Weekly Round Up 21.12.12

CBA Chairman’s Update: Michael Turner QC

THE HEADLINES:

Headlines:

 

  1. QASA: A Recipe for disaster

 

  1. Guidance on prosecutions: Joint Enterprise/Media

 

  1. Common Sergeant Appointment

 

  1. Chambers Membership Direct

 

 

1.                  QASA: A Recipe For Disaster

 

Delay in Implementation

 

The only good news is that implementation will be delayed. The new timetable will not be announced until end of January.

 

Timing of Announcement

The details of the scheme appeared on the BSB website after close of business yesterday. They were known and announced to GMC on Monday, but we were embargoed from making any announcement until a formal release had been made. Some people present asked for a delay in the announcement to enable Mike Todd QC and Maura McGowan QC to speak to the Lord Chief Justice and Thomas LJ. This was done at 11 am on Tuesday and immediately it was reported back that neither felt they had the power or the place to bring about changes in the scheme however contrary the scheme was to the public interest. Thereafter there has been silence form the BSB until late yesterday. You are a Regulator, you have a new scheme for the regulation of a profession and you choose to announce the details of it on the evening of Thursday 20th December, five days before Christmas with the holiday beginning at noon the following day. A bottle of Lambrini to any one savvy enough to work out why, that is providing you get the answer before reading on. If you only work it out having seen what the scheme contains, it’s a half  a bottle of Baby Sham. If you do not work it out at all, you have past the most important competency for application to the Legal Services Board.

The Scheme Details: The Announcement in Full

 

 

 

Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA), an update on the details

Following detailed consideration and analysis of the responses to the fourth consultation, the Joint Advocacy Group (JAG), which comprises representatives of the Bar Standards Board, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and ILEX Professional Standards, can confirm that the core components of the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA) are now agreed in principle. However, some technical details are still being discussed by JAG members.

There were 348 responses in total to the fourth consultation. 39 came from representative groups, 34 from individual solicitors, 269 from individual barristers and chambers, although 200 of these were short endorsements of either the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) or a circuit response. There were two responses from equality groups and four other responses. A summary and analysis of the responses will be published in the New Year.

It was clear following analysis of these responses that some adjustments to the Scheme need to be considered. As previously announced, this means that the Scheme will not begin in the New Year and a more detailed timetable for implementation will be available by the end of January.

As there is considerable interest in the Scheme, the JAG members have decided to issue further details now.

What is staying the same as previously stated?

The core aspects of the scheme have not changed and remain as outlined in the consultation. These include:

  • The advocacy standards and the competence framework
  • The central role of judicial evaluation in the Scheme
  • The approach to assessment at Level 1
  • The alternative use of assessment centres for entry to the Scheme at Level 2
  • The assessment method for those advocates who don’t undertake trials
  • Each regulator having in place clear and appropriate regulatory arrangements to ensure proper communication with and disclosure to individual clients about how far the individual advocate will be able to progress their case
  • That the Scheme should not change current, lawful, patterns of practice
  • The availability of on-going monitoring, ie trained judges being able to alert the regulators directly of instances of incompetence that they observe in respect of all advocates in all types of hearing
  • Periodic re-accreditation
  • Phased geographical roll-out
  • The requirement to gather evidence and fully review the Scheme after two years of operation. Advocates who do not undertake trials will be identifiable to regulators enabling their numbers, distribution, patterns of practice and assessment profiles to be researched and reviewed, along with other patterns of practice, as part of the two-year review
  • The need to conduct and complete further targeted work on youth courts within the next two years
  • The mechanisms for dealing with incompetence

What is changing?

Proportionality and operational feasibility

 

  • The period of time for collection of the two competent pieces of judicial evaluation (JE) required to enter the scheme would be extended from 12 months to two years
  • The JEs would need to be obtained in successive effective trials over the two-year period 
  • A level 2 advocate, who has been assessed as competent against all the standards at an assessment centre would similarly require two judicial evaluations over two years should they wish to undertake trial work at level 2.

QCs

  • As per the consultation, recently appointed QCs (ie those appointed since 2010) would be “passported” into the Scheme for up to five years from the date that they were awarded silk. QCs appointed before 2010 would register in the scheme as QCs and be assessed against the standards and criteria for their chosen level through gaining two judicial evaluations over two years. There will be a separate QC label under the Scheme eg “4QC” in order to differentiate QCs from other level 4 advocates.
  • Discussions should begin immediately with Queen’s Counsel Appointments (QCA) on how to align or integrate the quality assurance and re-accreditation of QCs in the future.

Further issues for consideration

In the light of the consultation responses, JAG agrees that the following aspects of the Scheme require further consideration. These include:

  • The categorisation of the level of the case and the role of the judiciary in assigning levels to a case
  • Ensuring that each regulator’s rules achieve consistency of outcome to support the single Scheme
  • The definition of criminal advocacy and the application of the scheme to specialist practitioners
  • The submission of evaluation forms (CAEFs) directly to the regulator by judges
  • Consistency of the approach to dealing with appeals against decisions taken by the regulators under the Scheme

Detailed work on these adjustments will now proceed in January. JAG is hopeful that operational agreement on these aspects will be reached reasonably quickly. Details will be released in due course.

Next steps

The JAG members continue to work together to refine the detail of the Scheme and finalise a revised implementation timetable. No further details will be available until the end of January 2013.

 

-ends-

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

Putting it in Simply Terms

 

The CBA Lines in the Sand  for Preserving the Public Interest: A Reminder

  • Judicial Assessment for all advocates
  • A unified code of conduct for all advocates.
  • No so called plea only advocates
  • Silks to be excluded.
  • Final say in determing the grade of cse to be left with the court.

 

How the Scheme Measures Up to Our Bottom Lines

  • Assessment centre route to QASA qualification permitted at Level 2.
  • A unified code for all advocates to be considered not promised.
  • “Plea only advocates” now to be tagged “non-trial advocates” permitted and to the subject of review over a two year period. They can qualify via an assessment centre at Level 2 and then act up to Level 3. If they wish to act up to Level 4, they must qualify at Level 3 via judicial evaluation, which requires two judicial competencies in a two year period.
  • Silks to be included in the scheme at Grade 4 receiving the grade Level 4 QC.
  • The judiciary having the final say in the grading of a case to be considered not promised.

 

The CBA re-action and the attitude of others

The CBA together with all Circuit Leaders and the Bar Council take the view that the scheme as drafted is not in the public interest. Indeed the BSB themselves take the view that the scheme is not in the public interest if plea only advocates are included. Some at GMC, inspite agreeing that the scheme was not in the public interest, suggested that strong leadership should advise their membership to sign up to the scheme for fear of something worse. In my view it is precisely that attitude that has taken us to the edge of the precipice in the first place.

 

What is to be Done?

 

The Bar Council will support any member who refuses to sign up the scheme. However, they can not and will not support any member who continues to practice without a QASA grade as they will be committing a crime and seeking to operate in breach of the code of conduct. In consequence, anyone not signing up forgoes their right to practice. Are we going to allow the public to be subjected to a scheme that in reality has nothing to do with preserving quality but everything to do with paving the way for OCOF and wiping out the distinction between leading juniors and silks? The answer to that question very much lies in your hands. I will not force my troops into battle if they do not have the stomach for it. However, there comes a point, does there not when an ignorant public need our protection from those who seek to steal a cornerstone of our democracy from them. Let me know you views in the forum HERE

 

2.         Guidance on prosecutions: Joint Enterprise/Media

 

            New guidance has been issues from the Directors office on prosecuting in case of joint enterprise and media cases. For the latest guidelines HERE

 

3.         Common Sergeant Appointment

 

            I have been asked to publish the competition for the appointment of Common Sergeant. I am happy to do so HERE.

 

4.         Chambers Membership Direct

 

            There has been fantastic co-operation from chambers with this scheme. It will triple the CBA membership, give us a proper fighting fund and allow us to comply with strictures should industrial action be required. Thank you.

 

Despite the depressing news I have imparted I wish you all a very happy and well deserved Christmas break.

 

CBA NEWS:

Chairmans Report – December 2012

You can read it HERE

 

CBA/Bar Council Joint Response to the Crown Court means testing consultation joint response

You can read it HERE

 

2013 Diaries:

These were mailed out, week commencing 17th December – each diary will arrive over the next 10 days.

 

CBA Bursary Fund:

The Chairman and Committee are pleased to announce that the Bursary Scheme, which was launched in September, has already proved beneficial to several of our members.   The scheme is already being supported by the following Criminal Sets who have kindly agreed to pay £500.00 each year for the next three years in order to support the scheme.

  • 2 Bedford Row
  • 25 Bedford Row
  • 9 Bedford Row
  • 23 Essex St
  • Garden Court
  • 18 Red Lion Court
  • 3 Raymond Buildings
  • 9/12 Bell Yard
  • Furnival
  • 2 Hare Court

 

If you Chambers would like to contribute and assist with the Bursary Scheme, please contact the Treasurer, Ed Vickers at [email protected]

 

2012 CPD:

Remember you still have time to claim your CPD via our website and entering your log in details to gain access. 

Those of you who are already using the site are reminded that when you make your purchase the billing address should match the address where your credit/debit card is registered, otherwise the payment will fail.

 

Health Support and Advice for the Bar – Law Care:

LawCare provides an independent and confidential service which assists members of the Law Societies of England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland and the Isle of Man; the Institute of Legal Executives; the Bar Councils of England and Wales, the Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland; the Faculty of Advocates in Scotland; the Department of Justice; the Institute of Barristers Clerks; and the National Association of Paralegals.  This is a confidential advisory service to help lawyers, their immediate families and their support staff to deal with the health issues and related emotional difficulties that can result from a stressful career as a lawyer, or working with lawyers. LawCare is there to support and assist you, too.  LawCare offers you the opportunity to discuss problems that are interfering with, or have the potential to interfere with, your work performance and / or your family life and to seek to help in resolving these problems.  Through LawCare, help is available to those who are suffering from stress and/or depression, or who have alcohol, drug or other dependency concerns, or eating disorders.

There is a helpline which is open 365 days a year:-

9am – 7.30pm, Monday to Friday

10am – 4pm Saturday, Sunday and UK Bank Holidays

0800 018 4299

Further details can be found on the website here

 

Other News:   

  

Other Events:   

 

UCL LAWS EVENTS

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 

   

The Social Networks Research Initiative at the Centre for Law, Economics and Society at UCL Laws (SNRI @ CLES) has pleasure in inviting you to


Regulating Social Networks:
More Harm than Good?

 

A debate on how social networks challenge the traditional views about regulation and its aims

 

on 31 January 2013, 6 – 7.30pm

 

Panellists include:

  • Ian Hogarth (Co-Founder and CEO, Songkick)
  • Prof. Andrew Murray (LSE)
  • Tom Frederikse (Clintons LLP)
  • Mark Adams (UK Director, The Audience)
  • Martin Adams (SNRI @ CLES)
  • Steven Braines (Artist Manager)
  • Ioannis Lianos (Director, UCL CLES)

About this event

The effect of the spread of social media has been dramatic; altering the power dynamic between consumers and providers of goods and services, disrupting traditional business models, undermining intellectual property rights, enabling cultural participation, and facilitating a more democratic flow of information.

On January 31, 2013 UCL Laws will play host to a fascinating exchange between leading thinkers involved in the industry and policy surrounding social media.

The discussion will ask important questions about social media, and specifically social networks, and the impact of attempts to protect individual privacy, intellectual property, and other public interests. What is the value of social media to our cultural, social and professional lives? What interests are states seeking to protect when they discuss legal regulation of these technologies? Should we decide that regulation is appropriate, on what basis and rationale can this based upon? Do strict legal standards threaten to stifle the continued development of these innovative technologies? Does it make sense to consider self regulation here? This event will be of interest to industry leaders in this important area, and a range of students and faculty from diverse departments including law, public policy, and computer science.

About the speakers:

Professor Andrew Murray is Professor of Law at London School of Economics, where he specializes in Cyber-regulation Law, and particularly the promotion of proprietary interests and protection of human rights in the digital sphere. Professor Murray has written numerous books and is a frequent commentator on the digital environment and its regulation.

Tom Frederikse is a Partner at Clintons law firm in London where he specialises in Digital Media and technology-related issues. Tom is a regular commentator across various national media on issues concerning law and technology, and joins us as chairperson of the event.

Ian Hogarth is the Co-Founder and CEO of Songkick; a hugely popular social media platform that revolutionises the way users discover live music, and with roots in both the Silicon Valley and the Silicon Roundabout. Ian studied a Masters in ‘Machine Learning’ at Cambridge University and worked at Bain Capital before starting Songkick. He is a global expert on the role of social media and crowdfunding.

Mark Adams is a well recognised thought leader in the field of social media. At the age of 21 he founded the very first social media company in the UK and is now UK Director at The Audience; the worlds largest publisher across all social media platforms, representing over 300 of the biggest entertainment clients in the world. Mark regularly speaks at conferences and summits about the role of social media and the transformative power of the direct-to-fan relationship for traditional business models. He holds a Masters in Law from UCL.

Steven Braines manages some of the world’s most esteemed music artists, including Maya Janes Coles, Tricky, and Magda. A pioneer in the role of digital strategy, Steven champions the role of technology to bring artist and fan together in an industry that has had to confront the proliferation of social media and the challenges of ‘freely sharable’ content.

Martin Adams is a graduate of Harvard Law School, where he obtained a Masters in intellectual property law and the law of the Internet, UCL Laws and the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He has conducted research through the Berkman Centre for Internet and Society at Harvard University and worked on behalf of the artist Shepard Fairey in his copyright infringement case concerning the famous Obama ‘Hope’ poster. As a digital entrepreneur, Martin Adams was involved with rapidly growing companies in the digital media sector, and currently works as a lawyer for Kirkland and Ellis, LLP in New York where his practice focuses on domestic and international technology and intellectual property transactions. Martin was recently invited to speak at the International Legal Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia on the subject of regulating social networks.

Ioannis Lianos is the Founding Director of the Centre for Law, Economics and Society at UCL, a Reader in Competition Law and Economics at UCL Laws and the Gutenberg Research chair at the Ecole Nationale d’Administration in France (ENA). He has written extensively on regulation and competition law and has specific expertise in the competition and network neutrality regulatory implications of social media platforms.

Registration fees:
£20 Standard Fee; £10 Academics (full time) and public sector; £10 non-UCL students, free for UCL students

Venue:

UCL Faculty of Laws – Graduate Wing
1-2 Endsleigh Street
WC1H 0EG London

Accreditation:
This event is accredited with 1.5 CPD hours by the SRA and constitutes relevant CPD by IPReg.
(BSB accreditation is pending)

More information on
UCL Centre for Law, Economics and Society

Register for this event

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

London Art Fair Private View Invitation

16 – 20 January 2013 | Business Design Centre London N1

 

London Art Fair is the UK’s premier Modern British and contemporary art fair.

 

Galleries from across the UK and overseas will present the work of over 1,000 artists covering the period from the early 20th century to the present day. You will see museum quality British art presented alongside exceptional contemporary work from leading figures and emerging talent.

 

The Fair provides a uniquely welcoming atmosphere in a spectacular venue in the heart of Islington, attracting visitors with a genuine passion for art; from experienced collectors to those buying their first original work. 

 

 

PATRICK HERON 1920-1999

Three Blues in Red 1962 Oil on Canvas

183 x 152cm Courtesy of Agnew’s Gallery

 

MICHAEL ORMEROD                       

Girl on Bike 1986 Photographic Print               

30” x 40” Courtesy of Crane Kalman Brighton

MARCUS HARVEY
The Führer’s Cake
Courtesy of VIGO

 

ADRIAN HEATH 1920-1992

Curved Forms – Yellow & Black 1952 Oil on Canvas

91.5 x 61 cm Courtesy of Jonathan Clark

London Art Fair would like to invite the Members of The Criminal Bar Association to our Private View on Wednesday, 16 January 2013, from 6pm – 9pm.

 

This is an exclusive invitation-only evening reception and it’s a perfect place to catch-up with clients and friends in the New Year and enjoy a complimentary glass of wine in the informal and welcoming atmosphere of Private View.

 

To receive your complimentary Private View invitation, simply visit http://www.londonartfair.co.uk/criminalbar before 07 January 2013.

 

To purchase advance tickets for any other day please visit www.londonartfair.co.uk/criminalbartickets

 

For more information please see www.londonartfair.co.uk

 

Suggestibility in Legal Contexts – and how to avoid it

Date: Thursday, 21 March 2013 (09:30 to 16:30)

Venue: London South Bank University   

This is a one-day training session for lawyers, police, expert witnesses, social workers, and other interested parties.

Join us to learn more about the theory, research and forensic implications related to “suggestibility” in legal contexts. Topics covered include “immediate” versus “delayed” suggestibility, the relationship between suggestibility and vulnerability factors, as well as witness interview techniques.

Speakers:

  • Fiona Gabbert is a Reader in Psychology at Goldsmiths University of London. She is an expert in the area of social influences on memory, and has published widely on this topic. Another of Fiona’s interests is developing methods to obtain reliable evidence from eyewitnesses. She received an Academic Excellence Award for ‘Outstanding Achievements in the Area of Investigative Interviewing’ in 2011.
  • David La Rooy is a Reader in Psychology at the University of Abertay Dundee, UK. He is also a Scottish Institute for Policing Research Lecturer and his research focuses on issues surrounding the forensic interviewing of children. He teaches evidence-based investigative-interviewing and oversees the university’s degree course in Forensic Psychobiology
  • Anne Ridley is a Principal Lecturer in Psychology at London South Bank University, UK, with particular interest in individual differences in witness suggestibility as well as strategies for supporting vulnerable witnesses in the legal system. In 2008 she was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship by the Higher Education Academy. Anne teaches on the university’s MSc in Investigative Forensic Psychology.

To book – visit http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/4882274013 

Evening lecture – at 5.00 pm there will be an evening lecture “Illusions of Memory, Illusions of Justice?” by Elizabeth F. Loftus, Distinguished Professor, University of California. Loftus’s groundbreaking research has transformed our understanding of suggestibility and false memories. Attendees are invited to stay on for this event with our compliments. When you book a place at the training day, please indicate whether you will join us for the talk as this event will be ticketed and we anticipate a waiting list.

 

CRIMINALS OR VICTIMS? A Necessary Guide to the Non-Criminalisation of Victims of Human Trafficking

 

Panel

  • Peter Carter QC

18 Red Lion Court

 

  • Parosha Chandran

1 Pump Court

 

  • Pam Bowen

Head of Trafficking Policy, CPS

 

An expert seminar aiming to bridge gaps in knowledge concerning the criminalisation of victims of trafficking.

 

Principally for Judges, Barristers and Students with an interest in criminal law and public law, the seminar seeks to raise awareness of how to identify possible victims of trafficking and how to protect the legal rights of such persons (further details below).

 

Monday 4th February 2013

Gray’s Inn Hall

6.15pm – 8.15pm

 

Seminar followed by a drinks reception

(2 CPD for barristers & solicitors / 1 QS for Gray’s Inn students)

Pre-registration and payment required – form attached

£15 for Judges, Barristers and Solicitors

£10 for new practitioners up to 3 years Call

£10 for pupils and students  

For further information please call 020 7458 7900 or email [email protected]

 

American Bar Association (ABA) Section of International Law

7 February 2013 at Southern Methodist University (SMU), Dallas, Texas

SMU Dedman School of Law and the ABA Section of International Law are co-hosting a day-long symposium, entitled “The Arab Spring: Doing Business and the Rule of Law”. The event will include panel discussions on topics such as judicial independence and the rule of law in the Middle East and North Africa, energy matters and dispute resolution. For further information and registration, please click here.

 

Commonwealth Law Conference 2013

14 – 18 April 2012, Cape Town, South Africa

Registration for the 18th Commonwealth Law Conference to be held in Cape Town is now open. For further information regarding the event and registration, please click here.

The Bar Council will have a presence at this event and it would be helpful for us to known if you are attending; please email Chika Muorah at [email protected]

 

ABA Section of International Law Spring Meeting

23 – 27 April 2013, Hyatt Regency, Washington DC

The next International’s Spring Meeting is an excellent opportunity for barristers to meet international practitioners from other jurisdictions. There will be a keynote address by US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. The Bar Council is a non-financial sponsor and our members will benefit from the ABA members’ rate. For further information, please click here.

 

Other business development news and opportunities:

The Bar Council’s international professional and legal development grant programme

The Bar Council is now accepting applications from SBAs and Circuits that would like to participate in the 2013 international professional and legal development grant programme. The grant scheme is designed to encourage junior barristers to gain an international perspective on legal issues and help them thrive in an increasingly globalised legal market. The programme encourages young barristers to participate in international events which contribute to their professional and practice development by covering two thirds of the total costs associated with attendance at the chosen event.  The costs are shared equally between the applicant, his or her SBA and the Bar Council Scholarships Trust.

SBAs and Circuits that are interested in the scheme are encouraged to contact Natalie Darby, Senior International Projects Officer at [email protected] ahead of the deadline of 7 December 2012.

 

Bar Council new training scheme for Korean lawyers; opportunity for chambers to host lawyers in 2013

The International Committee is seeking chambers to host Korean lawyers from 6 May to 17 May 2013. Interested chambers must be in the commercial field (in the broader sense), have an international element to their practice, and should be able to offer one or two mentors to guide the Korean lawyer through their placement. We are particularly interested in received applications from chambers that have  strong arbitration and litigation practices. Placements are similar in substance to a mini-pupillage.

This is an excellent opportunity for the host chambers to gain a unique insight into the Korean legal market and develop useful business contacts. If interested, please email Natalie Darby at [email protected] by 17:00 on 7 January 2013.

 

UKTI online service for small business

The UKTI have launched a free online service to provide small and medium-sized enterprises with information, advice and guidance on exporting overseas. For more information, please clickhere.

 

 

 

 

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