Category Archives: General

Sheep from goats

As a lawyer, I am all too aware of the tendency of my profession to wrap up ideas and concepts in language which, to the average outsider, sounds like impenetrable gibberish. The ability of so-called insiders to construct a special language marks out a territory to which outsiders are not admitted or are only admitted… Read More »

Leaving it to chance

History is a wonderful thing and I am constantly amazed at how much of it appears to be a matter of chance. There are numerous examples. For instance, I have come across the attached piece published by the Education Forum. I reproduce it in full, typos and all! A significant event marking the international relations… Read More »

Plan for peace, prepare for war

What have the following in common? Britain’s forthcoming defence review. Jackie Fisher, First Sea Lord at the end of the 19th Century. John Terry, Chelsea and England footballer. Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus. The Royal Navy. Answers on a postcard please!  

UK firms falling short on EDI discovery readiness

The 3rd Annual Electronically Stored Information (ESI) Trends Report by Kroll Ontrack reveals that there is a significant gap between the existence of corporate document retention policies and ESI discovery readiness strategies. According to the Kroll Ontrack news release, ESI management is top of mind for corporations but effective implementation is falling. This year’s survey also… Read More »

Scottish Civil Courts Review

I missed the publication of the Report of the Scottish Civil Courts Review when it was launched on 30th September 2009 by the Lord Justice Clerk, the Rt Hon Lord Gill. The report is in two volumes and contains 15 chapters and a synopsis. The terms of reference are: To review the provision of civil… Read More »

Ministry of Truth

When I used to travel on business particularly in the countries of Latin America I used to enjoy the very real differences in the way lawyers worked and the institutions in which they operated. There are, of course, obvious differences between the way of life I was used to in the UK and in Continental… Read More »

Scary!

Over the weekend I heard part of a programme on the radio in which two employees of Microsoft Research in California were discussing what they described as “digitising your life”. Apparently, this involves wearing some form of camera round your neck on a permanent basis which takes a photograph every 20 seconds and builds into… Read More »

Too early to say

Asked in the 1970s what he thought about the effects of the French Revolution, Chinese Premier at the time Zhou Enlai  famously replied, “It is too early to say”.  Currently there are a large number of reports from a variety of sources that the end of the recession is here and that the good times… Read More »