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Law Society proposes changes to employment tribunal system

Unlawful employment practices will continue to go unpunished unless the tribunal system is overhauled, the Law Society has warned. The body representing solicitors has published proposals to transform the employment tribunal structure to benefit employees, employers and the administration of justice.

They include a new employment tribunal structure, where claims are dealt with flexibly, depending on their intricacy and the financial stakes involved, and all employment law disputes will be dealt with in a single jurisdiction consisting of four levels.

According to the proposed structure, simple cases such as handling unpaid wages claims would be dealt with on a paper basis in the lowest level, while more complex cases - such as multi-strand discrimination cases - would be heard by an experienced judge in level four.

Overhaul of Court of Protection media rules needed to prevent miscarriages of justice and improve transparency, new study finds

A group of legal experts is calling for an overhaul of the rules governing the way in which the Court of Protection (CoP) works with the media in England and Wales, to improve transparency and help protect against miscarriages of justice.

The study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation and led by researchers from Cardiff University’s School of Law, recommends changes to the rules that govern media access to CoP cases, to enhance accountability and increase public understanding of the Court’s work.

Queen Mary University of London to offer free legal advice for victims of revenge porn

Victims of revenge porn can apply for free legal advice through a new service offered by the School of Law at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). As part of the service, victims will receive legal advice from a team of trained student advisors – under the supervision of experienced, qualified lawyers - at QMUL’s Legal Advice Centre.

According to Julie Pinborough, Director of QMUL’s Legal Advice Centre, revenge porn is a “disturbing and rapidly growing phenomenon”.

“While the alleged number of offences - 149 - is relatively small, we know that many victims never come forward. Stigma is definitely an issue; people often feel embarrassed, afraid and powerless.”

Cameron sets his sights on Judicial Reviews

Picture of David Cameron speaking at the CBI Prime Minister David Cameron has announced plans to reform the Judicial Review process – claiming that cases can be costly and can clog up the courts and delay justice. The risk of a Judicial Review can also hold up major infrastructure projects.

Mr Cameron said Judicial Reviews are "...a massive growth industry in Britain today."

"Back in 1998," he added, "there were four and a half thousand applications for review and that number almost tripled in a decade. Of course some are well-founded, as we saw with the West Coast mainline decision. But let's face it: so many are completely pointless. Last year, an application was around 5 times more likely to be refused than granted.

"We urgently needed to get a grip on this. So here's what we're going to do: reduce the time limit when people can bring cases, charge more for reviews so people think twice about time-wasting and instead of giving hopeless cases up to four bites of the cherry to appeal a decision, we will halve that to two."

LASPO changes to family justice come under attack

Elfyn Llwyd outside Parliament for Expert Witness family law story The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO), has come in for more savage criticism: this time for the effect it will have on family justice. Plaid Cymru MP and barrister Elfyn Llwyd (pictured) is quoted as saying it will "...change the whole landscape of family law".

He was speaking from the chair of a seminar on The Future of Family Justice – a Westminster Policy Forum debate attended by MPs, judges and expert practitioners.

Mr Llwyd said: "The changes are likely to be detrimental to families, detrimental to access to justice and probably contrary to article 6 rights and others which come into play when a fair trial of issues is not afforded."