Law Actually

Family of brain-dead teen seeks permission for euthanasia

Published on 2012-02-08 16:09:00

From the Onion: The parents of 13-year old Caitlin Teagart have decided to end her life, saying she can now do nothing but lay on the couch and whine about things being "gay." The tragedy is we were all like that once. (Some more than others perhaps). Still, one painless injection and that’s it. Preferable to puberty any day, I guess. Brain-Dead Teen, Only Capable Of Rolling Eyes And Texting, To Be Euthanized

Siri and Scottish accents

Published on 2012-02-05 15:50:00

I was on a train on Saturday when I overheard someone asking their iPhone all kinds of weather updates – with varying degrees of success. Yep, it was snowflake panic central throughout the whole carriage. In the circumstances, it would have been a lot more efficient to have used the touchscreen instead of speech recognition to find out that the 5 snowflakes that had settled were enough to bring the country to its knees. I’m not an Apple user myself, and despite the good things I’ve heard

Should they claim

Published on 2012-02-02 15:44:00

Recognising that large swathes of the public wouldn’t trust a personal injury solicitor further than they could throw him, one firm has decided to take on the challenge of restoring faith in this branch of the profession and in the worthiness of the claims they bring. I know what you’re thinking: pity the poor PI solicitor, eh? It comes to something when they need to drum-up business and bolster their credibility using an online game. But let’s not be cynical – give it chance. So, t

Good for a giggle: Solicitors don’t solicit. Well, not in that way...

Published on 2012-02-01 17:37:00

I still find it staggering just how bad some university websites are at marketing their courses, given their budgets and specialist marketing departments. What with the hikes in tuition fees, increasing doubt over the value of degrees and the fact that traditional law school prospectuses are going the same way as the Yellow Pages, the effectiveness of their websites has never been more crucial. I should probably explain: I’ve visited loads of law school websites over the years. I’m sure I

Asbestos dust and the corporate veil… revisited

Published on 2012-01-29 17:00:00

From the Metro 17/01/12: When Korah Leah came home from his job clearing asbestos his children would fling their arms around him the minute he arrived. As a worker in the 1930s he had no idea he was putting their lives at risk when he hugged the youngsters in his dust-caked overalls. But now, long after his death from cancer in 1968, two of his children have died from asbestos-related illnesses and a further six have irreversible lung damage. ‘It’s a terrible thing to happen

BT pay the price for dodgy roadworks

Published on 2012-01-26 17:16:00

From ISPreview.co.uk 26/01/12: Transport for London (TfL), a UK public authority with responsibility for most aspects of London city's transport system (e.g. roads, railways etc.), have successfully prosecuted both BT and Cable & Wireless (C&W) over a string of "badly managed roadworks". The Westminster Magistrate's Court handed down several thousand pounds worth of fines to both firms for a raft of failings that included working without a permit, breach of perm

That’s why punctuation exists

Published on 2012-01-25 16:55:00

Regular readers know that email is a constant (and painful) battle for me.  If you’ve forgotten, you might want to have a butchers at this and this.  I know everyone has gripes, but email gets on my proverbials in ways I can’t even describe. My latest peeve relates to the following ‘punctuation-less’ email which I received recently.  “Hi Mike* please see the attached would you leave them named as they are no need to put countersigned  thanks.” * OMG – of

Text-o-rama – Personal Injury Spam

Published on 2012-01-22 17:43:00

I was clearing out my text messages earlier today and came across this brarmer I received a while back. “Our records indicate that you still haven’t claimed the £3750 compensation for the accident you had. To claim for free reply ‘YES’ to this message.” Interestingly, I didn’t delete it immediately; perhaps I left it in anticipation of an accident? I’m a glass-half-empty kind of chap, after all. While keeping it in my inbox might have brought me some comfort, it didn’t stop

Geeks and sexual harassment

Published on 2012-01-19 16:43:00

Oh I can’t believe that a chap with a bowtie would have wandering hands when the ladies are around! I thought the IT department would be free from sexual harassment claims at least. Clearly I was wrong. But I think if I were the woman, I’d be more concerned about bringing an medical negligence claim against the surgeon who performed my botched tummy-tuck. Or maybe the cartoonist’s hand slipped. Found here.

Shamed Solicitor faces the SRA

Published on 2012-01-16 17:06:00

From ISP Review 16/01/12: The notorious boss of failed solicitors firm ACS:Law UK and winner of the 2011ISPA Internet Villain award, Andrew Crossley (Solicitor ID 150435), will at 10:00am this morning face a substantive hearing in front of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT). The Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) has tabled seven charges against Crossley, not least for "[attempting] to take unfair advantage of other persons" (broadband ISP customers) and that of prov