Thursday 19 July 2012

The number of children in custody has hit a record low five years after the Prison Reform Trust's Out of Trouble programme was launched to limit the use of prison. In September 2007, 2,835 children under 18 were in custody in England and Wales. By May 2012, that number had fallen 38% to 1,740, the Ministry of Justice said.

President Neuberger

Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury will become the second president of the Supreme Court, Downing Street has announced. Neuberger, 64, currently master of the rolls, will be sworn in at the court on 1 October. He succeeds Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, who steps down from his post as the UK's most senior judge on 30 September.

Call for CMC action

A Labour peer has called for claims management companies (CMCs) to be fined or ignored if they do not disclose enough information about a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman. Lord Kennedy added the amendment to the Financial Services Bill as part of a campaign for tougher regulation of CMCs.

Financial benchmarking

The Law Management Section of the Law Society has launched a quarterly financial benchmarking survey open to all firms in England and Wales. The survey will provide an update on key financial indicators and trends within the profession, complementing the regular LMS annual survey.

Equality award

The Law Society has been awarded the Employers Network for Equality & Inclusion award for inclusive procurement, for its Diversity and Inclusion Charter, legal procurement protocol and efforts to make its internal procurement processes more inclusive.

Nice lectures

Sir Geoffrey Nice QC is to deliver six free public lectures on international courts following his appointment as professor of law at Gresham College, London.

Rights bill proposals

A right to administrative justice and trial by jury are among measures that may be proposed for a future UK Bill of Rights, the government's Commission on a Bill of Rights said in a consultation document. The consultation closes on 30 September.

New SDT president

Andrew Spooner has been elected president of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal for a term of three years. He took over from Jeremy Barnecutt on 4 July.

'Alternative' ABS bid

A self-styled 'alternative' law firm which acts for companies such as BSkyB and Nike plans to become an alternative business structure. Halebury has a roster of 14 lawyers contracted to the firm but working on a consultancy basis in-house with corporate clients.

Rozenberg honoured

Legal commentator and Gazette columnist Joshua Rozenberg has been awarded an honorary degree by Nottingham Law School. After qualifying as a solicitor, Rozenberg was the BBC's legal correspondent for 15 years.