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The evolution of litigation

08 December 2017
Issue: 7773 / Categories: Features , Technology , CPR
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If today’s litigators refuse to embrace change, they might find their own futures very uncertain, says Jonathan Lafferty

The strength of the English legal system is its adaptability to changes in society; as Lord Hope noted in Chartbrook Ltd v Persimmon Homes Ltd , ‘one of the strengths of the common law is that it can take a fresh look at itself so that it can keep pace with changing circumstances.’ But with so much unprecedented uncertainty in the justice system and broader society, how can litigation in England & Wales adapt to meet that uncertainty successfully? This article seeks to predict what factors will affect litigation in the next five years and what that will that mean for lawyers, judges and litigants themselves.

All quiet on Aldwych

An instructive start in determining how litigation will look in five years is to consider how litigation looked five years ago. Since then, the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) have gone through several dozen updates. One of the biggest changes since 2012 was the Jackson

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Hugh James—Phil Edwards

Hugh James—Phil Edwards

Serious injury teambolstered by high-profile partner hire

Freeths—Melanie Stancliffe

Freeths—Melanie Stancliffe

Firm strengthens employment team with partner hire

DAC Beachcroft—Tim Barr

DAC Beachcroft—Tim Barr

Lawyers’ liability practice strengthened with partner appointment in London

NEWS
Ceri Morgan, knowledge counsel at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP, analyses the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Johnson v FirstRand Bank Ltd, which reshapes the law of fiduciary relationships and common law bribery
The boundaries of media access in family law are scrutinised by Nicholas Dobson in NLJ this week
Reflecting on personal experience, Professor Graham Zellick KC, Senior Master of the Bench and former Reader of the Middle Temple, questions the unchecked power of parliamentary privilege
Geoff Dover, managing director at Heirloom Fair Legal, sets out a blueprint for ethical litigation funding in the wake of high-profile law firm collapses
James Grice, head of innovation and AI at Lawfront, explores how artificial intelligence is transforming the legal sector
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