concludes before getting the help they need.

Joe Egan presents the awards

A

ccess Legal Solicitors is the consumer legal advice arm of national law firm Shoosmiths LLP. Founded in Northampton and established for over 165 years, the firm has offices in Birmingham, Manchester, London, Leeds, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Nottingham, Southampton, Edinburgh and Belfast as well as serving clients in the Thames Valley from their offices in Reading.

The Thames Valley Team Partner Denise Stephens, who represents clients in brain and spinal injury matters, especially in regard to birth injuries, leads the Thames Valley team. She is described in the legal 500 as a ‘star performer’, ‘utterly dedicated and a formidable litigator’ with ‘exceptional intelligence and technical knowledge’. Denise is accredited by the Law Society as a specialist in Medical Negligence and has been on their specialist panel for many years and has also obtained Senior Litigation status with Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL).

Nationally, the firm’s medical negligence practice achieved a resounding endorsement from clients in the Legal 500’s Private Client practice rankings 2017, being referred to as ‘the leading specialist clinical negligence firm in the country’.

The impact of an avoidable accident in a healthcare context, not just on the affected individual but the entire family, is often far greater than accidents in any other setting. Medical negligence claims can be fiercely defended, so it's important that the legal team have real expertise and experience in extremely complex and high profile medical negligence cases.

Seriously injured clients and their families need and deserve support as they navigate the legal system. Every clinical negligence client Access Legal Solicitors has represented is grateful to for the support we have given them, but all maintain that no amount can ever make up for the mistakes that have condemned their loved ones to a lifetime of dependency on others.

They would give all the money back in a heartbeat if they could turn the clock back.

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Denise Stephens Denise has dealt with many highly complex cases involving multimillion pound claims in the High Court. She recently represented a client, who, thanks to her efforts, was awarded £23m compensation for catastrophic injuries.

Denise achieved one of the highest ever court awards in medical negligence, securing the sum of £14.6 million in an 11 day trial in the case of Robshaw v United Lincolnshire Hospitals [2015] EWHC 923 (QB); MED LR 339. James Robshaw had suffered cerebral palsy at birth.

This case was a landmark judgment in quantum.

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aRTICLES

The Awards - acknowledging passion, determination and commitment It is perhaps the Pro Bono / Corporate Social Responsibility Award that best illustrates the other vital attributes required of a successful medical negligence team and individual clinical negligence practitioners: commitment, passion and empathy.

The Pro Bono award recognised the pivotal role Jill Davies has played by establishing a Thames Valley Pro Bono clinic partnering with CommuniCare and the University of Reading School of Law in 2009. To this day her commitment to the clinic remains impressive.

Sue Prior Sue Prior, a solicitor and senior associate in the Reading-based team, is also noted as a ‘next generation lawyer’. She too has experience of diverse cases across clinical negligence, including claims arising from sub-standard surgery, failure to diagnose/treat cancer, sepsis, still births and fatal accident claims. Prior to joining Access Legal Solicitors, Sue was a personal injury solicitor with Amery Parkes Solicitors for seven years.

Sue holds senior litigator status with the Association of Personal Injury Solicitors (APIL).

Francesca Yates, manager of CommuniCare, said:“Jill’s continued support, dedication and hard work means we have been able to provide an invaluable legal advice and support service for those vulnerable and financially excluded people in Reading who are in most need of it.”

Denise Stephens reflected:“I am delighted with these award wins and the recognition afforded to Jill Davies in particular. Both awards reflect the determination and outstanding dedication and commitment of everyone in the clinical negligence team in Reading in particular and across Access Legal Solicitors as a whole.”

Access Legal Solicitors; T: 03700 86 86 86 E: client.services@accesslegalsolicitors.co.uk W: www.accesslegalsolicitors.co.uk

Jill Davies Jill Davies, a solicitor and associate based in Reading, works on a wide range of diverse cases across clinical negligence, including cases arising from late diagnosis, birth injuries affecting mothers and children and failures in elder care. Jill has a particular interest in late diagnosis, surgical errors and issues around disclosure of medical errors.

The Awards – recognising legal excellence The recognition afforded to Jill Davies in particular by the Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire Law Society with recent wins in the Legal Team of the Year 2018 and Pro Bono/CSR 2018 categories demonstrates how the team’s expertise goes beyond litigation.

The Legal Team of the Year 2018 accolade recognised the successful achievement of an eight figure settlement for a young girl who suffers from cerebral palsy as a result of negligence care at birth and can neither walk nor talk.

In particular, it was Jill’s efforts in marshalling additional support and input from education lawyers (who fought for appropriate SEN provision in SEND Tribunals), Court of Protection and medical experts that ensured this bright but severely disabled young girl had the support she needed and allowed her parents to focus entirely on their daughter’s well-being, helping her to flourish and reach her full potential.

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MEMBERSHIP

Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society Membership Application Form To the Committee of the Berks, Bucks and Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society.

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NOMINATION I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . being a member of the Society, nominate the above named Solicitor

Signed: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(If you do not know anyone to nominate you, please return and BB&O will check and nominate via County Reps)

SEND This application form to The Hon. Secretary, Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society DX 45803 Woburn Sands, or Shelton House, 4 High Street, Woburn Sands MK17 8SD (Please enclose cheque for £50 pa full membership, or £15 for those admitted less than 5 yrs on 1 March last, or £10 if not in private practice or if you are retired) payable to Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire Incorporated Law Society)

Date elected: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Added to database: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Super regulator must reject uneven rules for solicitors

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ews the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) wants to push ahead with rule changes that will create different tiers of regulation within the solicitor profession has prompted the Law Society of England and Wales to urge the Legal Services Board (LSB) to put the best interests of the public first.

Law Society president Joe Egan said: “We urge the LSB as the oversight regulator to consider the best interests of the public as well as the globally recognised high standards of the UK legal services and reject the SRA’s damaging proposals to alter the rulebook for the profession.

“We welcome simpler rules governing solicitors, but the changes proposed by the SRA would create unnecessary complexity and confusion, making it much more difficult for consumers to

reach informed choices about legal services. They may also put consumers at risk and ultimately undermine trust in legal services.

“Today, anyone who consults a solicitor can be confident their advisor is not only highly trained but is also operating within a robust regulatory framework that ensures consistent and comprehensive protection to give people peace of mind in the rare cases where something goes wrong. This allows consumers to make a clear choice between regulated and unregulated legal advisors.

“We applaud the SRA for recognising the folly of proposals to allow newly qualified solicitors immediately to set up shop unsupervised, even if they still hope to see solicitors working freelance, with neither a firm over their head nor the badge of sole practitioner and the protections they bring.

“We believe that regulations should encourage and promote high standards of practice. Flexibility

for solicitors should not come at the expense of client protections.

“Yet the regulator has failed to think through the implications for consumer protection. Nor has it proposed adequate safeguards.”

On moves to provide more information for consumers, Joe Egan added: “Many clients seek legal advice at moments of great anxiety and stress. Helping them to make informed choices about what is required to resolve their legal problems is at the heart of what solicitors do. We always aim to provide the right information, in the right way and at the right time.

“We remain concerned that having called for greater transparency about services offered by solicitors, the SRA cannot enforce this for solicitors they want to allow to work in unregulated entities. So consumers could be left unable to get much information about services from the very organisations that offer the least protection.”

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Wanted! Volunteers for SBA The Solicitors’ Charity

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BA is dedicated to supporting past and present solicitors and their families. We help colleagues across the UK by providing much needed financial assistance, advice and guidance.

We want more people in BB&O’s catchment area to know about SBA and what the charity can do to help in times of need or crisis.

SBA is perhaps best known for supporting retired solicitors or their elderly dependants. These individuals invariably live on permanently low fixed incomes and SBA has been able to commit long-term financial assistance to help them retain their independence and dignity in later life.

However, the overall demographic has changed significantly for SBA in recent years. Improvements in pensioner income as well as successive waves of contraction in legal services mean that the average age of someone approaching SBA for the first time today is now 46.

Triggers for applying to SBA can be a complex mixture of personal and professional issues which often require specialist skills to tease out. This is why, when seeking new volunteers, SBA looks first to colleagues within the legal community. The SBA volunteer network is now some 70-strong and comprises current and retired solicitors from many diverse practice areas, who are all at different stages in their legal careers.

Each person has their own reasons for volunteering but – whatever their motivation – they all have two things in common: they all understand the pressures of life in the law and they all want to make a difference by helping those who turn to the charity when times get tough.

The main function of our volunteers is to support SBA’s application process by meeting applicants and beneficiaries on a one-to-one basis. These meeting usually take place in applicants’ homes. Where

needed, volunteers assist with completing the application form and verifying relevant underlying documentary evidence on our behalf. The Area Representative’s report on their visit is critical in helping SBA assess the most effective way of providing help.

SBA is looking for people with excellent communication skills, the ability to listen, empathise and gather information without judgement and a commitment to confidentiality.

2017 saw SBA award £1.4M to support colleagues and their families but there is far more we want to do to reach solicitors in need.

If you would like to discuss opportunities for volunteering for SBA, please contact Sue Ellis at sue@sba.org.uk T: 020 8675 6440.

We’d be delighted to hear from you.

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The Open Spaces Society

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he Open Spaces Society, which is active throughout Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015. Founded in 1865 as the Commons Preservation Society it is Britain’s oldest national conservation body. In its early years it saved many commons and other open spaces in and around London: Hampstead Heath, Epping Forest and Wimbledon Common for example.

It studied all the parliamentary bills, of which there were many in the late Victorian era for the building of railways in particular. The society helped save Hungerford Common in Berkshire, among others, from the Great Western Railway in 1908.

In 1895 the society’s founders and early activists created the National Trust as a landholding body. The society then established local committees who raised money to buy threatened properties for the Trust. For instance, the society assisted local people with the acquisition of common land by the National Trust around Marlow and Maidenhead in Berkshire in the 1930s.

Today the society still safeguards common land: as a statutory consultee it scrutinises every application for works there.

Commons are important to their local communities and it is vital that the society examines all the applications for works.

We have helped to defeat some inappropriate proposals, such as unsightly and restrictive fencing on Kingswood Common in the

Registered in England and Wales, limited company 7846516 Charity no 1144840 Chilterns. In 2010 the society published guidance to land managers, Finding Common Ground, on how to ensure that they take account of all those with a stake in the common before they proceed with plans which might alter its appearance or ecology.

We also advise communities on protecting their green spaces, by registering them as town or village greens. Most recently, we have helped the Grange Area Trust to register 42 acres of Widmer Fields, near Hazlemere in Buckinghamshire, as a green—one of the largest in England. Also, we have assisted communities to register village greens at Trap Grounds, Oxford; Sunningwell, and Humpty Hill, Faringdon in Oxfordshire, Pimms Grove, High Wycombe and Woughton Park and Passmore, Old Woughton, Milton Keynes, among many others. Once land is registered as a green, local people have the right of recreation there and the land is protected from development.

Our history of defending public paths goes back a long way. For example, in 1902 the society secured the reopening of 35 footpaths and bridleways after they had been obstructed by the Chequers Estate. Today the society is notified of all proposed changes to public paths and, where we have a volunteer local correspondent, we object if we believe the change is against the public interest. This means that we may need to appear at public inquiries and hearings. We cannot afford legal representation so we make use of our in-house expertise from staff and volunteers with long experience.

For example, at Witney in Oxfordshire, we have won an additional path and an additional town green in negotiation with developers Richmond Care Villages.

In Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and beyond we champion the cause of open spaces and public paths. We take up hundreds of cases each year and we lobby parliament for better, tougher laws. We have no public funding; we depend on legacies and donations to support our vital work.

Web: www.oss.org.uk Tel: 01491 573535 Email: hq@oss.org.uk

It is more difficult to claim land as a green now that the Growth and Infrastructure Act has been passed, outlawing the registration of greens where land is threatened with development. So we are promoting an alternative means of protecting land, by applying for its designation as Local Green Space in the local or neighbourhood plan.

We were active in the campaign to achieve a responsible freedom to roam for the public on common land and mapped areas of moor, heath and down, culminating in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. We helped to win Beacon Hill, near Ellesborough, and Cobstone Hill at Ibstone, both in Bucks, as access land for the public.

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advertorial

Dreamvar: a view from the Professional Indemnity Insurance perspective

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ublicity surrounding the Dreamvar Court of Appeal judgement has left law firms reeling with many questioning how well protected they actually are when it comes to professional indemnity insurance.

Headlines recently revealed the Court of Appeal judgements in Dreamvar Ltd v.

Mishcon de Reya and P&P Ltd v. Owen White & Catlin but what does this mean to firms from a professional indemnity perspective?

In this article, Richard Grayson, Director for the PIB Insurance Brokers (PIB) Professions team has highlighted how the high profile case has left many firms asking the key question “are we actually insured under our SRA compulsory cover for the types of claims advanced?”

They have outlined that, to most law firms, negligence and breach of contract are assumed to be covered under the SRA’s Minimum Terms and Conditions (“MTC”) compulsory insurance but what about claims against the firm for breach of undertaking, breach of trust and breach of warranty of authority?

Grayson, who is also a former practising solicitor, has revealed the answer lies in the wording of the insuring clause required to be present by the MTC in all compulsory layer policies. It states that “the insurance must indemnify each insured against civil liability to the extent that it arises from private legal practice in connection with the insured firm’s practice”.

Grayson said: “The key point here is the phrase “civil liability”. Essentially, firms are covered for claims arising from the work solicitors do i.e. “private legal practice”, and any form of civil liability claims arising therefrom. So, in short, the types of claims advanced in Dreamvar should be afforded cover under the firm’s compulsory primary MTC insurance both in terms of the actual claim itself and for attendant defence costs.

“The nature of the cover provided by the MTCs is worth reiterating as we have experience of firms who have assumed that they were not covered for claims arising from, for example, a breach of warranty of authority and indeed wasted costs. Consequently, we would always recommend you seek advice from your broker should you be in any doubt about the cover you have purchased.”

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What of Dreamvar itself and how the insurance market is reacting?

The issue at stake in the combined appeals was a fairly fundamental one, namely: “Who ought to bear the risk of loss when a fraudster pretends to sell a property?”

The Court of Appeal’s answer is that the loss should be shared across the solicitors for the buyer and seller. Reiterating all of the technical legal argument which drove this result is unnecessary as it has been well rehearsed but how will the insurance market respond and will it affect premiums?

Insurers look at statistical trends and actuarial analysis to assist in determining their pricing structure which, in essence, means areas of law that attract the most claims in terms of volume and value will inevitably be on the higher risk side for Insurers. Consequently, property work has always been rated as high risk in stark contrast to criminal work where comparatively few claims arise.

According to government figures, there are approximately 1.2 million residential conveyancing transactions per annum, representing a value of over £300 billion and according to figures from the Land Registry published in the Financial Times* last December, “the value of property identity fraud cases has more than tripled since 2013 when it was £7.2m, hitting £24.9m in the year to April 2017”.

The Land Registry has a counter fraud team which works closely with the police and other agencies to reduce the risk of property fraud. Since September 2009, it has prevented frauds on 254 applications; representing properties valued in excess of £117m.

Grayson added: “Insurers have generally collected around £225 million per annum in premium from the profession for the compulsory MTC cover. The reality therefore still remains, using the most basic maths, that these types of fraud are relatively rare in number and we can reasonably assume that not all funds were irrecoverable and that not all of the cases mentioned above led to claims against law firms.

“The leading question, therefore, is will Insurers look to increase premiums for those firms who undertake conveyancing?

“Each Insurer will have their own claims statistics, relating to their own portfolio of Insured firms, which they will consider when setting premium levels but they will also look at risk more generally and the statistics mentioned above might suggest that although Dreamvar in isolation created a storm, it may well be in the proverbial tea cup.”

Property claims continue to hit insurers not least from cyber related fraud but also investment led, high yield, property transactions such as student accommodation, nursing home units etc and this, combined with Dreamvar and a more general concern about a property crash around Brexit, may lead to much more scrutiny around conveyancing practice and premium levels.

Grayson concluded: “Our advice to clients is to look carefully at your conveyancing risk management protocols around client selection and identification, review your cyber fraud and banking risk and, in Dreamvar terms, look for the transactions which may show red flags toward a possible fraud. For example, unmortgaged, vacant at the time of possession, high value and the seller is living abroad and wants a speedy completion.

“Insurers will, in all probability, want more detail from firms about these issues so in one sense, Dreamvar has provided an opportunity to consider your conveyancing risk profile more carefully and in readiness for a renewal (if you have one) on the 1st October.

“Speaking as a former practising solicitor who undertook property work, I know that those who work in this field are resilient and innovative. There have been innumerable threats to property lawyers over the past three decades be it for example, claims trends, economic upheaval or digitisation and invariably the profession has risen to those challenges and drives on. I expect the same post-Dreamvar.”

If you would like to know more or if you have any specific issues you would like to discuss relating to this topic, please contact PIB on 0121 647 7401 or at enquiries@pib-insurance.com *Source: Financial Times Help My House has been hijacked Fake tenants adopt a property owner’s identity and sell the property https:// www.ft.com/content/b195fb02-2fde-11e79555-23ef563ecf9a

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Additional £2 Billion from dormant accounts can be reunited with customers and to fund good causes

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ithin the UK there is a large amount of money that remains unclaimed by its true owners and this issue was first addressed in 2008 which led to the ‘Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act’. Under this Act, banks were required to trace account holders who had not been in contact for several years. In instances where they were unable to find the account holder, the money would be declared dormant and would be used for alternate causes.

In December 2015 the Commission on Dormant Assets was formed to help with this initiative and said the dormant asset schemes should include bonds and shares which could potentially unlock up to £2 billion. In February 2018, the Commission

on Dormant Assets published a report where the government will consider legislation to expand dormant accounts schemes to include other assets and financial instruments.

One of their core principles state that firms should prioritise reuniting customers with their assets before the money is transferred to good causes and customers should be able to reclaim dormant money at any time. Assets should only be transferred after appropriate reunification efforts have been made.

regulated by APR (Association of Probate Researchers). We are well known for beneficiary tracing and deceased estate distribution but now we have branched out into the world of asset reunification, helping ensure that the unclaimed assets is reunited with the asset holder. The unclaimed asset can be anything financial or also known as liquid assets. For example, stocks, bonds, dormant bank accounts or monies held by a custodian, and not just physical items from unclaimed estates.

In 2011 the co-operative Banking Group (CBG) established the country’s first Reclaim Fund (RF). Both the CBG and RF have been working with the government in establishing the scheme, and since inception the RF received over £1 billion from several participating banks and building societies.

Do you need to trace people who you know have unclaimed assets? Do get in touch with us, we work alongside many organisations, both corporate and public and our infrastructure is catered towards tracing and identifying any known persons especially in the event of an estate being involved.

Fraser and Fraser are one of the few firms within the genealogy industry who are

www.fraserandfraser.co.uk legal@fraserandfraser.co.uk

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advertorial

What are the emerging risks for law firms? quicker and more accurately. By using machines to do many of the profession’s mundane tasks, the Law Society predicts the legal sector’s productivity could double by 2025.

We look into our crystal ball to see what the future holds for this fast-changing sector.

“T

he legal market is in a remarkable state of flux.

In less than two decades, the way in which lawyers work will change radically,” writes Richard Susskind in Tomorrow’s Lawyers.

These changes will pose new risks for law firms. Those that fail to manage them could struggle, but for nimble and forward-thinking firms, they present opportunities.

Could agile working be bad for your company?

More firms are embracing agile working to attract and retain younger lawyers who are demanding a shift away from the profession’s traditional high-pressure, long-hours culture to a better work-life balance. Losing the talent war is seen as the biggest risk for law firms over the next five years, according to a survey we commissioned in 2017.

Of the law firms surveyed by CBRE, 30% already have an agile working policy, while a further 40% are looking to implement one over the next 12 months. But it’s important they consider the potential risks with flexible working.

“Agile working empowers people and enables them to be judged by their results rather than by the number of hours they spend in the office. But it does present issues,” says Paul Smith, Senior Risk Management Consultant at Travelers Europe.

Agile working involves more than simply letting employees work from home. It requires firms to rethink how they operate to ensure remoteworking staff are properly managed and that all team members are up to speed.

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“It’s important that agile working doesn’t mean firms unwittingly slip back into the ‘silo’ working habits that were prevalent 30 years ago. Then mistakes went unnoticed because lawyers weren’t properly supervised,” says Paddy Synnott, a PI Specialist at Miller.

Firms also need to take extra steps to make sure information remains secure as more of their lawyers take case files home or access the firm’s computer systems remotely. “Solicitors need to remember their duty of confidence to clients, as losing sensitive information could result in a claim that could tarnish the firm’s reputation,” says Smith.

The increasing use of computers could cut the large number of negligence claims caused by simple errors: a missed deadline, a forgotten property search or clause omitted from a contract. Only around one in every seven PI claims are the result of faulty legal advice, says Travelers’ Smith.

“If increasing computerisation helps improve law firms’ processes then that would reduce the number of claims, which, in turn, would help bring down premiums,” says Synnott.

But what if the intelligent machines on which the legal profession – perhaps even the legal system – could come to rely were found to be fallible?

There have already been reports that a legal software program, used extensively by the US courts, is racially biased against black people . source: https://www.propublica.org/article/ machine-bias-risk-assessments-in-criminalsentencing.

Miller recently launched agile working across its London head office. “Agile working for us is not just about working from home,” says Susan Downey, Miller’s Head of Human Resources. “It also means flexible working arrangements, options to purchase additional leave and the ability to work in other locations.”

“The problem is that as computers become more sophisticated they also become more opaque,” says Synnott. “If the data they depend on to ‘learn’ is incorrect or biased then they will only reflect or ingrain human errors or prejudices. But it’s difficult to find out what went wrong from a piece of computer code.”

A good agile working policy that is well implemented increases staff engagement, retention and productivity, benefiting both employees and organisations alike, says Downey.

Implementing the right technology, providing clear guidelines and avoiding a “one size fits all” approach were key to rolling out Miller’s programme successfully, Downey adds.

How will the robot revolution impact law firms?

Technology is set to transform the legal sector – for the better according to lawyers who attended a Miller workshop on emerging risks held in London in February 2018.

Technology makes a good servant but a bad master. That could become an increasing problem if, as the Law Society predicts, computers take over many of the roles currently performed by people. It forecasts that 78,000 jobs in the legal sector could be lost over the next 20 years through automation.

Computers are expected to help lawyers work

“There could be an issue if whole processes are effectively delegated to machines,” says Smith.

“Machines, no matter how intelligent, need to be supervised by humans. Otherwise, as we’ve recently seen with autonomous cars, there could be terrible outcomes.”

Will firms be strangled by red tape?

The amount of box ticking and form filling law

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firms need to do has long been a bugbear and further changes to regulation (including the SRA’s minimum terms and conditions for PI insurance) are among their biggest fears for the future, according to our survey.

“The general feeling among lawyers at our workshop in February was that there was too much for small firms to deal with,” says Synnott. The biggest worry is that it will put small law firms at a disadvantage to more lightly regulated alternative business structures (ABSs).

But, although it’s a tightrope, new regulations can be the catalyst to make firms rethink what they do and how they work – often for the better.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), imposing tougher new data-privacy responsibilities when it comes into effect later this month, is for some an extra burden that hard-pressed law firms could do without. But, suggests Smith, it could also be an opportunity to streamline how they operate.

“One solution to reduce your data-security exposure under GDPR might be to simply hold less data.

It might make firms realise they collect a lot of

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information that they really don’t need and that they could be far more efficient if they just get rid of it.”

Innovation offers a way for law firms to prevent being stifled by increasing regulation in future.

The SRA has shown its willingness to work with legal service providers, waiving rules if that enables them to deliver new products or services in a way that suits them and their clients. In 2017, it granted 60% of waiver applications it received.

Furthermore, in April, it published a consultation document to allow it further flexibility to waive rules if it encouraged innovation and competition.

But, traditional law firms have been less likely than ABSs to come up with new ideas, according to research by the SRA. Increasing competition could encourage lawyers to innovate more.

Merger mania?

Facing growing competition in a crowded market might make some firms feel the urge to merge.

“The legal sector might be regarded as ripe for consolidation. There are over 10,000 law firms in the UK. Are all those firms offering something unique or different?” asks Smith.

After a wave of deals following the financial crisis, M&A seems to be off the agenda, at least for now. Nearly three quarters of firms (72%) that took part in Smith & Williamson’s 2017 legal survey said they did not expect to be involved in a deal over the next 12 months.

They are confident about their immediate future – although perhaps that’s because increased competition has yet to bite into their income.

But, with the legal sector facing an increasingly uncertain future – economic turmoil, falling fee income and shrinking business are among the biggest risks cited by the law firms we surveyed – M&A could come back on the radar.

Firms considering M&A should think first about why they want to do a deal. “There are good reasons, like acquiring expertise or because the two firms fit well together. But sometimes a deal might treat the symptoms from which a firm is suffering rather than the root cause, in which case the partners should look closer to home for answers as to why their firm is in difficulties. Two weak firms don’t combine to make one strong one,” concludes Smith.

Paddy Synnott www.miller-insurance.com/solicitors

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advertorial

Experts under the microscope A comment by Phillip Taylor MBE Reviews Editor, 'The Barrister', and Head, Richmond Green Chambers

A

s we move into the mainstream digital age, the role of the expert is bound to change, especially with a much more highly educated workforce and compliance with the Civil Procedure Rules.

And, it means, also, that the role of the Expert Witness Institute (EWI) will change.

The best way to find out about change and to keep up to date is to be involved with the EWI as experts remain under the current judicial microscope.

One of the great draws of the EWI is their annual conference held each year in London at the beginning of the autumn.

High profile key-note speakers offer a most useful insight into what is happening in the legal world as it affects experts.

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Attendees include a large cadre of experts together with specialist lawyers (solicitors, paralegals and barristers), judges and, of necessity, some assorted politicians.

One of the more useful aspects of the recent conferences are the lively question and answer sessions which often highlight some of the more pressing contemporary... and controversial... issues.

It’s quite amazing how much information can be gleaned from these sessions as we are listening to specific experts and their legal roles (and, sometimes, worries) about what is going on.

There have been some unfortunate comments recently about the use made of experts but we, as advocates, now tend to rely quite heavily on their testimony. And, probably, members of the judiciary more so. That is why an exchange of views is so helpful as the role of the EWI changes to meet demand. Their accreditation scheme

is one of the new developments and of use to the courts in the determination of very detailed and complex evidence.

The EWI is not confined to medical experts, either. I have been attending their conferences for some years, mainly to cover the key-note speakers and watch developments, and I have been surprised at the wide range of expert evidence now available as cases tend to have become much more complicated and intricate.

Mr Justice Spencer said, on his appointment as the new chair of the EWI: “It has never been more important to highlight the critical role expert witnesses play in supporting the proper administration of justice and to establish the highest standards of best practice�.

And he is right, of course because the views of experts continue to be carefully scrutinised providing, as they do, a special relevance in all proceedings together with live witnesses.

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advertorial

Catch-all solution to in-house staffing problems: outsourcing!

E very employer knows that, at some point in their life, employees will be absent and depart their place of work. Such matters are not always possible to predict. That’s the main reason for the immense popularity of outsourced cashiering services as a more reliable alternative to inhouse staff.

Businesses have a real fight on their hands when they’re understaffed because it’s unfair to expect other people to share their absent colleagues’ additional workload. The same argument applies when staff are departing.

It’s a similarly tough challenge allocating sufficient time to the recruitment process. On top of pre-existing responsibilities, adequate attention should be given to the advertising, shortlisting, interviewing, selection and initiation processes. This is too tall an order for most companies.

The preferred way to man a business is outsourcing. With this type of set up, staffing is constant. Typically, firms will be allocated a named cashier. Just like anyone else in employment, there will be occasions when this cashier’s off work. Unlike a traditional set up, however, an assigned deputy will pick up the workload until the cashier’s return. It’s seamless. No service interruption. Ever.

Here we’re going to address some of the causes of absent and departing cashiers to demonstrate exactly what employers can find themselves up against…

1. Cashier retiring?

The combination of an increased life expectancy and government-introduced austerity measures mean that the state pension retirement age is now 67. In theory, while this is good news for employers, who get to keep valued employees for longer, in reality it’s actually possible to retire on a state pension as soon as age 55. It’s new pension reforms that are enabling people to build up bigger pension pots thereby giving them greater freedom to retire early.

2. Cashier resigning?

Retirement aside, there are multiple other causes of employees to quit their jobs in order to progress their career elsewhere. Staff turnover is a real issue for today’s employers, and a talent management strategy and succession planning are essential elements of a senior leadership team’s toolkit.

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3. Cashier on holiday?

Holiday entitlements are typically around the 25-day mark of paid annual leave each year, often escalating with length of service. While holidaying employees don’t cause a notable problem for much of the year, there are peak holiday periods when it does, school summer months and Christmas amongst them.

During these times, organisations are stripped right back to a core staffing structure. While staffing problems will be magnified in holiday season, all employers have to accept that staff members will request days off work in order to spend time with family and friends, most likely at the same time as other colleagues.

4. Cashier on sick leave?

One thing that simply can’t be planned is sickness. Sometimes people do know in advance about scheduled operations or medical procedures that necessitate time off work.

Largely not, though. The wide spectrum of illnesses has minor complaints and infections at one end to serious diseases and disorders at the other.

Current reports estimate sick leave costs UK employers £29 billion a year in lost productivity, a figure predicted to maintain an upward trend because of factors such as an ageing workforce and rising mental health problems.

5. Cashier on maternity leave?

Statutory maternity leave entitlements are up to 52 weeks, the first 26 weeks being ‘ordinary maternity leave’ and the last 26 weeks being ‘additional maternity leave’. There are also fathers’ rights to bear in mind with paternity and shared parental leave obligations. It’s 2 weeks’ leave for the former, and up to 52 weeks’ leave between mother and father for the latter.

6. Cashier going part time?

The need to switch from full to part time working can be driven by many things including family commitments and health concerns. For employers, job sharing isn’t always the most desirable solution. Recruiting two part timers can be more costly than one full timer. There may not be enough workload to warrant appointing a part timer and full timer simultaneously.

It’s a dilemma and one that’s aggravated by complicated employment legislation.

I could go on and on… jury service, study leave, dependant leave, career breaks etc. The key message being the plethora of motives that exist, resulting in a deficient staffing structure and

making it difficult to run a business efficiently.

What may be surprising to learn is that, although these are tricky to remedy with inhouse solutions, they’re really easily solved with outsourced service support. Outsourcing can be instructed in all manner of ways. By and large, outsourcing is a permanent, full time arrangement. Less frequently, but no less effective, outsourcing is a temporary resource engineered ad hoc to help companies through what may be a slight rough patch or critical emergency situation.

Outsourcing providers operate in similar ways with subtle differences in cashier allocation, cashier-firm interaction, software utilised and so forth. As a Quill client, you have a named cashier and deputy for the duration of your cover period. Our cashiers use our own legal accounting software, Interactive, and its echits functionality is the tool that closely connects your firm with its Quill cashier.

The biggest claim any outsourcing supplier can make, Quill included, is that we’re always available. Even if any Quill cashiers retire, resign, go on holiday, get sick, take parental leave or switch to a part time contract, there’s zero impact on you, the end user of our outsourced cashiering service. That’s because your deputy will cover instead and / or you’ll simply be assigned another cashier for longer term agreements.

To you, this means no more short staffing worries. Instead you’ve got continuous cashier support, whatever your unique circumstances and however your requirements might alter over time.

Julian Bryan, Managing Director, Quill To find out more on Quill’s Pinpoint outsourced legal cashiering service, visit www. quill.co.uk/quillit, email info@quill.co.uk or call 0161 236 2910.

Julian Bryan joined Quill as Managing Director in 2012 and is also the Chair of the Legal Software Suppliers Association. Quill is the UK’s largest outsourced legal cashiering provider with 40 years’ experience supplying outsourcing services and software to the legal profession.