Herts Law Society Gazette Issue 41

issue 41 Winter 2018/19

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Hertfordshire Family Safeguarding Approach Details on page 12

Also this issue: • Diversity and Community Relations Judges • Your New President • The Victim's Right To Review Scheme • Xmas Jumper Day • Vicarious Liability • The Future of ADR and much more...

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Contents

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Contents issue 41 Winter 2018/19

3 Contents

9

Xmas Jumper Day

14

Expert Witness Conference Report

4

Council Members for 2019

10

The Future of ADR

18 Legalex

5

From the President

12

The Victims’ Right to

20

Free Wills and Legacies

6

Local Law Societies Meeting

Review Scheme

26

Relaxing Care

6

Vicarious Liability

12

Introducing Your New

29

Law Society News

8

Diversity and Community

Vice President

30

Quill’s Software Development team’s

Relations Judges

Family Safeguarding - Hertfordshire

investment in Interactive Documents

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Advertising Simon Castell Laura Seymour

Design David Coffey East Park Studio

Managing Editor Jeremy Chandler-Smith

Accounts Tony Kay

Published: Winter 2018/19 Legal Notice © East Park Communications Ltd. None of the editorial or photographs may be reproduced without prior written

permission from the publishers. East Park Communications Ltd would like to point out that all editorial comment and articles are the responsibility of the originators and may or may not reflect the opinions of East Park Communications Ltd. Correct at time of going to press.

DISCLAIMER: the views expressed by the writers in this magazine are not necessarily those of the Hertfordshire Law Society

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Council Listings

Council Members 2019 President Judith Gower Hertfordshire County Council (Hertford) Local Government

Members

Jessica Moseley Debenhams Ottaway, Private Client Solicitor

Vice President Neil Johnson HRJ Foreman Laws (Hitchin) Civil Litigation

Nicholas Belcher Nockolds Solicitors Limited (Bishop's Stortford) Agricultural and Liquor & Gaming Licensing

Hon Secretary and Treasurer Claire Sharp Debenhams Ottaway (St Albans) Private Client

Marilyn Bell SA Law (St Albans) Family

Immediate Past President Attia Hussain Crane & Staples (Welwyn Garden City) Family

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David Bird Crane & Staples (Welwyn Garden City) Private Client & Trusts

(From January 2019 until 31 December 2020)

Penny Carey University of Hertfordshire (Hatfield) Academic

Gary Smith Nockolds Solicitors Limited (Bishop's Stortford) Employment

The Law Society Relationship Manager – East

Jeremy Chandler-Smith JCS Solicitors (Codicote) Sole Practitioner

Amanda Thurston Curwens (Hoddesdon) Family

National Council Member

Paul Davies Hamilton Davies (Stevenage) Employment, Family and Litigation

Parliamentary Liaison Officer

Steven Hamilton Taylor Walton LLP (Harpenden) Private Client

Jack Dunkley

Judith Gower

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Editorial

New Year, New President...

I am pleased and honoured to have been elected as President of the Hertfordshire Law Society 2019. I hope to represent you along with the Council members, at a local and national level.

I would like to thank our outgoing president Attia Hussain on behalf of the Society. Tia has worked extremely hard on behalf of the Society and its members. Those of you attended the dinner in June 2018 will no doubt remember her passionate speech which was given a standing ovation. Her commitment and dedication has been outstanding. A hard act for me to follow.

I very much look forward to working with Neil Johnson who has kindly agreed to serve as my Vice-President and Claire Sharp the Honorary Treasurer and Secretary.

Law Societies could work with their local university, and the Dean of the Law School, Penny Carey was one of the speakers.

We continue to work with and have the support of the University of Hertfordshire and the Law School. Penny Carey is a member of the Council and continues to provide support and facilities for meetings.

With the support of the School of Law we will be holding our first awards ceremony at the annual dinner. Details will be sent out in due course to all our members and will be available on our website.

On a lighter note last year I hoped that also hope that by the end of the year that Tia would have taught me how to take decent selfies! No such luck, she is still the selfie queen.

On behalf of the Council I wish you all a successful and prosperous 2019.

Judith Gower President Hertfordshire Law Society

I hope to continue the work started by our immediate past president to seek to achieve equality and diversity as a profession and society. On 23 December 2019 it will be 100 years since the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act was passed, which paved the way for women to finally practice law and other professions giving them other rights to hold public office. This was an important milestone in the slow progress towards the rights of women to fulfil their potential and gain ownership over their lives and futures.

However gender is only one area that requires equality, there is also disability, ethnic minorities and LGBT to name a few. The Law Society is committed to help the profession be: • Inclusive - its composition reflecting the diversity of our society.

• Responsive - able to provide a sensitive, appropriate and highly professional service to all sections of society.

• Good employers - recruiting on merit and offering training and development opportunities to all employees regardless of background.

My aim is that the Hertfordshire Law Society will mirror the National Law Society by also becoming more inclusive, responsive and good employers and I look forward to engaging with members of the profession to enable this to happen. As a Society we will continue to arrange training events where I can meet existing members and encourage new members to join and participate. Please contact me if there is a particular subject you would like to see covered or are able to help in any way.

During my Vice-Presidential year I was fortunate to attend the President and Secretaries Conference in May 2018, held at Chancery Lane. One of the sessions I attended was how local

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Editorial Articles

I

7th September 2018 Meeting with local Law Societies

have always spoken about the importance of listening to the legal profession, especially as we continue to implement reform across the justice system, which is why in September 2018 I was delighted to meet with representatives from East Anglian Law Societies.

The agenda was broad and a range of issues were brought to the table including court reform, changes to the court estate, and of course our exit from the EU.

You will know the Government has committed to investing £1 billion in the Court Reform Programme, which will modernise our justice system, making it more accessible and streamlining services for all

users. We have already delivered an online system which enables court staff to prepare case files and access them digitally in a courtroom during a hearing – saving 68 million pages of paper as well as new digital systems for users, including an online service to resolve civil claims disputes which can be used to start a claim against anyone in England and Wales.

HMCTS also recently published an independent report into fully-video hearings and I am glad the group recognised the huge potential of this pioneering technology.

Although fully-video hearings are in the early stages of testing, there are numerous Reform projects which are already

making a difference to courts and tribunals.

for example, greater use of technology.

As we move forward with these changes, I want to ensure I am talking and listening to the legal sector as often as possible. Our post implementation review of LASPO is giving us a perfect opportunity to do so. I have personally met representatives of Resolution, Women’s Aid, the Law Centres Network and the Law Commission; and led a number of roundtable discussions focused on topics such as domestic violence. It is essential for me to understand the impact recent legal aid changes have had on our justice system and to look at ways to make improvements through,

It is important we keep this dialogue open as we move closer to our departure from the EU and the agreement we would like to reach with the other member states on civil judicial co-operation.

I’d like to end by thanking those that attended the meeting and hope they found it as productive as I did.

Lucy Frazer MP QC MP for South East Cambridgeshire Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice

Employers Beware; Vicarious Liability, where does the factual boundary lie?

A recent line of case law has re-emphasised the need for employers to focus on their responsibilities both in and out of the workplace and has provided significant guidance on the concept of vicarious liability.

Recent case law illustrates well that the scope of liability has expanded to embrace unauthorised activities that take place away from the workplace. It is yet to be seen where the factual boundary will be drawn in the modern era, although it seems inescapable that the law will have to consider online behaviour in the near future.

In Bellman v Northampton Recruitment Limited [2018] EWCA Civ 2214 the sales manager Mr Bellman was punched by the company Managing Director, Mr Major, at an informal party after the official work Christmas party ended. The Court of Appeal overturned the 2016 decision and found the Company to be vicariously liable for Mr Bellman’s injury.

Lady Justice Asplin in her reasoning stated that Mr Major “chose to wear his metaphorical

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managing director’s hat… to deliver a lecture to his subordinates” and was “exercising the very wide remit” Northampton Recruitment gave him “despite the time and place. She went on to clarify that it is not a question of what the employee was expressly authorised to do but what was in fact “within the field of activities” assigned to the employee. The Judgement stressed that vicarious liability will not arise merely because there is an argument about work matters between colleagues, which leads to an assault, even when one is markedly more senior, but, a Tribunal will need to examine the nature of the job and whether the nature of their role was engaged during the incident.

Molly Phillips v Pontcanna Pub Company [2018] 1600719/2018 emphasised the decision in Bellman. Here, Miss Phillips was assaulted by a colleague at the company Christmas party. Immediately after the incident, she viewed the CCTV footage and did not require her employers to formally investigate the

incident. Unfortunately, within a few months Miss Bellman became aware that the injuries from the incident were very serious. She raised formal complaints in relation to the incident at this point in time. The Tribunal in its reasoning decided that the business had failed to treat the matter with the seriousness it deserved and found the improper conduct of the employer to amount to constructive unfair dismissal.

The recent line of case law is a salient reminder for employers who arrange social events to remind staff that attendance at these events is voluntary, participants will be treated and choose to attend on an equal basis and discussions regarding work are strongly discouraged. It is also a reminder for employers to full investigate matters of which they are aware, before deciding an appropriate course of action.

Nikita Sonecha, Solicitor, Employment Law Department SA Law

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Editorial Articles

Diversity and Community Relations Judges I

had the pleasure of meeting your Immediate Past President, Attia Hussain, in September when I was invited to write a few words to explain the role of Diversity and Community Relations Judges.

There are presently over 100 Diversity and Community Relations Judges (DCRJJ) across England and Wales, who, in addition to undertaking their primary judicial function, either sitting full time as Court of Appeal Judges, High Court Judges or on the Circuit Bench, the District Bench or in the Tribunals, undertake voluntarily work, ordinarily outside of court hours, in the evenings and at weekends, promoting community links and diversity within the judiciary.

The role of the DCRJJ is three-fold. First, the DCRJJ encourage links with the local community, in the geographical areas in which they serve, to encourage a greater understanding of the court process and a more accurate picture of the role of the Judge and of the workings of the justice system.

The Lord Chief Justice and the Senior President of Tribunals recently observed that, “the role of the Justice System in society and the difficulties under which we labour have steadily risen in public debate over the past year. Politicians, commentators and the wider public appear increasingly to recognise the importance of what Judges do in support of the rule of law. The film The Children Act has illuminated some aspects of the work done in the Family Courts and the recent documentary Inside the Court of Appeal touched on some related to crime. There have been widely read books that explore current issues in our Justice System. In their own ways each is helping to increase public understanding of what the courts and tribunals do, which we see as important. It may not be realistic to expect the public to cherish the Justice system as it does the NHS, but one of the steps to increased public support is a better understanding of what Judges do.”

That statement firmly encapsulates one of the primary functions of the DCRJJ. Each DCRJ endeavours to establish local community links with that aim in mind. This frequently involves, amongst other things, Judges speaking at schools, colleges and universities,

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hosting school visits at Court, engaging with community religious groups and charities, oneto-one mentoring of young people from socially disadvantaged backgrounds and engaging in mock trials and debates.

One such initiative that remains a fond highlight of my DCRJ work over the past seven years, was in 2016 when I had the pleasure of hosting groups of 40+ young people, aged 1517, taking part in a ‘Dragons Den’ style event (with apologies to the BBC for any breach of copyright – none admitted) through the National Citizen Service. The young people were invited to formulate ideas for communitybased projects and to pitch their ideas to a panel of ‘dragons’ with the winning team receiving £50 to help fund their project. The ‘dragons’ included a Judge, a Court Manager and an Usher and the pitches all took place in Court.

Second, the DCRJJ aim to encourage greater diversity among those applying to become Judges from under-represented groups.

The Lord Chief Justice and the Senior President of Tribunals are convinced of the benefits of a more diverse judiciary and are committed to supporting the development of the judiciary in ways that support greater diversity.

Appointment to judicial office is based solely on merit. The independent Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) must, therefore, be able to select from the widest pool of candidates and potential applicants must be assured that they will not be disadvantaged by factors such as ethnic origin, gender, disability, sexual orientation or background. They must also be confident that they will be treated fairly after appointment.

DCRJJ regularly speak at Judicial Networking events nationally, in conjunction with the Judicial Office, the Judicial Appointments Commission, the Law Society, the Bar Council and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. The events usually take the form of a panel of judicial speakers who describe their background, a representative from the JAC to explain the appointments process and a networking session where delegates put questions to a wide variety of Courts and Tribunal Judges. The focus has been on encouraging all those who attend to consider applying for their first judicial appointment.

A Judicial Mentoring Scheme, administered by the Judicial Office and supported by the DCRJJ, has been developed focusing on addressing under-representation of women and BAME lawyers and encouraging greater socioeconomic diversity.

Further, the Judicial Work Shadowing Scheme in associate with the DCRJJ gives practitioners in England and Wales the opportunity to spend up to three days observing the work, both in and out of court, of High Court Judges, Circuit Judges, District Judges and Tribunal Judges.

It aims to give practitioners who are thinking of applying for judicial office an insight into judicial work and responsibilities. Again, one of the aims of the scheme is to encourage a more diverse judiciary by demystifying what it is like to be a Judicial office holder, particularly for those from under-represented groups. I strongly encourage anyone who might be considering judicial appointment to partake on the judicial work shadowing scheme. I warmly welcome approaches directly in this regard or you may contact the Judicial Office for details of other DCRJJ. The third limb of the DCRJJ role is to assist other members of the judiciary in dealing with diversity issues in their judicial work.

I am of course aware that much of the community-based work I have described is, and has been, undertaken by many Judges who do not formally carry the DCRJ title. I have been particularly impressed with the work that has already taken place in Hertfordshire for many years and I am delighted to see that strong links already exist between the judiciary, including the Lay Justices, local practitioners, schools and the University. I aim to further strengthen those links and I would encourage all suggestions and creative ideas from anyone directly involved with local schools, charities or other community groups who feel they might benefit from judicial engagement.

Finally, I commend the outstanding work of the Hertfordshire Law Society and your Immediate Past President in bringing the important issue of diversity to the fore and for all the work you and your members are undertaking to promote a strong, more diverse legal profession.

HHJ Middleton-Roy

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Articles

Christmas Jumper Day – 14 December 2018 Teams from across the Hertfordshire Legal community took part in the annual Christmas Jumper Day on Friday 14 December 2018. Funds were raised mainly for Save the Children, but also for a number of other charities local to each of the firms participating.

We congratulate all of you on raising much needed funds for charity by wearing your garish knits!

Buddy the Dog

HLS Council member Steven Hamilton with the team at Taylor Walton HLS Council member, Claire Sharpe’s team at Debenhams Ottaway

Council member, Marilyn Bell and HJLD Nikita Soencha with the team at SA Law

HLS member Buddy the dog is not to be left out, he is an integral part of the running of JCS Solicitors, he is the proud owner of HLS Council member Jeremy Chandler-Smith

HLS Council member, David Bird with the team at Crane and Staples

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Editorial Articles

The Civil Justice Council’s Final Report on the Future of ADR I

n October 2017, the Civil Justice Council (CJC) published an interim report on the future of ADR. Although the report focused on cross-border disputes, it identified that ADR within England and Wales has “…been extremely patchy”1, and that “…the system as a whole is not working.”2. The CJC received 36 sets of written submissions on the matter in the last year, and in December 2018 it published its final report on the topic, which found that there is still a “…continuing need for review and experimentation.”3

There is clear evidence that ADR can bring about a suitable and equitable solution to disputes. It is therefore of interest that the CJC has once again reported that it does not recommend mandatory ADR, and went as far as saying that the Family MIAM (introduced on 22 April 20144) should not be extended to civil litigation to avoid the risk of losing ADR’s voluntary nature. However, the final report did identify three areas which, the CJC believes, require immediate attention5: 1. The public’s and professionals’ awareness of ADR. 2. The availability of ADR in relation to funding and logistics to allow practitioners to deliver quality ADR with adequate regulation.

3. The encouragement of ADR by both government and the courts.

A Discussion Forum A detailed analysis of all the report’s recommendations is beyond the scope of this article, but one of its most noteworthy endorsements is the need for a forum to be created between all practitioners including judges, solicitors, and ADR professionals to discuss the future of ADR and the civil justice landscape6. The report also recommended the creation of a website, with the provisional title of 'Alternatives', to act as “…a central online depot of information about ADR…”7, with instructional videos on best practices. It also encouraged an open discussion with the voluntary sector (e.g. the Citizen’s Advice Bureau) for practitioners to participate in and create incentives for parties to consider ADR as an alternative to litigation. The CJC’s working group which researched and wrote the report noted in particular that it was contacted on a continuing basis on a range of matters regarding the use of ADR8 which, in its view, demonstrated the need for such a forum.

Professional Disciplinary Code Amendments The CJC also suggests that the disciplinary codes of all professions which participate in ADR, including solicitors, should be amended to emphasise a professional duty to ensure that clients understand all the alternatives to litigation that are available to them9 . Information on ADR could have a substantial effect on the advice given to those who wish to have their day in court.

Review of the Halsey10 Guidelines The final report argued that judges have been too lenient when imposing sanctions for failing to attempt ADR, and identified inconsistencies in recent Court of Appeal cases regarding the use of costs sanction where a party has refused to attempt ADR, such as in Gore v Naheed11 (which was about a right of way dispute, arguably a type of case best suited for ADR). The report suggests that the guidelines set out Halsey12 should be applied “…more vigorously…”13,

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and if anything the guidelines should be narrowed as the CJC deemed the current guidelines as too broad to provide realistic standards for “reasonable” refusal. 14 Online Dispute Resolution in England and Wales It is no surprise that the report recommends and points to Online Dispute Resolution (ODR). A platform established by the European Commission, and used by companies like eBay. The CJC would like to establish ODR as its own system and suggests that by ODR developing separate standards it will gain further acceptance among practitioners which in turn will hopefully increase its use15. It will be fascinating to see how this develops given Lord Burnett’s recent comments about the potential technological developments in civil justice.

All told, the CJC has put forward some interesting recommendations which, if adopted, should help advance ADR in the public’s eyes.

ADR’s future is still uncertain with the need for consistent review and consideration of both ADR’s uses within the civil justice system and the practices that can be used to advance ADR’s use as a readily accepted method of dispute resolution.

Lizzy Trueman, Trainee Solicitor, Family Law Department SA Law Notes

CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2017] Interim Report Civil Justice Council 2.1 2 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2017] Interim Report Civil Justice Council 2.5 3 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2017] Final Report Civil Justice Council 2.1 4 Family Mediators Association, 'Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings MIAMs)' (Thefma, 2017)<https://thefma.co.uk/miams/> accessed 2 August 2018 5 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 2.2 6 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 2.7 7 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 3.14 8 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 2.7 9 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 9.7 10 v Milton Keynes General NHS Trust [2004] EWCA Civ 576 11 [2017] EWCA Civ 369 12 v Milton Keynes General NHS Trust [2004] EWCA Civ 576 13 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 9.23 14 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 9.21 15 CJC ADR Working Group, 'ADR and Civil Justice' [2018] Final Report Civil Justice Council 9.11 1

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Articles

The Victims’ Right to Review Scheme

T

he Victims’ Right to Review (VRR) Scheme is a statutory scheme that has been in place since December 2013 and enables those who are the victims of crime to seek a review of a decision taken by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) not to prosecute a case or where they have decided to terminate proceedings. It is a process that is not widely known about or used by the those dissatisfied by decisions taken in relation to their case.

The process to seek a review should be a straightforward process, but it can be a daunting process for many. Not knowing the law in detail or not having the skill or ability to highlight the relevant factual and/or legal issues may put many off. In addition, the perception that an organisation like the CPS will be fair and dispassionate when it is

being asked to re-consider its own decision may be a leap of faith too far for many.

A worked example of a recent case that we were asked to advise upon will assist in an understanding of the process.

We received instructions following an initial CPS decision. The decision dealt with a perceived time limit issue preventing them from prosecuting for common assault and related evidential difficulties that they perceived in respect of a related offence – being in possession of a bladed article.

The first stage of any VRR is a review by way of a Local Resolution review with the CPS region that made the original decision.

We drafted Grounds to Appeal the initial decision, dealing with the erroneous issue of

the time limit (it was clearly ABH injuries) and the perceived evidential issues. The result of this was that the local CPS decided to uphold the original decision, but the rationale for this was wrong in our view.

We then drafted Grounds for an Independent Review. This is takes place at a central CPS unit and following them considering the grounds, the original decision was reversed, with charges of ABH and Bladed Article following.

The case was eventually concluded, with the suspect receiving a suspended prison term at the Crown Court, having originally being told he would not be prosecuted at all.

Stephen Halloran, Solicitor, Lawtons Solicitors

Introducing Your New Vice President I

would like to open by echoing our new President Judith Gower’s sentiments in expressing what an honour it is to be elected as Vice-President of the Hertfordshire Law Society and also in thanking our outgoing President, Attia Hussain, for her stellar performance in 2018. It will be a privilege to support Judith in her year in office.

It would be an understatement to say that 2019 is set to be a momentous year for the country and legal practitioners. At the time of writing, the country is scheduled to leave the European Union on 29 March 2019. In addition to working in the context of general uncertainty over the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill, practitioners will need to ready themselves to advise clients on the our new trading relations with Europe and likely new immigration and environmental legislation. In addition to this paradigm shift in the legal landscape, the domestic program of reform of legal services continues unabated.

For those in corporate practice, compliance with the provisions of the Companies (Miscellaneous Reporting) Regulations 2018, which require greater transparency from companies of a "significant" size, including the requirement for quoted companies to report annually the ratio of CEO pay to the average pay of their UK workforce, comes into force from 1 January 2019.

The drive to reform practice in the civil courts, commenced some 20 years ago, continues. In the Business and Property Courts, the disclosure pilot scheme, which aims to reduce the time and cost involved in standard disclosure, will run from 1 January 2019. The Law Society, during consultation, has raised concerns that the provisions may well be effective in larger commercial claims of over £500,000 but could be counterproductive in lower value claims.

For conveyancers, for transactions with an effective date on or after 1 March 2019, the time limit for the filing and paying of stamp duty will be reduced from the current 30 to 14 days.

Having floated and abandoned dramatic increases to probate fees in 2017, a new sliding scale of probate fees will be introduced in April 2019. For smaller estates of below £50,000 there will be no fee at all. For estates over this sum the fees will increase from the current flat rate of £215 (£155 if the application is made through a solicitor) to £250 for estates up to £300,000 to a cap of £6,000 for estates in excess of £2m.

I appreciate that this the above skims the surface of the challenges which lawyers will face in their areas of expertise, I am acutely aware of the pressures which those involved in criminal, family and local government face. If as a profession we are to have any wider influence on these changes it is vital that we maintain effective representation to our regulator and government. Your local law society is one such vehicle for achieving this.

Neil Johnson HRJ Foreman Laws (Hitchin) Civil Litigation

Hertfordshire Family Safeguarding Approach

H

ertfordshire County Council’s approach to family safeguarding is changing the way looked after children and families are supported by safeguarding teams.

The whole system aims to better address the needs and risks facing parents and children in order to increase the safety of children within the birth family. At

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the core of the intervention model are co-located, multi-disciplinary Family Safeguarding Teams, comprising children’s social workers and adult workers with expertise in domestic abuse, parental substance misuse and adult mental health.

storyboard for professionals, which aims to be a useful summary guide. It has been kindly distributed by Mayank Joshi who is a Council member of the Hertfordshire Local Family Justice Board and Head of Family Safeguarding West at the Hertfordshire County Council.

Those who practice in Public Children Law should refer to the accompanying

Attia Hussain Crane & Staples

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

S

F

rom September 2018 the University of Hertfordshireâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Law School will be

Both

Expert Witness

Experts under the Judicial Microscope: cases, commentary and criticism not disappoint! You can read his speech in detail on the judiciary website.

The Expert Witness Conference was held on 27th September 2018 at Church House, Westminster, London SW1.

A review by Elizabeth Taylor and Phillip Taylor MBE of Richmond Green Chambers

Attendees took the point that judges in future will have a much stronger lead role in the management of contentious cases from the outset. Then, an entertaining, but equally serious, presentation from Andrew Ritchie QC on “expert evidence and the seven deadly sins” giving us a quick trip round recent decisions with the theme of the seven sins which we won’t remind you of.

The session was heavy on detail (but not too heavy) and delivered with that lightness of touch we expect of a silk with well-devised PPP slides, and Andrew stayed for the Q and A afterwards with useful information from Mike Napier.

I

t was another first-class expert get-together which took place at Church House, Westminster in September 2018.

Our leading experts from the Institute met to have a natter and be briefed on new case law from colleagues, judges and lawyers. This time the theme was specifically about “judges under the microscope” and it was well-attended by EWI members eager for the legal updates which are now an annual feature of the Conference.

Chaired as amiably and effectively as ever by Amanda Stevens from Hudgell Solicitors, the keynote speech was delivered by Sir Ernest Ryder, Senior President of Tribunals. He reviewed how experts assist the court process in their respective role. Sir Ernest did

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Andrew Ritchie QC Sir Martin Spencer gave an important speech after one year as EWI chair. A challenging time with EWI staff changes and Martin’s new job as a High Court judge on circuit which he spoke frankly about- his speech will also be available on the EWI website. He talked also of the exciting developments with EWI in Singapore – a

Amanda Stevens, Conference Chair recurring theme during the day. The continuing importance of member engagement, membership support and the Expert Certification programme were useful updates for members.

Later sessions covered a presentation on EWI Singapore with contributions from Sir Vivian Ramsey, Dr Thomas Walford and Chris Easton. The event concluded with the usual lively “questions” session which have become an important feature of EWI Conferences in recent years led by Dr John Sorabji with some most realistic views on the development of certification from Sandy Mackay whom we were able to chat to earlier during the lunch break as he explained the need for change.

The sad passing of Sir Louis Bloom-Cooper (1926-2018) was announced. Louis, known to many throughout the legal world and beyond for his indefatigable support in some many areas of legal controversy.

Louis was a leading figure throughout his life, called to the Bar at Middle Temple, and he with played a major role in the EWI, the Press Council and Amnesty amongst others. He was a founder of Doughty Street

Chambers and will be greatly missed by all.

EWI members will meet in September 2019 in the post-Brexit British era so keep that date in your diary. EWI Conferences remain an excellent day out to update both experts and lawyers which you cannot miss.

Sir Vivian Ramsay

Dr John Sorajbi

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Expert Witness

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cloud

storage experts, Tresorit and solutions provider, ME Group Holdings are set to bring in the crowds with exclusive educational content and unmissable opportunities to meet with and network with the experts that are taking the session.

With exhibitors from across the many legal sectors all coming together under one roof, it is hard to find a reason not to attend. This approach creates an efficient solution to your legal problems. Instead of spending hours looking at companies on the internet, speak to the people behind the solution face to face and choose what you can be sure is the best option for your specific firm and needs.

For full details and to register for your free ticket to attend please visit www. legalex.co.uk. http://legalex.co.uk/tracker. asp?code=EastparkPR

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Charity

Free wills have a time and place, but it’s not all we need to talk about

By Rob Cope, Director of Remember A Charity

A

t a recent legal sector conference, I was struck by how many lawyers and solicitors assumed that – because I worked for a charitable campaign – what I’d be looking for from them was to coordinate free will-writing services. And yet I believe that there are far more important conversations to be had.

A time and place for free wills Charitable campaigns like Will Aid and Free Wills Month have a critical place in the market, encouraging those to write a will who they might not get around to it otherwise. This was certainly the case for me: I’d been meaning to get around to it for months, when I remembered that I could write my will for the cost of a small donation through Will Aid. Quite simply, the timing was right; I knew how I wanted to divide my will and who would benefit. It was relatively quick and easy for me to get it done, and that included three charitable causes that are particularly closely connected to me and my family – not least the children’s hospital that saved my daughter’s life.

Essentially, the ability to write a will without incurring hefty costs triggered me into action. And this is where free charitable wills work so well. They can be an effective tactic and trigger for action. But that doesn’t mean that they should be the main strategic approach for interactions between the legal and charitable sector.

While I’m a believer that professional will-writing services should be accessible for all, free or even cheap services are not always the way to go. My fear is that – particularly in an unregulated market we run the risk of a race to the bottom,

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where the only conversation between the legal and charitable sector is through free or heavily discounted wills. And many of these wills do not include a charitable bequest at all.

If charitable will-writing is synonymous with ‘free’, the danger is that this will become the norm, when professional willwriting services and often more complex decisions and estate arrangements are worth paying for and getting right. In other words, while free will campaigns can be a great spur into action, they should not necessarily be the default position for charitable wills.

Increasing volume of discounted will-writing services Even beyond the free charity wills movement, the challenge is of course that there is a large and growing range of discounted will-writing services on the market, both online and offline. All of which offer assurances that the necessary checks will be carried out.

While the legal sector awaits news of how the future will-writing environment might change post the recent Law Commission consultation, the vetting procedures, legal checks and professional advice for each service can vary immensely. This can cause confusion and runs the risk of people preparing a will that either may not be legally-sound or that fails to take account of their full financial circumstances and wishes.

What’s more, the scope for legal disputes is greater if there hasn’t been sufficient rigour in the will-writing process.

When it comes to highlighting the option of giving to charity, it’s a lottery: some advisers always mention it, while others choose never to talk to clients about it, further adding to the disparity between will-writing services.

at the expense of people failing to access the support they need when writing their will or indeed lawyers not being funded to fulfil a proper service. A cheap price can devalue the importance of willwriting, meaning that the public isn’t always getting the comprehensive advice they need or the service that solicitors want to deliver.

What solicitors & charities do need to talk about From our perspective at Remember A Charity, we’re working to create an environment where everyone has the option to include a gift to charity in their will. For this to happen, people need to know that this choice is available, they don’t have to leave a particularly large sum and – most importantly – that they can still look after their loved ones when they do so.

Free charitable will campaigns may indeed help generate such discussions, but charitable conversations cannot be reserved for these outlets alone. A standard professional approach is what I believe will make the biggest difference of all.

While solicitors aren’t expected to be fundraisers, we hope that they will always raise the issue with relevant clients, along with the full range of options available to them. These conversations simply wouldn’t happen at all from many an offthe-shelf or online will-writing service.

So I’ll end with a plea; don’t reserve conversations about charitable willwriting for designated charitable campaigns. When the option is included in all comprehensive will planning services, your advice can have a transformational impact on good causes across the UK and your clients’ affairs.

While there are merits to offering discounted wills – this should not come

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

RSPCA Legacies This relates to any clients you may have that wish to make a legacy to the RSPCA. Some people who wish to make a legacy to the RSPCA and would like it to be used locally may not be aware that they can specify they would like it to be spent locally by their nearest branch. The RSPCA comprises the national society and numerous branches which are separately registered charities.* This means that people can choose to leave a gift in their Will to the national RSPCA or to their local RSPCA branch but these intentions must be clearly stated.

If your client indicates that they wish to leave money to the RSPCA please ascertain if they wish to support their local branch or the national society.

If the branch is the intended recipient, please ensure the correct branch charity name and number are specified on their Will. This information can be found on the RSPCA website https://www.rspca. org.uk/whatwedo/whoweare or by calling us at the Hertfordshire East branch on 01462 672278.

Leaving a gift in your Will means you can make a lasting impact on animal welfare for many years to come. For more information visit: www.rspca.org.uk/leavingalegacy *The RSPCA comprises a national organisation supported by a network of 162 local branches covering set areas within England and Wales. The national organisation raises funds to run its animal centres and hospitals. The national society also funds the inspectorate team, prosecutions for acts of animal cruelty, education projects, science, research and campaigns.

The branches, all separately registered charities, raise their own funds to cover the cost of caring for the animals in their care, which often have come from the inspectors. This includes boarding and veterinary costs and providing financial assistance or low-cost veterinary services to help ensure that animals owned by people facing financial hardship receive essential veterinary care.

“I’m only 25. My career has just begun. I’m supposed to be getting married next year. Why MS? Why now? Why me?”

Every week 100 people deal with the shock of being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and face an uncertain future. We don’t know what causes MS. We don’t have a cure. And we can’t be sure how anyone’s MS will develop. But we do know that people with MS need the support of specialist health professionals and positive, practical information.

That’s why the MS Trust trains and supports every MS specialist nurse in the UK, highlights gaps in services and funds new MS specialist nurses to meet this need.

And that’s why we provide free information that people with MS can trust, on everything from dealing with diagnosis to staying active.

Why remember the MS Trust in your will? Because, like us, you believe no one should have to deal with MS alone.

To find out more call 01462 476700 or visit mstrust.org.uk/legacy

How to build robust relationships with your suppliers Regardless of the sector you are working in, relationships with your suppliers are essential to your business’s health, reputation and growth. Lauren Lieser, account manager at Geodesys, discusses how to form relationships which are robust and last a lifetime.

The selection and building of your supplier relationships is a continuous process that strives to balance your business needs with the needs of the supplier. In today’s market, where businesses are consistently prospected, using people and organisations that you can trust and rely on to provide a high-quality service is of critical importance.

Choosing a supplier can often be the toughest decision so look for one(s), where they can demonstrate expertise and longevity within the industry. Research the array of products the supplier can offer, compare them to competitors and invest time to meet with them.

Price will always be a factor, but the cheapest provider is not always the right one so clearly define what it is you are looking for and do your research into what solution accommodates this need.

At the top of the agenda for a strong relationship is communication.

If this aspect of the process is neglected, then you could risk complications arising which will lengthen the transaction process and potentially be costlier.

Having been an account manager for the past 15 years, I cannot emphasise the importance of the relationship being two-way. If the

supplier does not know about a certain issue, how can they assist in addressing it?

Regular interaction will build a trustworthy relationship which allows for open and honest discussions on product and progress updates, as well as the opportunity to demystify regulation updates, compliance, etc. Geodesys hosts a series of topical CPD workshops at various UK locations throughout the year.

These well-attended events provide a platform for our clients to hear from industry experts like Kate Faulkner, mingle with likeminded people and touch base with their account managers.

As the relationship and the communication between the organisation and the supplier develops, you will find efficiency will improve and potentially increase operational value too.

Offering feedback to the supplier is key in ensuring they can provide a service that meets your expectations and drives continuous improvement. Geodesys offers their customers for example, multiple mechanisms for gaining feedback including surveys, meetings and seminars, which helps us continually improve our systems and service.

Conclusion Developing good relationships with your suppliers is not a complicated process. Be communicative, tell them your needs and expectations, treat them fairly, be demanding and be loyal.

It’s that simple.

Geodesys is a leading provider of conveyancing searches for residential and commercial properties throughout England and Wales.

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Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Advertorial

Relaxing Care

W

hen you see those words, holidays, reading a good book, sitting in the garden on a sunny day, a spa day at a local centre, etc. may come to mind.

However, relaxing care can be viewed in a different, not often used mindset, but one that has special significance in the care sector.

Care provision for people who must rely on a care support service to enable them to get through each day of their lives, need relaxing care.

with reference to practical tasks, but as to how kind, lovely, cheerful, respectful, calm and reliable they are.

In 2019, we should all make sure, that the thought of ‘relaxing’ care gains significance.

Written by: Angela Gifford MD of Able Community Care Ltd

Individuals and families are seeking a care service that will be a comfort, delivered in a stress free and soothing manner, delivered by appropriate carers who by the way they offer their support will reduce any anxiety, loss of dignity and worries that the recipient and their families have.

In this world of ‘training’ understanding and compassion of the position of a person who needs care is relegated to a few words at the end of a training course or possibly not mentioned at all. Everyone responds to kindness, to someone who empathizes with the situation someone else other than themselves is in.

Having been providing care services for nearly four decades, the compliments we receive about care workers are almost always based not on the ability that they have

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Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Expert Witness

E

A

s we move into the mainstream digital age, the role of the expert

And, it mean

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Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette

Advertorial

Law Society News Realism and justice needed to shape future immigration system

their status, as well as a longer term rise in future applications from EU citizens.

The rule of law depends on an immigration system that is fair and fit for purpose, the Law Society of England and Wales said, following publication of the government’s Immigration White Paper.

More businesses, many of them small, will need to access the sponsored workers and proposed short term workers schemes, creating additional financial and administrative burdens and placing additional strain on the system.

“Britain’s future immigration system must be as fair, robust and transparent as it is streamlined,” Law Society president Christina Blacklaws said.

“The root causes of systemic failures in our immigration and asylum system need to be addressed before any future system can be built that is fit for purpose and able to manage an increased number of applications.”

There will be significant short-term additional burdens on UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) when several million EU citizens living in the UK seek to settle

http://www.hertslawsoc.org.uk/

Christina Blacklaws added: “There are some promising indications in the White Paper, but a lack of substance underpinning them.

The legal profession needs more information if we are to provide useful, informed advice to government.

“Some proposals imply a considerable administrative burden that may be unworkable. For instance, a short-term working visa scheme as outlined would be dependent on negotiating reciprocal agreements with multiple countries, robbing the system of the flexibility needed to deal

with a Brexit of any kind.

“Solicitors, charities and the media have long reported unreliable decisions and huge delays in many areas of immigration – from business and worker applications to family cases.

“It is difficult to imagine how a system which is on its knees today can be transformed into the streamlined, quick and easy framework envisaged by the White Paper.

“A comprehensive review of Home Office processes and the culture driving decisionmaking is essential so that people navigating the system in future can have confidence that they will get a timely, well-considered and fair decision.

“More than ever the UK needs an immigration and asylum process that is fit for purpose, fair, lawful, and provides timely, consistent decisions for all applicants and their families.”

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Editorial Advertorial

Why Quill’s software development team invests heavily in Interactive Documents

By Julian Bryan, Managing Director, Quill

T

he legal profession is never static.

With always-evolving legislation, increasingly demanding clients and growing numbers of aggressive competitors, change is never far afoot.

To thrive in such challenging conditions, law firms rely more than ever before upon technology.

One constant thread in this sea of change is the written word. You see, the law is all about the written word.

Every single task performed by a solicitor involves the written word in some form. Law firms are documentintensive by nature and every fee earner is a content factory generating document after document as they progress through live matters, be it a client care letter sent to a new customer, completion statement in a commercial conveyancing matter, divorce petition for a matrimonial case, last will and testament for a private client or anything in between.

It thus follows that the primary role of technology is to help legal practices manage the written word effectively.

Software’s role is to apply as much automation as possible to generating, storing, transmitting and finding the written word including time recording throughout each of these stages. Speed and accuracy are absolutely essential.

The quicker and easier it is to produce, save, share and locate this expanding library of documents, the better for everyone, from the lawyer who can concentrate on clientfacing work thereby boosting earning capacity to the compliance officer who can plan for business continuity thereby meeting Code of Conduct obligations.

Because of this, no legal software supplier can afford to be complacent about development. At Quill, software development is something we take really seriously and invest considerable resources in doing. We have 12 dedicated employees in our software development team. Led by our IT Director, Richard Salt, it’s their responsibility to research new technologies and industry trends then develop our applications in order to keep Quill at the forefront of innovation and enable our clients to control the written word to the best of their ability.

Our R&D staff understand the pressures faced by today’s law firms and continually enhance our Interactive Cloud and Interactive Documents software – comprising case management, legal accounts and document management features – to empower them to work more efficiently, save administration time, spend longer earning fees, reduce operating costs and a whole raft of other benefits which drive both greater productivity (so your clients are happy!) and profitability (so your partners and investors are happy too!).

With regards to the written word, Interactive Documents – our intuitive document management module – provides tight integration between Interactive, Word

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and Outlook – called our Add-Ins – which allows you to spend your working day in familiar Microsoft applications with full links to Interactive’s database, templates and document store.

Technology that constantly advances is a must-have tool for any forward-thinking law firm. Not only because of the productivity advantages delivered, but also for safety reasons. Without ongoing security patches and bug fixes, you’re vulnerable to the rising volumes of threats from hackers and cybercriminals whose sole purpose it is to disrupt (even ruin) your business. Software development, then, is a future-proofing promise that, whatever changes and challenges come your way, your software supplier’s got your back.

At its core, our Interactive Documents gives unique integration between Interactive Cloud, Word and Outlook saving users re-entering data as a key, but by no means only, benefit. But more recently a myriad of new features have been introduced to Interactive Documents and we’re going to describe just a few of them here.

We’ve created conversion to PDF and attachment as PDF functionality. As you’ll no doubt know, PDF is a secure file format. Documents of this type can’t be edited by recipients. In Interactive, it’s a one button task; job done.

Using the Interactive Add-Ins in Outlook makes tasks such as this really straightforward. By simply hitting the ‘New Quill Email’ then ‘Attach From Quill’ buttons located in the top toolbar of Outlook, single or multiple documents can be attached as PDFs even if you haven’t previously converted files to PDF format. At this point, you haven’t formally logged in to Interactive itself either; you’re using the well-known Microsoft interface instead which you’re at liberty to do all day long, should you please.

We’ve established an entire series of document and precedent templates comprising everything from credit control letters and identification forms to requests to extend time and receipt of money acknowledgements.

These templates are supplied as standard with Interactive Documents. You can also choose to set up your own bespoke templates, link to merge fields in Interactive then auto-populate content direct from your database.

In the same vein, popular forms packs can be purchased too as an optional extra. Linked closely to Interactive, these forms offer even more auto-database population for documents related to each of the common steps in particular matters.

This has to be one of the biggest draws of document management software – the ability to generate documents and letters in minutes. Where Interactive Documents is concerned, the same applies to emails. Ready-made email templates allow emails to be written, recipients selected from handy drop-down lists, documents attached and the entire communication saved straight back to case effortlessly, all from within Outlook itself.

In fact, you can even now do so from within Word. Autoemail the document you’ve been working on directly to the client, opposition, expert witness or any combination without switching between systems.

Integrated attendance notes are another enhancement.

Either when saving a just-completed document, receiving a document or later, the notes field permits the addition of attendance notes – that’s a description of discussions, meetings or events that have taken place – relating to that specific document.

There are two main advantages of attendance notes. One, the important notes are logged both for future reference and to support your accompanying time record so there’s no chance of forgetting further down the line. Two, entering your attendance notes as you go along saves you an extra task and negates the need for double billing which assists with client satisfaction.

Time recording generally is worth a mention. Our overhauled Interactive Documents lets you make time entries at various touchpoints when writing, uploading or dispatching case-related documentation and correspondence. With the ability to perform these stages quickly, you can record more units of time than the task has actually taken to bill clients appropriately for actions completed and boost chargeable time in the process. In other words, do less and earn more.

These are just a few of many improvements to Interactive Documents. To refer to some others, you can set up calendar events from Word and Outlook with reminders to ensure defined milestones are met; maintain a full audit trail with version-control-stamped documents; assign colours, labels and preview before opening to locate the right documents with ease; access your cloudstored documents from anywhere with an internet connection to become more mobile; tailor sub folders to your preferences so Interactive mirrors how you work; store unlimited quantities of documents, emails and images without taking up valuable space on your own servers; protect your vital records with industrialstrength security measures and in-built disaster recovery planning; and much, much more besides.

The combination of these multiple features means you can run your legal practice competitively, with minimum support staff, at low cost. A ‘Lite’ version of Interactive Documents is provided as part of your Interactive licence fee. Alternatively, an advanced ‘Professional’ version is charged at just £17 per user per month for full integration with the Microsoft Office suite. Exploit our heavy financial investment in Interactive Documents without breaking your bank. The written word; sorted.

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.

Hertfordshire Law Society Gazette