ARCHIVE
PREVIOUS BOOK OF THE DAY
MAPS OF WORLD FINANCIAL LAW
6th edition
The Law and Practice of International Finance Series
By Philip Wood
ISBN: 978-1-847-03342-0
THOMSON SWEET & MAXWELL
(www.thomsonreuters.com)
Price: £75
GETTING THE FINANCIAL GLOBAL PICTURE:
Professor Wood’s great maps on international finance law.
Philip Wood has the special ability to make the most difficult sound easy and he does this brilliantly with his global law maps for the world’s financial law. This heavy and very glossy book is part of his magnificent law and practice of international finance series of books which explores the mysteries of how finance operates in the world’s different jurisdictions. The maps make a great companion to the university edition of the law and practice of international finance for anyone studying this area of law and economic policy.
CLARIFYING KEY CONCEPTS
What is particularly attractive about the maps (apart from full colour!) is the structure, detail and scholarship. It has three purposes: to help those who are concerned with comparative financial law on a global scale as an aid to economists with limited availability to accurate legal data; to set out a new set of criteria for a classification (taxonomy) of legal systems in world financial law; and to rate or grade legal systems on particular legal issue. Throughout Professor Wood introduces as much objectivity as the subject allows, and the gradings given are as good as you will get.
Allen & Overy have provided valuable research and resource facilities to enable Wood to complete his endeavours with the use of an immense team of dedicated researchers tasked with finding the information and putting it in one place. He rightly says that “it needs a team to do for law what the genome project did for genes”!
At the launch of new editions of his works last January, he told me to read the preface. Having done so, a picture emerged of how Wood can educate with such ease as he does here with his team. This is the sixth edition with 25 chapters with summaries at the beginning of each chapter, and an excellent detailed bibliography at the back- but the maps should be used with care.
It is difficult enough to know about our own jurisdiction, and even more difficult to know about others. Wood tells us that one map effectively took ten years to construct and yet ‘it still does not cover all 320 jurisdictions’. He hopes that future editions will build up a more comprehensive set of maps to portray what is actually happening today in our world as financial flows are much bigger than trade flows so the amounts involved in international finance are truly enormous.
As I would expect, this book of maps is the visual representation of the knowledge and works of Professor Philip Wood built up over the years here and abroad, and is rightly the perfect visual tool for international finance for the student and the practitioner. It is the academic forerunner of what all students ask as their first questions when embarking on legal or economic studies: what is our jurisdiction and where do we fit in? Look no further, as this work is the only available series of maps and charts explaining the information in its simplest pictorial form from the acknowledged master of international finance law….and I wish I had it when was a student.
BULLEN & LEAKE & JACOB’S PRECEDENTS OF PLEADINGS (16th edition)
Miscellaneous reviews:
‘THE ROAD TO FREEDOM’
A History of the Ho Chi Minh Trail
By Virginia Morris
With Clive Hills
ORCHID PRESS
ISBN 974-524-076-1
Price: £20
Available via www.orchidbooks.com or www.amazon.com
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A TRAVEL BOOK WITH A DIFFERENCE
“The Road to Freedom”. A history of the Ho Chi Minh Trail
By Virginia Morris with Clive Hills.
A review
By
Phillip Taylor MBE
This is an exciting travel book for military historians and a useful addition to the history of a turbulent time during the Vietnamese War and the construction of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
Local councillor, Virginia Morris, and her husband Clive, are frequent visitors to South East Asia, having walked the Trail. They have a detailed local knowledge of what they have photographed and written about.
Actor Hugh Grant once said in the film ‘Notting Hill’, about Turkey, when he was trying to sell a travel book: ‘it helps, as the author has actually being there’! Presumably that inspired Julia Roberts to buy the book on Turkey even if it was being sold by Hugh Grant! The same sentiment applies with ‘The Road to Freedom’ which is authoritative, full of knowledge and detail, and yet sensitive to the intricate and virtually impossible sets of circumstances which have faced the people of South East Asia over the last fifty years.
The Trail
I lived through the awful times described and remember them well. My cousin was killed during that war, as a serviceman, so I have a particular interest in what Morris and Hills have to say so many years after the events occurred. I have also served with many US personnel who fought in Vietnam.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail was a decisive factor in the defeat of US forces in the Vietnam War. At its peak, over 16 years, the Trail ran through North and South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Despite massive bombing, American efforts failed to prevent essential goods reaching the North Vietnamese Army. What is so important about the book is the attention it pays to detailed research, the places photographed and visited, and the people interviewed. In its historic perspective, the book is an illuminating statement of the human cost of the war.
Morris and Hills were the first Westerners to traverse the entire length of the Trail. They have produced a balanced and fascinating account of what is a most remarkable feat of engineering and tactical warfare during the War. Morris describes the Trail “as one of North Vietnam’s greatest military achievements”. She recalls an interview with General Giap, who oversaw the construction of the Trail, by saying whilst they were “at opposite ends of the political spectrum” she looked forward to shaking hands with him because he was “the man who had the vision and intellect to see its construction through to the fall of Saigon.” Indeed, it was a tremendous human achievement which won the war.
It is always difficult to view ‘achievements’ such as the Trail without consideration of the human cost involved. 120,000 people worked on the Trail with over 20,000 dead and 30,000 seriously injured by chemical sprays and unexploded bombs. The problem for Westerners is that we really do not understand South East Asia. The Trail, like the Burma railway, was built on death and human misery but this was a logistics exercise to end all logistic exercises.
Pham Tien Duat wrote a war poem about Xieng Phan in 1963 which concludes on the immensity of the project:
“The sound of the slow drawing from water pipes,
The great sounds of trucks heading along the road,
In the battle zone,
The sound of bombing seems so small!”
A short review such as this cannot do justice to this scholarly and original work which is a worthy addition to the military historian’s library, giving a fair and balanced account of a remarkable feat of engineering and tactical warfare mixed, as it is, with all the excitement of a travel book and haunted by the ghosts of those who created Ho Chi Minh’s Trail.
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THE HARDER THEY FALL:
Reviews by Phillip Taylor, a practising common law barrister.
Index:
1. Archbold versus Blackstone
2. Flood Defence Law
3. English Law – Slapper and Kelly
4. 1215 – The year of Magna Carta
5. Bail in Criminal Proceedings
6. Civil Actions Against the Police
7. Eats, Shoots and Leaves
8. Quasi-Policing
9. Modern Equity – Hanbury
10. Modern Law of Evidence – Keane
11. Cavendish Law Cards
12. OUP – Human Rights
13. Carman
14. Extradition – Alun Jones
15. Competition Law – Whish
16. Cook on Costs
17. Corp Crim Liability/Corp Governance
18. Sentencing – Ashworth
19. Stroud
20. Charlesworth – Negligence
21. Bryson – Troublesome Words
22. Learning the Law
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Archbold versus Blackstone: The Practitioners’ Dilemma
ARCHBOLD
CRIMINAL PLEADING, EVIDENCE AND PRACTICE
ISBN: 0421692502 Sweet and Maxwell Ltd.
Price: £205 (with CD-ROM £265 +VAT)
BLACKSTONE'S
CRIMINAL PRACTICE
ISBN: 1 84174 100 0 Blackstone Press Ltd.
Price: £110 (with CD-ROM £174.63 (inc. VAT)
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‘Beware of imitations!’ thunders the promotional literature from Archbold 2000. The new Archbold is, its publishers insist, ‘the genuine article.’ And so it is. But Blackstone's Criminal Practice is no less genuine.
True -- solid, erudite Archbold, having been with us since 1822, is the Ancient of Days, compared with Blackstone’s which, since it was first published in 1991, has successfully challenged Archbold’s glad, confident supremacy.
Like Archbold, Blackstone’s has now blossomed forth in a new edition for the year 2000, having established itself in a decade as Archbold’s mature and worthy rival.
Archbold and Blackstone’s have both become indispensable for advocates at the criminal bar. Practitioners tend to be fiercely loyal, either to one of these works or the other and as it is my task to rush in where angels fear to tread and review both works at once, I shall no doubt be reminded about the odiousness of comparisons.
When I read for the Bar, the very idea that that there would ever be an alternative to Archbold would probably have been dismissed as fantasy. Definitive, authoritative, inimitable and unassailable Archbold had evolved, in the course of 66 years and 43 editions -- from a slim, one-volume work of legal reference into a weighty two volumes, reflecting and encompassing the proliferation of criminal legislation that had been passed over almost two centuries.
For anyone to attempt to compile a work which would equal Archbold was unthinkable -- unthinkable that is, until Blackstone’s 1991 debut. Even then, I could not have predicted that, in less than a decade, I would be reviewing this young upstart publication as the equal of its portly elder.
If only for sheer practical reasons, Blackstone’s relative brevity made it an instant hit. To us as barristers, it successfully fulfilled in one volume, a remit that Archbold apparently could only accomplish in two. Here at last, was a heavyweight, authoritative tome for the criminal practitioner in a lightweight format, somewhat more convenient to carry around than Archbold. If you were a barrister literally shouldering the burden of a voluminous brief, you could carry Blackstone’s to court without needing a wheelbarrow, or retinue of pupils to assist you.
Blackstone’s compactness however, also raised some suspicions. Blackstone’s was ‘only’ a one volume work, wasn’t it? Could it, or would it ever compare with the mighty Archbold? Or was it merely a downsized version?
As though anticipating such doubts, Blackstone’s editor-in-chief, Peter Murphy, sought to address them in his graceful preface to the first edition. Reading it, one is reminded that Blackstone’s Criminal Practice was ‘designed to fill in the later years of the 20th century, the need that J.F.’s Archbold’s prototype was designed to fill in the earlier years of the 19th’ for ‘a single volume of manageable size and expense’ which would offer ‘writing of uncompromising and rigorous scholarly quality’....’meticulous attention to detail’...‘emphasis on the practice of the courts’...and ‘critical scrutiny of content to promote maximum utility and minimum confusion.’
The assertion is also made that Blackstone’s is ‘simple and apt to the work of both branches of the legal profession’, dealing ‘as comprehensively and as practicable with all the law, evidence and procedure that practitioners need to know.’
Then, as now, Murphy makes no apologies for Blackstone’s compactness and happily admits to excluding the irrelevant, the quaint and the antiquated, citing as examples: 1.) keeping a puma and two male leopards on the highway and 2.) assaulting a clergyman of the established church while in the middle of divine worship!
So what ‘s the answer? Should you buy Blackstone’s or Archbold? My advice is, if you can afford it, ignore the expense and buy both. You might regret it if you don’t, if only because certain omissions in one are probably included in the other for whatever reason, especially abuse of process. Nevertheless, both offer equal comprehensiveness and erudition, with the former having the slight edge over the latter for approachability and user-friendliness.
Each work lays claim to being the ‘the most cited publication in the Crown Court.’ and whether this statement holds true in practice depends to some extent on where you are. My own experience has been confirmed by a number of my colleagues that, if you are a practitioner in the South East, you’ll see more of Archbold. On the Western Circuit, however, you are more likely to find that Blackstone’s is the most oft quoted work. But don’t quote me.
Whatever one’s personal preferences, it is safe to say that the rivalry between Blackstone’s and Archbold has benefited both of them. Spurred on by Blackstone’s nipping at its heels, Archbold has become leaner, fitter, more vigorous and relevant in the last eight years. With its original two-volume bulk pared down to one, Archbold is now published annually, instead of every three years and, like Blackstone’s, it is also available on CD ROM. Archbold does publish an updating newsletter issued 10 times a year, plus three cumulative supplements which bring main work completely up to date with new legislation and case law.
Not to be outdone, Blackstone’s has plunged into the mainstream of multimedia with a vengeance, making itself available in four formats. Besides book and CD ROM, there is a ‘Criminal Practice’ for the Psion 5 and and 7 series palmtops, which means you can carry Blackstone’s in your pocket, implement automated searches and insert your own notes. Whether you are a technophobe or not, you must admit this takes compactness and portability to impressive lengths. Or, you can subscribe annually to Crime Online which provides the full text of Blackstone's, together with daily updates of cases and legislation.
Archbold and Blackstone’s, in my view, go their separate ways to arrive at much the same destination. As Dr. Johnson didn’t say to Boswell, but might have: ‘Sir, it is difficult to settle the proportion of efficacy between them!’ Can it be said that both volumes complement rather than compete with one another? I believe it can and as practitioners, we should consider ourselves very lucky to have them.
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Contact: Phillip Taylor 020 8948 4801
BOOK REVIEWS
BY
PHILLIP TAYLOR
‘Flood Defence Law’ by William Howarth (2002)
£45 Shaw & Sons ISBN 0 7219 1610 4
‘Noise Control – The law and its enforcement’ by Christopher N Penn (3rd edition 2002)
£39.95 Shaw & Sons ISBN 0 7219 0832 2
Shaw’s Directory of Courts in the United Kingdom
£39.50 Shaw & Sons ISBN 0 7219 1409 8
WHY THE ‘GREEN’ ISSUES ARE NOW TURNING ‘BLUE’:
BLUE IS FOR FLOODINGS, AND BLUE FOR BAD LANGUAGE!
Years ago I met an elderly lady councillor who proudly informed me that she was the ‘flood control person’ for her Council. If there was anything I wanted to know about sea defences, she could tell me about it – and she did. Surprisingly, it was not the boring subject I took it to be. As a son of the soil and not of the sea, I often find it difficult to get up a head of steam on this one. Flicking through Howarth’s ‘Flood Defence Law’ prior to a detailed read, I was struck by the variety of problems directly affecting flood defences which I have hitherto ignored as a trivial ‘green’ issue without much purpose or political clout. I was wrong when I saw the most helpful points on environmental and ecological impacts, and Wendy Le Las’s planning contribution which, as usual, is always worth reading.
My attention has been heightened by the recent series of talks given by members of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds at the Political Party Conferences in the autumn of 2002. The issue is about our habitat, our environment and, of course, about money which local authorities must spend. I have come away with the view that the tag of ‘green’ issues is somewhat inaccurate – the issues are as blue as the cover of the book.
Flood defence topics cover drainage of land, defence of watercourses, preventing the sea from flooding, the provision of flood warning systems and coast protection to prevent erosion. Professor Howarth, as an acknowledged expert, has tackled a truly diverse range of functions extremely well.
The “Two Reluctances”
The surprising reluctance to impose criminal culpability or civil liability concerning flood damage is well covered here. It’s a bit like that other little ‘reluctance’ of spending money on a problem which successive governments now ignore at their peril. I was particularly impressed with chapter 4 on the Environment Agency and its operational powers – there are some very useful case law citations and discussions including the celebrated Smith and Snipes Hall Farm Ltd v River Douglas Catchment Board and East Suffolk Rivers Catchment Board v Kent.
The Government of the day continues to have these wonderful plans to give local authorities all these wonderful powers of delegated legislation: the problem is – no money with which to do it. We know there is no a criminal offence of causing flooding whilst civil remedies for the enforcement of private duties to prevent flooding are quite limited. So what Professor Howarth investigates is the extensive powers given to public bodies with responsibilities for flood defence and the few duties actually imposed on the Councils.
Flood Defence Law shows the neat balance between flooding caused by human failings, and flooding caused by the brutality of nature alone. It will be interesting to consider how much further power will be devolved to councils and agencies by future governments. Help will be at hand with this book because Howarth has drawn together considerable expertise from what he terms a ‘range of perspectives’ to embrace the practicalities of flood defence law, and the practitioner’s viewpoint.
With higher than ever rainfalls, and possibilities of climatic change imminent, this excellent exposition scrutinises legal provisions and administrative responsibilities in a clear and concise way. I did like the table on European Community Secondary Legislation which is becoming of such significance in the early years of this century as new member states join the European Union. This is a good, all-round read for laymen and professionals.
No ‘clear blue water’ with noise
A contrasting book in the Shaw & Sons series is Christopher Penn’s ‘Noise Control’ in its third edition. A timely piece as the New Labour Government unwraps its latest criminal justice bill just off the Queen’s Speech printer. To me this is a great book and compulsory reading for any would-be planning objector: how often is it that local planning committees have to defer applications because of a lack of proper evidence on noise levels from objectors? Very often unfortunately, and with the extension of licensing powers given to elected councillors the matter will incur greater interest as not just entertainment licences but our elected council tax spenders will now be considering liquor licence applications (instead of magistrates) in the near future.
‘Noise Control’ by Penn is clearly the foremost publication on the law and practice of noise on the environment and human health. As an Environmental Health Officer, he will have heard the difficult messages from the public but he does not turn a deaf ear to them, fortunately. His new chapter on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (I.P.P.C.) is particularly welcome at this time.
Whilst the confrontation on aircraft noise continues to hum away in the background like a bad vibration, chapter 8 should be required reading to MPs and members of HACAN and other pressure groups. It’s my experience that elected members, nationally and locally, often have considerably insufficient knowledge of noise issues and if Chris Penn does anything, he wakes us up from our slumbers on this most serious of residential issues. As with Professor Howarth’s book, Mr Penn gives chapter 9 over to the increasing relevance and importance of the planning process which is so often misunderstood by the protesting public. Do look at the end of the book (page 459) for the ‘Forms and Records Relating to Noise Control’ which Shaw & Sons publish – they will be of great use to those dealing with summary proceedings concerning noise.
Not just another court directory
Shaw’s definitive ‘Directory of Court’ would, you think, be a retread of the usual information contained in similar journals produced by their competitors. No, wrong again as I was! This 2002/2003 edition adapts information concerning the continuing reorganisation of the courts (as so far achieved prior to the next criminal justice bill).
Whilst this directory is marginally more expensive than some of its rivals (which I will not name as they all have their own ‘plus and minus’ factors), Shaws has the ‘one stop shop’ factor - or is that ‘one court stop’ approach - which seems to be gaining allies in government legal departments throughout the land. What we have here is a detailed volume with comprehensive statements on just about everything you could conceivably want to find out about in one place.
An additional plus factor is the Numerical Index which enables any court to be identified by its Court Code number. How different it must have all seemed in 1750 when Shaw & Sons opened its doors near to the Law Courts in Fleet Street. Once Henry Shaw arrived work, having powered his wig in the wig room, he would set about his business of constructing a printer/publisher business with that specialist remit of legal and local government works which we now come to rely on so heavily. Shaws are now based in Crayford and the wig room has long gone (and probably for use by barristers as well before long!). Shaws cover over 60 books from loose-leaf works to quick reference guides, and they also publish useful forms. With the ‘Directory of Courts’, practitioners have the useful additions of information on coroners, the CPS, prisons and Scottish and Northern Irish courts at their fingertips. I think it is very useful for the clerks because it’s too heavy to carry around in the pilot case and is ideal for the chambers bookcase.
‘Troublesome Words’ by Bill Bryson (3rd edition 2002)
£7.99 Penguin ISBN 0 141 00135 6
‘Glanville Williams: Learning the Law’ (12th edition 2002)
£9.99 Sweet & Maxwell ISBN 0 421 74420 0
WORDS ARE ALL THAT COUNT
I always remember one of the first pieces of advice I was given some years ago when I studied law at college – law is about words: you can forget the rest. It was emphasised by a senior civil servant in the LCD some years ago and may well be of primary importance today, but I am often reminded in Bill Bryson’s new, updated paperback edition of ‘Troublesome Words’ of the importance of using the correct word in the correct place. I asked Mr Bryson earlier this year if he would have ‘Troublesome Words’ re-published in paperback form with an update, and he said he hoped that would happen. I am delighted it has because I find the book great fun and highly interesting – you might like to know that he thought my comment that overseas students find this book of such help when English is a second language most flattering: indeed, I suspect he had never realised its impact on other non-English speaking continents.
How to Learn the Law
Whilst we are on reminiscences, do you remember that old chestnut, the ‘guide, philosopher and friend’ called ‘Learning the Law’. I do… and I am happy to say that the Cambridge Professor, ATH Smith, has produced the very best effort for a new edition after an absence of 20 years. It is rightly described as essential reading for all potential lawyers, whether sixth-form students or graduates contemplating the study of law, or those considering career options.
Whenever you are asked – what is the best book to start on if you want to know a bit about the English legal system? The answer is “Glanville Williams: Learning the Law”. Much of the original text survives but Professor Smith has given much needed emphasis to the new legal agenda of the early twenty-first century – gone are the old, archaic references – and in come new, thrusting European Union law provisions which will warm the heart of the most die-hard Eurosceptic. I like chapter 14 the best – it is entitled ‘General Reading’. It gives the best bibliography available for the range of works on the market for those who love the subject of law as much as some of the writers quoted clearly did. To read ‘Learning the Law’ is an unforgettable experience. Thank you, Professor Smith, for bridging the twenty-year gap.
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A BOOK REVIEW
ENGLISH LAW
BY
GARY SLAPPER AND DAVID KELLY
Published by Cavendish Publishing
ISBN 1 85941 558 X
Comment by Phillip Taylor
Published: 3rd April 2000
This exciting addition to current legal texts is now available to all new law students and readers with a general interest in modern legal issues. Slapper and Kelly are both seasoned writers who produce a subtle blend of knowledge and teaching methods in ‘English Law’. The book is clearly the successor to previous texts such as ‘Learning the Law’ by Glanville Williams, and the various ‘A’ level law and undergraduate law introductions.
I feel that these two authors have written the best introduction to the subject yet produced. It is certainly required reading for ‘A’ level and undergraduate studies because it combines a reasonable amount of detail with useful summaries at the end of each chapter.
Additionally, the book is supported by a free online subscription service which gives the reader periodic updates in all the areas covered. Such a service is a marvellous innovation using the new technology because there is so much current change within the English Legal System.
I would not just expect my students to have read this landmark in legal texts, but I would demand it as the best possible grounding any potential lawyer will obtain before he or she delves into greater detail in their chosen fields. Thank you Mr Slapper and Mr Kelly!
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‘THE BARRISTER’ - BOOK REVIEW OCTOBER 2003
1215: THE YEAR OF MAGNA CARTA
By DANNY DANZIGER and JOHN GILLINGHAM
Hodder and Stoughton ISBN 0 340 82474 3 £16.99
CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM REVISITED
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review editor
Without doubt, this is a great read for those with little knowledge of the Magna Carta and its significance to the way of life of the British Isles as it then was. However, the story is about the year 1215 itself as well, and the reader relives a fascinating date with history. You feel you are there, just as long as starvation and disease can be ignored, that is!
Danziger and Gillingham have covered all the historic points in their rather journalistic approach to King John and why we ended up with Magna Carta in the first place. I liked the text of Magna Carta on page 285 and it reminded me why I liked the book itself: it was Mr Blair’s constitutional reforms which triggered the interest, Barons versus the King in 1215, Press Barons versus the Blair in 2003. Let us hope that by 2015, the Bar Council will be sufficiently shamed into putting up a proper memorial at Runnymede rather than leaving it to the American Bar Association, as the only organisation, to honour such an important achievement in British History.
Dealing with that Monarchical Devil King John
As a visiting lecturer covering the UK constitution for the International Center for Legal Studies, I was entranced by Blair’s total disregard for a system which we have cherished for so long with such a bungled summer 2003 reshuffle. Ok, so we have the Human Rights Act, care of Cherie, but the basics go back to the dawn of writing. It was the elite who had to step in to prevent further constitutional (ie criminal) excesses by one of the most appalling men who ever walked this earth judging by the standard even of his day: King John in 1215.
Barons created change then, and they may have to do it again with the jury system if the constitutional juggernaut of New Labour is to be slowed. Change and modernisation are needed but the price can be very high as this book shows.
The Power of the Charter
Whatever language we use, the basic rights of society, by the grace of God (the charter says) forced King John, clearly a murderous animal, to conform to some concept of humanity as it was then conceived in 1215. William the Conqueror’s Norman placements as Barons had had enough as their blood-line with the Saxons merged the nationalities by the twelfth century.
It would be surprising to have an entire book devoted just to 1215 so we have an interesting picture painted of what is erroneously called the ‘middle ages’. What are we in now then, our old age? No, we are in modernising Britain again where the ancient post of Lord Chancellor (from before the ninth century, allegedly) is being abolished. No more silly clothes, just silly ideas from the Dome upwards.
The Magna Carta and Blair’s Government
It was Magna Carta which first curtailed the power of the state in 1215. The book examines the pressure placed on King John who was forced to promise that:
“No free man shall be arrested or imprisoned or disseised (dispossessed) or outlawed or exiled or in any way victimised, neither will we attach him or send anyone to attack him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.”
‘The Economist’ described that statement recently as ‘good stuff’ and ‘a long way from the authoritarian tone of the Home Office and David Blunkett’.
What an interesting comparison the worlds of 1215 and 2003 present - some clear insights of both times in history and how repetitive we seem to have become. It has been agreed that juries could work better by encouraging less evasion from jury service. Of course, better security would help to prevent nobbling by criminals, and tougher penalties would deter it. It’s interesting to see that to tamper with the fundamental principle, as Labour has found, runs the risk of being ‘nobbled by the peers’ who defeated the new Criminal Justice Bill provision to drop juries in nobbling and complicated fraud cases. What a comparison with the Barons at Runnymede in 1215 and the Life Peers at Westminster in 2003.
Reforming the Constitution in the Social Context
The book remains a social treasure house which, when opened up, gives us glimpses of past decisions which we must continue to hold dear. The insights of that past are with us now and I can see a Blair epitaph hovering by for the day he retires: a written constitution. The question is will it be 2015, and a European Written Constitution 800 years after Magna Carta destroyed Norman excesses. Or do we just settle for our rights being properly codified, as they had been in 1215, with a more convenient and comfortable twenty-first century model. The jury is out, and I wonder whether the peers will have their way again. Simon Jenkins is right – this has been the best read of the hot summer.
(words 862)
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BOOK REVIEW
BAIL IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS
BY
NEIL CORRE AND DAVID WOLCHOVER
Blackstone Press
Price: £29.95
ISBN: 1-85432-921-3
Comments by Phillip Taylor
This second edition now published by Blackstone has undergone a complete revision to take account of the substantial changes in bail proceedings in the 1990s. It is a very welcome addition to the law library of either solicitors or barristers in a decade that has seen a much more robust approach to the concept of bail.
The main contents cover all the practical aspects of bail proceedings which practitioners will face in court. I consider the guidance on professional ethics to be a great influence on the proper methods to be employed when advancing any application. In addition, there are a number of useful new cases detailing prosecution appeals against bail and custody time limits – both areas where the judiciary often require assistance.
When the original edition was published ‘Justice of the Peace’ magazine described it as ‘afresh approach to the question of bail’ which was ‘well written and easy to read’. To many newly qualified advocates, their first real experience within the criminal justice system will be advancing a case for bail against the (often) overwhelming case supporting custody. This book is a little goldmine of useful tips and information which provides a comprehensive account of the law, practice and procedure at every stage within the process from the police station to the House of Lords. It is a ‘must’ for those just concluding pupillage or newly admitted solicitors.
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BOOK REVIEW
CIVIL ACTIONS AGAINST THE POLICE
Third Edition
Richard Clayton QC and Hugh Tomlinson QC
With Edwin Buckett and Andrew Davies
Thomson Sweet & Maxwell
ISBN 0-421-63090-6
£139
By Phillip Taylor, Book Review Editor, ‘The Barrister’
Paying the Bill
A nasty attitude has been spreading amongst a certain types of litigant in recent years. It can be summed up in one word: greed. It is very sad to have to welcome a new, third, edition of a book of this sort but it is inevitable, given the rise in the number of civil actions taken against police officers. Many actions are perceived, in the view of some litigants, as a form of ‘cash cow’ where the local authority picks up the bill for costs. Similar problems have occurred elsewhere in tort such as personal injury actions against the NHS. Of course, it is the public who actually pick up the bill for any successful action against the police, so I am particularly pleased at the way in which Clayton and Tomlinson have tackled their mission with a well-organised balance between the rights of the parties.
The foreword by Lord Justice Simon Brown sums up the situation very well when he describes the position of the police under civil law ‘as critical today as it ever was.’ He continues by saying that ‘it is right that citizens should have a legal remedy in the event of police misconduct’, such as the alleged beating of suspects which may be caught on CCTV. To balance that, Lord Justice Simon Brown writes that ‘it is right too that the police’s extensive powers should be clearly known so that claims are not too readily brought against them.’ This is where I depart from his Lordship when I say that too many frivolous cases are being brought which undermine community respect which the police force needs to foster and maintain in any society.
Definitive coverage
The best point about this book is that all civil actions are discussed under one cover. It guides the practitioner through all the established torts such as assault and battery, false imprisonment, wrongful interference with goods and malicious prosecution. Then it looks at the emerging actions which play such an important part in today’s society. Areas covered include the tort of misfeasance in public office, and the worrying area of claims in breach of confidence and data protection. Two areas which mark this publication as unique include a new chapter on negligence, and the range of remedies which are available to litigants: both specific to actions against police officers.
Procedure comes in for special treatment. Public interest immunity, disclosure of documents and the conduct of civil jury trials are dealt with in useful detail. The work is a definitive source of reference and it explains what avenues are open to practitioners when their clients’ civil liberties are impinged upon as well as examining what the police can do when people take action against them. I believe the third edition has built upon the respected reputation of its predecessors and is fully up-to-date with the latest Acts of Parliament and leading authorities.
Latest Acts of Parliament
It is eleven years since the second edition of this work was published in 1992. Much has happened in the intervening years involving the clash of State with citizens, so Clayton and Tomlinson have fully updated the text with all the latest statute law including:
• The Police Reform ACT 2002, which introduced changes to the complaints system and created a wide range of powers for civilians, such as arrest and detention (quasi police powers)
• The Human Rights Act 1998
• The Data Protection Act 1998
• The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000
• The Police Act 1996
• The Terrorism Act 2000
Key case law
A comprehensive coverage of case law including reported decision from the Commonwealth are included and special reference can be made of leading decisions in the House of Lords and Court of Appeal such as Three Rivers v Bank of England No 3 [2003} concerning misfeasance in a public office, and R (Green) v Police Complaints Authority [2002] involving police complaints and Article 2. It should be remembered that both Richard Clayton and Hugh Tomlinson have collaborated on a leading publication ‘The Law of Human Rights’. Their expertise is on general display here when they maintain a consistently high standard of legal analysis throughout the new edition.
The publication is split into sixteen chapters, comprising three main areas:
• The Legal Status and Organisation of the Police
• Traditional Tort Actions
• Other Actions and Remedies
The book begins with a splendid and lucid introduction to policing and the citizen. It outlines the purpose of the book at the beginning with a short statement on ‘the crime wave’, some serious statistics, and a nice compliment to the Oxford Handbook of Criminology. The subject area is rightly described as ‘immense’, so Clayton and Tomlinson give the ‘political bit’ short shrift and get down to the detail. I was glad to have the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 as an appendix – this gives the work a one-stop shop appeal and the footnotes are not overdone.
The Future
The book sets out to provide a comprehensive treatment of the law and practice relating to civil actions against the police. I started on a sad note with my comments on some types of litigant. It is a fact of life that this book will go into another edition as the war on terror continues. It is also an exciting time for those of us who believe in a law of tortious liability, rather than specific torts, because, undoubtedly, this area is ripe for growth.
Also, I found much in this book which would be of great benefit to criminologists when their theories are being applied in practice. Clearly Clayton and Tomlinson have achieved their goal in the premier league of this developing area of law – it is a great addition to a chambers’ library because the issues affect both juniors and seasoned advocates, … and on an escalating scale.
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(word count 1,022)
BOOK REVIEW
EATS SHOOTS AND LEAVES
The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation
By LYNNE TRUSS
Profile Books
ISBN 1-86197-612-7 Price: £9.99
PUNCTUATION: THE ENDANGERED SYSTEM
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review Editor, ‘The Barrister’
A great piece of humour and yet with a serious aim, this little book has become a runaway bestseller overnight. As Lynne Truss has explained, there are many people who have little idea of the basics of punctuation. This does not surprise me in the slightest. As an examiner, I have found scant regard paid to full stops, commas and question marks. However, by far the number one serial offender is the missing apostrophe. The story of the Panda who eats in a restaurant, then shoots the restaurant up and departs is an amusing story with an important message. The placing of punctuation in the wrong place can completely alter the message being conveyed…at some cost.
REVOLUTION IN PUNCTUATION
The book is dedicated to the memory of the striking Bolshevik printers in St Petersburg who, in 1905, demanded to be paid the same rate for punctuation marks as for letters, and thereby directly precipitated the first Russian Revolution. We have come a long way in nearly 100 years and the main casualty has been the written word. The ‘shorthand’ I have encountered in the last six years using the Internet is enough to convince me that this book should be compulsory reading in schools. Besides, it is a good read and very funny in places. To sell 50,000 copies in just over a week on release is a great achievement.
LEARNED OPINIONS
It is true to say that the book makes a powerful case for the preservation of the system of what is interestingly described as ‘printing conventions’. However, this is not a book for pedants but for everyone, including members of the Bar who write lengthy Opinions. It has never surprised me how cross the Judiciary become when they see sloppy legal paperwork. I expect it from solicitors but we must maintain a very high standard at the Bar, even with the infernal Internet and toxic text messages. Well done, Ms Truss for reminding us of our legal roots… ‘sticklers unite’ she says, ‘you have nothing to lose but your sense of proportion – and arguably you didn’t have much of that to begin with’. Do look at the end of the book for a fine bibliography – all the usual suspects are there including one B Bryson and ‘Troublesome Words’, and the excellent Philip Howard’s ‘The State of the Language: English observed.’
(Words 399)
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BOOK REVIEW FOR ‘THE BARRISTER’
“QUASI-POLICING” by LEONARD JASON-LLOYD
ISBN: 1-85941-836-8
Price £25.00 Cavendish Publishing Limited
POLICING ON THE CHEAP
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review editor, ‘The Barrister’
Whenever one tries to think of new titles for a legal publication along comes just the right book and ‘Quasi-policing’ fits the bill nicely if you will excuse the pun. Cavendish Publishing has been looking for new titles for their catalogue for a while now, so ‘Quasi-Policing’ is an excellent addition to their lists. It is the first book in this area of law and is clearly of great value to the Police, the Prison Service, criminal lawyers, local authorities and students.
The subject covers legal issues arising from the use of civilians performing police and other public protection duties. A few years ago, this subject would have raised many eyebrows, but in today’s increasingly lawless society, I doubt whether the civil liberties lobby will get much of a look-in here if any complaints are to be made. The Government are determined to expand this element of private industry into the public sector with all the problems such a change creates.
Recent press comments inform us of Government plans to increase and expand the use of staff in a quasi-policing role on the railways. So we now know the position: as the staff can’t even run the railways in the first place properly, they are now to be given statutory rights to issue fixed penalty notices and, ominously, ‘other powers’. Mr Jason-Lloyd may need to produce an annual edition if this trendy new power initiative by New Labour is to expand further. I hope it is not to be seen as policing on the cheap in the longer term. The book itself is quite expensive for what it contains, but it could well develop into a loose-leaf work as the Government downloads more public sector responsibility onto the private sector.
The new civil militia
What we now have with quasi-policing, in its crudest terms, is the beginning of a revived civil militia given a statutory footing. Jason-Lloyd’s book is split into 3 parts:
• devolution of public protection duties to the private security industry
• designated and accredited civilians under the Police Reform Act 2002
• regulation of the private security industry – The Private Security Industry Act 2001
There are seven useful appendices which identify powers of arrest under PACE, examples of ‘any person’ arrest powers, plus text and comments on the Police Reform Act 2002 and the Private Security Industry Act 2001. The two pieces of legislation are well-worth reading in detail because of their obvious importance when either civil or criminal disputes arise. I consider that this book will expand rapidly as we begin to see reported cases appear in the next few years.
Jason-Lloyd introduces this material by saying that his work is ‘intended to enhance awareness of a rising trend that constitutes an important issues in modern times’. Yes … good …, if I understand what that actually means – or is it policing on the cheap?
He continues by outlining the term ‘quasi-policing’ with a useful definition of its meaning as being used ‘to convey the fact that many hereto police and prison service functions are being devolved from those State bodies to specially empowered civilians’. He distinguishes such people from the ‘uniformed operatives engaged in general security duties’. So we have the nucleus of a new, emerging civil militia because the police cannot cope. The powers granted by Parliament are detailed in the book and provide a useful focal point for this newly emerging form of tortuous liability, or even criminal liability itself.
Designated civilians
I found the most important, and possibly worrying, area of the book in Chapter 8 where the various classes of “designated civilians” are identified under the 2002 Act. One area of outstanding natural interest to barristers and advocates will be ‘complaints against civilian officers’. Where would we all be without the proper complaints procedure! So we have the Independent Police Complaints Commission investigating directly employed civilian officers. The concern must be how far some of these designated civilians can go with their activities bearing in mind some of the CCTV footage seen in recent times involving police officers and members of the public in arguments late at night.
International Terrorism
The one big area which gives a tremendous ‘plus’ factor to this book is the relatively small number of constructive observations (so far) taken up with issues concerning airports, and airport security generally. Civilians have now been given involvement for the escorting of prisoners, court security, the management and security of custodial institutions, the execution of certain arrest warrants, and the security of the Channel Tunnel and airports. It is big business and, most unfortunately, a growth industry for the early twenty-first century. These people have a special category of powers given by Parliament to search people, to enter premises, to search property and to temporarily retain certain articles. Many commentators have grave concerns about how far we can go, but one thing is clear, “Jason-Lloyd on Quasi-Policing” is here to stay and it is a great addition to your chambers library whatever area you practice in.
(words 868)
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BOOK REVIEW
HANBURY AND MARTIN
MODERN EQUITY
16th edition by Jill E Martin
2001 £30 Sweet & Maxwell
ISBN 0 421 71680 0
A BOOK YOU CAN CONTINUE TO TRUST IN
At last the new edition is with us and continues to maintain an extremely high standard! Whilst it remains authoritative and comprehensive, I have always believed it is simply a good read and easy to follow. It’s a textbook which is not boring and dull because it has a clear writing style and is the best book to cover Equity at undergraduate level in my experience.
Again, I am particularly pleased with the quality of the footnotes. Professor Martin acknowledges that the last four years have been eventful with the appearance of, notably, the Trustee Act 2000, other legislative measures, and the numerous reported cases. Also, comment on the Law Commission Paper No. 154 on ‘Illegal Transactions: The Effect of Illegality on Contracts and Trusts’ is especially helpful as are all the detailed reference points contained in the footnotes. The footnotes, themselves, always tend to clarify some of the more difficult aspects of trust relationships which students have difficulty with.
I continue to recommend this as the best book for my own distance learning students, and I have no hesitation in repeating that claim for the sixteenth edition. Well done Professor Martin and thanks again for excellent scholarship.
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BOOK REVIEW
THE MODERN LAW OF EVIDENCE
By
ADRIAN KEANE
(Fifth Edition) 2000 Butterworths
ISBN 0 406 92182 2
Price £21.95
A commentary by Phillip Taylor
Another edition of this excellent book is with us again. What a surprise after all the recent annual criminal justice bills presented to Parliament! This new edition, written in the way that only Adrian Keane can write such texts, is always pleasant reading after the difficult years fathoming Cross on Evidence and other heavyweight works which I would definitely exclude rather than include in my pilot case.
Our new Dean of the Inns of Court School of Law has triumphed with a most useful selection of evidential reforms created by the Civil Procedure Rules. Keane rightly acknowledges that the CPRs ‘constitute the most radical reform of the ethos of civil litigation since the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1875’. He illustrates how the necessary reforms have simplified some very difficult, out-dated concepts for the way in which ‘justice’ must operate in this new, 21st century. The important statutory and European developments are well covered for the trainee practitioner although I imagine this area will expand further in the coming years. We may even have a section on ‘Internet Law and the Criminal’ as well.
The moaning over ‘disgusting evidence’ (especially similar fact cases) which used to go on at Bar School seems to have diminished with this new edition. When I attended Keane’s lectures years ago, the only way to penetrate what was a somewhat confusing and complex subject was this book (as a first edition). Like many other students, reference to his Bar Manual (which was really only a series of bullet point notes when they first appeared in the late 1980s) needed something else after a hard day’s graft on the BVC. So, with ‘The Modern Law of Evidence’ we had the rules of evidence explained more simply than with any other publication.
It is pleasing to say that edition number 5 is even better than its predecessors, although I hope Keane is not going to have to produce this annually after the General Election…whoever wins that Westminster prize! So please take note Jack Straw, and Ann Widdecombe, if either of you are going to amend PACE do it properly and dispense with the statutory tinkering every few months.
All too often, students make the mistake of being sloppy with evidential issues- it’s a bit like the police, really, when it comes to ‘verballing’ alleged criminals - they don’t pay attention to detail and always ‘over-egg’ the pudding. This is the key to Adrian’s success with this subject. His structure of the way in which a statute is expressed, laid out logically, section and section, makes it at least understandable to over-stretched students without over-doing it all.
It has quite often amazed me how MPs have the cheek to pass some Acts of Parliament involving criminal justice when the statutory phrases used in the final legislation is as ‘empty’ of content as those horses mentioned by a film mogul and used so effectively as David Niven’s biographical title ‘Bring on the Empty Horses’. There is nothing empty about Keane’s book because it is a substantive work.
And, I would add, it is no wonder that Bar students have trouble with these rather silly ‘multiple choice tests’ they sit when the real fun with evidence is arguing the toss with the judge over admissability…and the ‘disgusting evidence’ cases which are brown paper bag reading material to many. That is where the substantive issues are.
So, thank you, Dean Keane! Views from the current crop of Bar students indicate that this important new edition will be a great help to them as they sweat it out with the MCTs. And, I have a further and well-founded suspicion, that this book will be used again later when, as bewigged counsel, ex-pupils have had enough of some of the rather deep and difficult terms found in the main practitioners books - I will, of course, refrain from mentioning who publishes these heavy works. So include it, don’t exclude it (you know it makes sense)- to be precise ‘it’ is the relevant and highly informative ‘The Modern Law of Evidence’ for the year 2000.
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BOOK REVIEWS
CAVENDISH PUBLISHING LTD:
LAWCARDS (£5.50 each)
and
‘THE QUESTION AND ANSWER SERIES’ (£9.95 each)
web: www.cavendishpublishing.com
Reviewed by Phillip Taylor
I am often asked which materials I would recommend for revision purposes for my law students when they become increasingly aware of the approaching ‘E’ day - such advice is normally sought around February time when the weather is grim and the prospects seem even grimer as the exam entry forms are completed.
Well for them it will be ‘D’ day (‘D’ being for deliverance) if they use these well-tried and well-tested publications from Cavendish Publishing Ltd. But, make sure you get the most recent edition each time for the new legal developments which have taken place, either by statute or in case-law, in the intervening years between editions.
I do not made these statements lightly because both sets of works are of a high standard which the undergraduate will definitely require to compliment the working textbook and casebook used throughout the year. LawCards give a form of revision notes which it would be hard to match with such notes as are taken by internal students during actual lectures. And, of course, they do provide the instant memory test which is needed to trigger the brain into action as it competes with nerves on exam day. They are not a crutch but merely an aide memoire which starts the memory process off. I like, in particular, the recent case-law references and the comments made about Law Commission recommendations which give the publications extra ‘clout’.
With any ‘Question and Answer’ series of books a more in-depth perspective on how an essay or problem question can be answered is needed, especially with academic references. Cavendish are up to this task and clearly set out the points the examiner wants discussed and they do it in an easily-accessible way. Forget the idea that trick questions are set for there are none - badly drafted questions, however, yes! But not with this professional series of ‘Q & A’s which are of a very high standard throughout.
Again, I’m not suggesting that the student will only use a ‘Q & A’ book and ignore the textbook or casebook because to do this would be a sheer folly and easy to detect once the script is read over. What this series does is to act as a template for an individual head of substantive law (or the ‘A’ level law course) which is being undertaken. The answers given should be treated with respect and for what they are: the wise opinion of one man or woman in his or her expert field. You, however, are the person who is sitting the exam, so it is your work which is on trial.
With both series of books, the structure is the key and you will find it opens the door to a world which is yours to write about. It is your script and your future. However, it is not a copied key that opens the door. It must be the original if you want to obtain a good classification. If you have ever had an additional door key cut, you will always know that it is a copy because the original just has ‘something’ about it. That ‘something’ is normally ‘wear and tear’ as the shiny newness has gone but the dependability is there (we hope). Well, the ‘Q & A’ and LawCards series of notes comprise that ‘dependability’ we hope for. They are the means by which you can create an original with all the attributes that have gone before. Your answers in the exams will focus your mind and that imposter, the irrelevance, will be excluded as they are in these publications.
Also, what I find particularly attractive about the LawCards series is that they do not encourage ‘parroting’ which is the bane of the examiner’s existence. I can say from experience that it is always refreshing to find a script which has some originality about it, mixed with a good understanding of legal principles and case-law. What examiners do not like is the lazy student who has clearly not thought about the subject. Well, with these two sets to act as guides you have the tools and there is no reason why you can’t complete the job…a job very well done indeed if you use these materials.
The subject areas covered include all the substantive law areas in main law degree courses. LawCards are normally around £5.50 each, and the ‘Q & A series’ about £9.95 per subject - investments which are well-worth making. Get them now for your subjects before the revision stage gets to you.
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BOOK REVIEW
for ‘The Barrister’
nigelsimmonds@yahoo.co.uk
THE LAW OF HUMAN RIGHTS
BY
RICHARD CLAYTON
HUGH TOMLINSON
With Carol George and the assistance of Vina Shukla
Main work and supplement £180
ISBN 0-19-924581-9
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
An Appreciation by Phillip Taylor
CRACKS IN THE CURATE’S EGG
Now is the time for a reasonable review of the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 - this publication, with its recent supplement, does just that. The main work was published just before the Act came into full force so the supplement provides the meat on the constitutional bones of the legislation as set out in the main work. The Act appeared to come in like a lion and I just wonder whether it will go out like a lamb because the constitutional revolution predicted by its exponents has failed to materialise in any dramatic form so far.
This work charts the Act’s rolling success as the issues unfold. What has surprised me are the areas where importance has been attached to the specific Articles of the Convention which I would not necessarily have thought of particular significance. I found the October 2001 Addendum in the supplement of great assistance because we are now seeing the teeth of the Act in action: see for instance the Shayler and Farrakhan decisions.
The Doctrine of Proportionality
One of the most important areas in volume one cover the doctrine of proportionality under the Convention. This is to be found in chapter 6 covering general principles. It examines proportionality in great and highly useful detail. It also looks at the effect on English administrative law, EU law and the law in other jurisdictions. It led me to consider once again the concept of a global legal system for certain substantive law issues and the possible conclusion that human rights will become such a fore-runner in the later part of this century. Therefore, the significance of proportionality will grow as human rights themselves become more uniformly recognised - even possibly in the United States of America if they finally end capital punishment which can be seen as an affront to the protection of any person’s human rights.
The Human Rights Act exaggerated?
Whilst a detailed understanding of the Act has effectively been made compulsory for those who prosecute (and the Bar Council courses have been excellent), there is a feeling around some robing rooms that the whole issue of human rights continues to be over-blown. Notwithstanding the political dimension (such as previous Tory opposition to implementation) and New Labour’s love-affair with the Act, it is clearly a needed piece of legislation - this book establishes the extent of its importance. It has been a pity that some commentators and opinion formers have misguidedly seen the Act as a ‘cash cow’ for certain solicitors and specific sets of chambers.
How the work is structured
The work itself is in two volumes. The first volume covers the background, the general principles, the convention rights, and remedies and procedures whilst the second volume contains invaluable appendices dealing with UK, UN and European materials and a useful section on domestic Bills of Rights. The select bibliography at the back of volume two is exceptionally well researched and clearly provides the substance of the issues covering every aspect of human rights as they are currently perceived. So far so good then.
Now we get on to the more difficult bit. The main work gives an integrated approach to human rights law for practitioners and legal advisers and offers a detailed analysis of the Act. The supplement goes further and advances recent main points on the constitutional protection of human rights.
However, the real aim throughout seems to involve the campaign for a Bill of Rights and a general debate on the subject. I do feel that we should learn to walk before we can run with this one. There is no general intention of criticism here, express or implied of this worthy work. It is more a criticism of the blatant political implications of what is trying to be achieved by New Labour - I am sure that many barristers and solicitors do not want to be labelled in quite such a way.
John Wadham described ‘Clayton and Tomlinson’ (as it will inevitably become named) as ‘one of the very few essential textbooks on the subject’. Of course, he is slightly wrong because there is so much on the market which is seen as ‘essential’. Oxford University Press, who acquired Blackstone Press and integrated the two businesses at the end of 2001, continue to remain a high quality, good value publisher of a wide range of human rights material which contributes to the overall debate. Clayton and Tomlinson, in my view, stands out as the definitive work at the dawn of the new human rights case law era itself at the beginning of th twenty-first century.
Fair Trial Rights
By far the most important chapter in the two volumes is Chapter 11 on ‘Fair Trial Rights’. Indeed, it was the first chapter I read in detail, probably because this area covers such a wide range of uses for defence counsel. There is a useful paragraph (11.135) on the rule against double jeopardy which I hope will be able to be re-written shortly when the current law is reformed. Also, I found the comparisons with other jurisdiction of great assistance although I realise that much of what is contained in Chapter 11 on this will not really be of great help in our own domestic trials. However, it does point the way and Chapter 11 is (deservedly) a long, highly detailed chapter which the reader should treat as a main priority when identifying which bits of this work to read first.
Remedies
No serious legal work can be assessed without an exposition of the issue of remedies available to the parties. Chapter 21 details the position on damages, judicial review proceedings, and criminal proceedings. Little is said about remedies in private law proceedings and I would expect that section to be expanded as the CPR case-law emerges in detail. The section on ‘just satisfaction’ was also rather thin and I suspect that many practitioners would like an expanded paragraph (21.39) on ‘just satisfaction in practice’ if only in order to advise clients.
The need for fuller European integration
I started this review by suggesting that the Act was like a curate’s egg only cracked. Perhaps that was harsh but a reading of any recent decisions illustrates that the first year or so of the Act’s operation has thrown up relatively few controversial decisions. The very least that can be said so far is that the UK is finally on the way towards fuller integration with Europe on main legal issues. I would expect ‘Clayton and Tomlinson’ to expand as it caters for the obvious increase in case-law reporting but I do draw the line over the issue of a Bill of Rights itself. It would appear that if we go down this particular road, yet another referendum will need to be held because the issue surely is one for the British people and not merely Parliament.
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BOOK REVIEW
NO ORDINARY MAN
A Life of George Carman
BY
DOMINIC CARMAN
ISBN 0-340-82098-5 £18.99
HODDER & STOUGHTON
An Appreciation by Phillip Taylor
THE JURY WILL REMAIN OUT
This book is an absolute necessity for those interested in the history of famous trials and equally famous advocates. So far, there have been mixed reviews with learned counsel on both sides of the argument finding fault with the priorities of the other side. I remain to be convinced that history will ever decide the true nature of George Carman as we pass down the centuries: so the jury will remain out.
Of course, there is always a danger that a time goes by history will reinvent itself. It has done so before, especially concerning private and personal matters which so often chisel the stature of a great person. Carman was no ordinary man, that much is clear. Personally, I do not care for the tittle-tattle which has the star role in so many modern biographies. I want to know of the professional successes (and failures) and how they come about in the courtroom itself. That’s why, I felt compelled to re-read the biographies of such diverse characters as Norman Birkett and Edward Marshall Hall to see how George Carman rates. Taken from the perspective of contemporary values, I see Carman as a mixture of those two and of Patrick Hastings although comparisons are rather a crude reflection here on the individual greatness of each person’s forensic skills.
There is no doubt that George will retain his very high ranking as one of the leading advocates of the twentieth century. And rightly too. George considered his most notable success to be that of Dr Leonard Arthur, the paediatrician acquitted of murdering a baby - this is according to son, Dominic, who wrote this biography. That, in itself, tells the reader much when the list of high-profile cases is examined in detail. You can pick your own favourite, but remember what George’s favourite was and its facts involving the baby… and the possible sentencing outcome.
‘KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT’
When he was a Recorder, George had the notice ‘keep your mouth shut’ clearly visible at all times. How I wish that could be compulsory! Possibly it became so in other contexts as he emerged as the ‘King of Libel’ where protagonists should have heeded his words. When the reader of the book considers newspaper reports of the trials for defamation, just weight up whether any of the victims can have any sympathy: I have sympathy for some but not others and, as they are still alive, so the names must remain silent.
And so, the jury, having deliberated on the merits of this book, will decide its fate for posterity. I suggest that it is an easy read about issues we are all familiar with. And issues which we all have our own views on concerning the individual outcomes. On thing is for sure, the courtroom has lost a truly great performer, but we all have his professional work to remember and that is just what we should remember as memories of the twentieth century fade. Thanks, Dominic, for what you have achieved - I shall mentally edit out the bits I’m not interested in, just as tabloids and soap stars will. After all, that is what we all do when we buy a book - we keep our own favourite parts and forget the rest.
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BOOK REVIEW
JONES ON EXTRADITION AND MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
ALUN JONES QC
Second Edition (2001) Sweet and Maxwell £120
ISBN 0 421 69060 7
Comment by Phillip Taylor
A TIMELY REMINDER ON EXTRADITION
“To extradite or not to extradite, that is the question!” This new edition states the law as at 1st June 2001. Barely three months later, in New York, the world was reminded why we need to have much greater mutual assistance across the planet.
Alun Jones is the master of the intricies of extradition eccentricity. Throughout, he retains a blantant fairness which surrounds the emotive procedures often adopted. As he points out, over half of the copies of the book will be purchased by overseas customers. The ten page introduction gives a flavour of current concerns as we have only had minor statutory changes in the last six years. The nineteen chapters cover much useful ground and Jones gives well-deserved credit to those who contributed indirectly to the contents.
The book has three parts covering the historical and international context,extradition to and from the United Kingdom, and mutual legal assistance. There are also substantial appendices to cover statutes, statutory instruments and other relevant instruments. In part three Jones has an extremely able co-author in Laura Davidson and, together, they have produced two excellent chapters to cover the more difficult issues of what is termed ‘mutual assistance’.
Unreported cases and Clear Procedures
As is so often the position now, the role of unreported cases receives special treatment. There are a large number in the book together with high profile cases such as the Pinochet case where Alun Jones was leading counsel. I was particularly taken with the coverage of procedural issues - the bane of existence for many lawyers! However, Jones explaines the process with immense clarity and sets out the remedies which can be sought. I have often been asked why ‘so-and-so’ has not been brought to justice to be followed by a lengthy dissertation on our ‘appalling’ extradition laws. I have the remedy for this social chit-chat - read Jones on Extradition. If it doesn’t shut them up it will certainly send them to sleep. Probably, this is for the best because a deft hand is needed when dealing with arrangements between ourselves and other nations. Notice that I have deliberately ignored the word ‘diplomatic’, probably because I do feel diplomacy to be an irrelevance once a cast-iron agreement between countries can be achieved. It is at this time that a well-oiled extradition mechanism can work.
Human Rights and the Avoidance of Delay
However, I cannot get away without mentioning the increasing importance of human rights issues in this area. Comment has been made of the conflict between human rights and the powers a state requires when combating terrorism. If critics of the current Afghan War attack powers taken by the Government to restrict some aspects of human rights, they might take the trouble to see how carefully our extradition procedures are moulded to preserve rights where possible. My only grave concern is the sheer amount of time it takes before justice can complete its course. I thought Jones could have been more forthright when reviewing the prposals for reform and the discretionary powers of the Home Secretary of the day. But he did highlight the Home Secretary’s difficulty when trying to resolve questions of fact such as those in Saifi.
Implications of EU membership
Any reader tempted to support UK withdrawal from the EU should read the new part C very carefully indeed. What I found of particular importance was the detail contained in the section on the National Criminal Intelligence Service (‘NCIS’). The re-organisation of the NCIS after 1 April 1998 surely sets us on the path towards a fully integrated national police force for the United Kingdom in the years to come. To test whether this will actually work in practice, or not, will probably now be seen by the success of the war against international terrorism naw being waged. It is fortuitous that this excellent book has arrived at just the right time for the debate to get underway.
I may add that, as many practitioners will know from experience, our relationship with Interpol and now Europol has not exactly been smooth in the past. I do hope that the final chapter 19 covering Europe, the Commonwealth and the United States of America will be clearly understood because European Union officials continue to insist that the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights forbids the extradition of suspects to countries where they would face the death penalty.
There is the unfortunate danger that Laura Davidson’s valuable work to date will be in need of urgent revision once the war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda has come to a final conclusion.
The Spanish Precedent
Since publication of this edition, Spain have now announced an open-door policy for the eventual extradition of suspected terrorists in the face of continued legal, political and human rights issues. Therefore, chapter 19 itself may well need future updating as European Union initiatives are implemented.
My experience of extradition law was relatively small until I read this book. Jones and his colleagues have produced a straight-forward, well-presented and researched statement of how the law works at the beginning of the twenty-first century. It is not uncommon to realise how little one actually knows of the law in other jurisdictions when reading through the chapter headings.
I was particularly interested in out curious extradition arrangements with the Republic of Ireland (chapter 17) and understood very quickly why there is often such a lack of enthusiasm when chasing someone who has disappeared into the green pastures of Eire. It made me think, yes, the question to extradite must be raised and cosnidered in each and every case. And there must be very good, and substantial grounds for agreement to proceed because it only takes one occasion when arrangements are fouled up for the whole concept to be questioned at its very roots by certain countries who disregard human rights and have things to hide. That price must never be too high if we in the free world are to bring perpetrators of international and criminal terrorism to justice. We would let those who died on 11th September 2001 down.
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BOOK REVIEW
COMPETITION LAW
Fifth Edition
By RICHARD WHISH
LexisNexis Butterworths
ISBN 0-406-95950-1 Price: £29.95
COMPETING THEMES
By Phillip Taylor MBE
Professor Richard Whish from King’s College, London, has produced a most useful Fifth edition of his detailed work on ‘Competition Law’. The book is split into twenty-three chapters and the most important ones cover old favourites:
* Articles 81 and 82
* the Competition Act 1998, and the Enterprise Act 2002 (now in force)
* horizontal and vertical agreements
* abuse of dominance
* the relationship between intellectual property rights and competition law
* mergers
‘Whish on Competition Law’ can be described as an in-depth introduction to the competition law of the European Union and the United Kingdom. Whilst I have used some detailed terms above and below which may not be familiar to everyone, the book looks at the constituent parts of the law. It analyses the way in which competition law affects particular commercial phenomena, and it describes the economic context in which competition law operates. The book is invaluable to both law and economics students as well as practitioners and officials involved in competition law matters and our relationship with the European Union.
THE ENTERPRISE ACT
By far the most useful section to me of this new edition is the detail contained in his chapter on the Enterprise Act 2002. This Act is a major new piece of legislation which introduces many changes in domestic competition law affecting the United Kingdom, and it repeals the monopoly and merger provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973. Professor Whish has been a non-executive director of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) since April 2003 so he is extremely well-placed to guide readers through this expanding area of law. The OFT, itself, also provides an excellent service to business with detailed Enterprise Act information packs and publications which can be obtained by telephoning 0870 60 60 321 or emailing: oft@eclogistics.co.uk. He also refers to the growing decisional practice of the OFT as the shape of things to come.
THE EUROPEAN DIMENSION
Whish opens with a useful statement on competition policy and its relationship with market definition and market power and he then gives an overview of EC and UK competition law. Also of considerable importance in the new edition is the adoption of Council Regulation 1/2003, which is known as the ‘EC Modernisation Regulation’, and which comes into effect on 1st May 2004. Whilst the law is stated as at 31st July 2003, Whish decided to write the chapter on the enforcement of the EC competition rules on the basis of the new Regulation. It is important for practitioners to recognise that, under the Modernisation Regulation, it is no longer appropriate to talk of ‘individual exemption’ for agreements – the notification of agreements to the Commission for individual exemption is to be abolished by the new Regulation, so firms must now conduct their own ‘self-assessment’ of agreements to determine whether the Article 81(3) criteria has been satisfied.
The European Commission are also to publish a series of ‘Notices’ which will provide guidance on aspects of this new regime. These Notices are to appear before 1st May 2004 and they will be joined by a new Regulation on the conduct of proceedings. There is a note of apology from Professor Whish who starts his Preface by reminding us that the last edition only came out in late 2001. However, I am extremely grateful for the new edition because if he had waited a further twelve months before producing it, the Commission would have published its Notices and other important changes would have occurred.
THE DUTCH BAR
A recent judgment of the European Court of Justice in the case of Wouters v Algemene Raad van de Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten [2002] is discussed in some detail in chapter 3. Here, it was held that the regulatory rules adopted by the Dutch Bar Council for lawyers in the Netherlands fell outside the scope of Article 81(1). Whish describes the decision as surprising and controversial, and quotes part of the judgement which says that the competition rules in the Treaty “do not apply to activity which, by its nature, its aim and the rules to which it is subject does not belong to the sphere of economic activity…or which is connected with the exercise of the powers of a public authority”. The ECJ did decide that the Dutch Bar ‘was an association of undertakings’, but then went on to reject the argument that “this was not so in so far as it was exercising its regulatory functions”. Interesting! Whish comments that the position might have been different if a majority of the members of the Dutch Bar Council had been appointed by the State, rather than by members of the profession – are rather chilling thought for us at the England and Wales Bar!
CARTELS AND MERGERS
Useful comment is made of the European Commission’s continued pursuit of hard-core cartels where substantial fines have been imposed in Carbonless Paper and Plasterboard, and in the celebrated Nintendo decision where the Commission imposed the highest fine so far for an export ban in a vertical agreement. Airtours v Commission is also discussed concerning the meaning of ‘collective dominance’ under the EC Merger Regulation. Whish concludes that the Airtours judgment “helpfully brings the law into alignment with the idea of ‘tacit coordination’” or (what we might understand to be) the parallel behaviour on the part of oligopolists. He also raises the question of whether Airtours leaves a ‘gap’ in merger control with the consequence that some mergers cannot be controlled because it would enable obligopolists to exercise market power without being dependent on a co-ordinated response from other firms in the oligopoly. He does look at reform proposals and discusses the substantial lessening of a competition test adopted for mergers in the UK by the Enterprise Act 2002.
I was delighted to hear that Professor Whish has developed a growing knowledge of Bollywood film stars with his charming appreciation of the work of Dr Anil Sinanan. In what is an extremely complex area for many researchers and practitioners, it is nice to know that there are still some enjoyable diversions from the demands placed on the development of any real understanding of our competition law. I wait for the next edition with bated breath.
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BOOK REVIEW FOR ‘THE BARRISTER’
COOK ON COSTS 2003
A guide to legal remuneration in civil contentious and non-contentious business
By MICHAEL J COOK
Butterworths LexisNexis
ISBN 0 406 95862 9 Price: £59
THE COST OF SUCCESS
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review Editor
Each practitioner has his or her own favourite when it comes to costs drafting – I have always found “Cook on Costs” to be the most straightforward publication in its field. It is a friendly, easy read with some mischievous humour from Judge Cook. It does keep the attention whilst one rambles through difficult and frankly somewhat abstruse and boring issues of costs which I had always felt I could leave to instructing solicitors to handle in the past.
The book has helped me on occasion when trying to deal with certain types of client – mainly those who think they know things concerning costs, but don’t, and need to be told by reference to the leading authority.
The best of the new “Cook” books
I go immediately to “Cook on Costs” without hesitation. It is the best on offer and until successive governments, and the judiciary, sort out the mess we are in which is called ‘costs’, we have the clearest exposition on the market at the moment – Michael’s is the best of the new “Cook” books! In the ten years it has been available, “Cook on Costs” has contributed significantly to the main issues surrounding this controversial area of practice.
The book contains six parts reflecting the problems faced by practitioners today:
• Solicitor and client
• Between the parties
• Quantification
• Sanctions and Penalties
• Particular people
• Funding
Originally, I felt I had to cross-refer “Cook” with “The Green Book” or the other main works in case I missed anything out. However, I can say that the detail, for instance concerning the CPR, is such that you have all the information you need to hand in this one volume.
What I like particularly is the unique and rather amusing way in which some of the issues are handled. It makes ‘costs’ interesting and that was Cook’s original aim for the first edition. The one thing about Michael Cook’s book is its readability - no Latin and no footnotes. This must be a first for the legal profession since the demise of the use of Latin which was initiated by the fondly remembered Lord Irvine.
The Costs Industry
I have no doubt that the biggest problem with civil litigation revolves around costs. It is not that successive governments have actually wanted to do something about costs, it is that they clearly have no intention whatsoever of dealing with the issue when it comes to a review or possible further reform of civil litigation. It is simply that there are no votes in it. Besides, the threat of a costs order is enough to make even the diehard revenue protector in a local authority or corporate body squirm.
Conditional Fee Agreements and Case Tracking
For many barristers, the most useful part of the book is Chapter 42 under ‘Funding’ in Part VI, and the useful comments on specific case tracking in ‘Quantification’ in Part III. The next edition will be in time for an analysis of the recommendations from the Government’s consultation paper on simplifying CFAs, and the general settling-down of tracking since its inception. No junior barrister should be without this book as the new landscape of civil litigation develops, and the increasing demands placed on practitioners by the profession itself continues to run out of control.
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BOOK REVIEWS
A PRACTICAL APPROACH TO CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
By Dr Saleem Sheikh
LexisNexis Tolley
ISBN 0 406 95781 9
£66
and
CORPORATE CRIMINAL LIABILITY
By Amanda Pinto and Martin Evans
Thomson Sweet & Maxwell
ISBN 0-42179-280-9
£99
COMPANIES REVISITED
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review editor
The word ‘modern’ runs through these two excellent books. What is so attractive about both works is the high level of relevance each has to our lives today. Both offer insights into areas of law which require substantial reform and the authors are not afraid to give their views in a constructive manner which adds to the debate. For the advocate with more than a mere passing interest in the subject, aspects of company law come in for a grilling.
Corporate Governance
Many often wonder at what this term ‘corporate governance’ actually means! I have always taken it to be company law with specific reference to the duties and responsibilities of directors. In Dr Sheikh’s excellent coverage a practical guide in eleven chapters has been created to discuss issues and regulations in the post-Higgs era of how companies are ‘governed’ in the United Kingdom. It is a book for practitioners as well as those at post-graduate level. I felt the theme throughout was on of a ‘reforming’ mission although I did enjoy the Appendix and checklists at the end of each chapter as I found some of the content heavy reading. The way Sheikh constructs his thoughts is quite helpful because he uses a mechanism of ‘analysis’ looking at specific points in a lucid and well-organised fashion. A word of warning, however, this book is not for beginners! It is good, but it is heavy and just the stuff for a distinction at ‘Masters’ level although I can see a useful cross-fertilisation in chapter 9 on corporate killing with the work by Pinto and Evans.
The book itself covers the modern aspects of corporate governance and the practical dimension relies on the useful checklists and ‘Guidance Notes’ which are a great help. Precedents on corporate governance are provided and will be of use to practitioners, company secretaries and, of course, directors and are clearly adaptable to the requirements of their companies. The publication offers the following:
• A guide to the regulations and practice of corporate governance plus full coverage of the new Combined Code, the Higgs Review, the Hampel and Turnbull Reports and the Smith Guidance for Audit Committees
• Sheikh has extensive experience in the field of corporate governance and he offers many useful solutions to some of the difficulties which companies currently face
• It is a practical guide which contains a variety of useful precedents and guidance notes which are adaptable
• A unique selling point is the useful explanation and comparison between the European Union and United States governance of corporate issue as an international perspective (chapter 11)
Sheikh’s book is one of the most comprehensive titles on the market, but it is complex. His detailed preface indicates that the book is aimed at a wide readership from corporate lawyers, accountants, company directors and secretaries, risk managers and in-house counsel as well as those types of witnesses we, at the, Bar need to cross-examine on the detail of their professional functions. I believe that is where we really come in and the book then becomes of some help and relevance.
Corporate Criminal Liability
With ‘Corporate Criminal Liability’, Amanda Pinto and Martin Evans have produced a most useful examination of this area of liability following incidents at Zeebrugge, Southall and Hatfield: names of places which have become instantly recognisable for tragic reasons. Pinto and Evans follow on well from Dr Sheikh’s high style and make a significant contribution to the controversial debate on corporate criminal liability which successive governments have refused to deal with. I felt a rush of nostalgia when I read chapter 1.6 and remembered my undergraduate days reading Salomon v A Salomon & Co Ltd. However, Pinto and Evans don’t dawdle, and they get to the issues pretty quickly.
The book is split into 20 chapters with a great foreword from Lord Hoffmann who describes the book as ‘a report on work in progress’, where ‘there is still a good deal to be done before the subject achieves logic and clarity’. I just hope no-one downs tools. Hoffmann rightly says that ‘Corporate Criminal Liability’ will assist judges, legislators and practitioners to make progress towards the final target of logic and clarity which this subject so deeply deserves after all the heart-break.
The implications of this growing and topical area of law are explored in detail throughout. Inevitably newspaper coverage and media interest has led to continuing concerns over corporate responsibility and the accountability of directors for particular actions. The sticking point has always been how far the criminal law will be invoked to punish corporate fault. I found this book to be a practical guide which is user-friendly and very much aimed at the practitioner. There is not that much material on the market at present so Pinto and Evans represent the only guide which is available and which reviews the background to corporate criminal liability and examines the present position faced by corporations over manslaughter allegations and those who may be held accountable.
The contents include:
• principles of corporate criminal liability
• directors’ liability
• criminal jurisdictions for corporations
• restraint, confiscation orders and asset recovery
• sentencing and costs
• corporations and the European Convention on Human Rights
• corporate manslaughter
• Companies Act offences
• Insolvency offences
• Financial Services and Markets Act offences
• Fraudulent trading
• False accounting
• Corruption
• Regulatory offences
Clearly this is a one-stop shop for advice and guidance which should be required reading for any director of a large business. This area of law continues to grow, and the increasingly contentious nature of possible liability makes this currently a unique, single source of reference as can be seen from the wide range of contents. Of particular interest is the background to corporate criminal liability with useful examinations of specific offences, leading authorities and relevant legislation. Let us hope the work in progress is completed soon.
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BOOK REVIEWS
SENTENCING AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE
ANDREW ASHWORTH
Third Edition (2000) Butterworths
ISBN 0 406 91 490 7
and
EMMINS ON SENTENCING
Third Edition by Martin Wasik (1998) Blackstone Press
ISBN 1 85431 681 8
Comment by Phillip Taylor
THE SENTENCING DILEMMA: ASHWORTH OR EMMINS?
These two books provide handy guides to the many directions in which sentencing has taken itself over the past five years. Many will remember the late Christopher Emmins and his original concept of ‘a practical approach to sentencing’ which is now in its third edition as ‘Emmins on Sentencing’. It’s always a refreshing’ almost ‘comfort’ book to read but I suggest that Ashworth has the greater authority, especially for specific forms of words which can be used in mitigation.
I think Emmins would strongly approve of the changes which Martin Wasik has made to his original work in order to create a definitive manual of pure magic for the newly qualified lawyer as he or she prepares to mitigate for real for the first time. So well done, Martin. It is most helpful to have all the handy hints in one place with detailed case reference points and saves the trouble of going immediately to the loose-leaf reference manuals. But there is a word of warning, cross-refer! If you put the depth of knowledge of both books together, you have your legal research under one roof.
However, I have to say that for pure academic depth and perspective, Professor Andrew Ashworth’s ‘Sentencing and Criminal Justice’ is the heavyweight publication in all senses. I suggest that this is the case because some concepts remain difficult to follow in places, especially when you are faced with advising the client on the likelihood of his possible sentence based on what is clearly a tariff system even though some judges deeply resent this term.
Of course, whilst the current edition of Emmins is the earlier publication (1998), Ashworth has the useful benefit of being able to comment on recent legislative moves by the New Labour government including the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997, the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, the Youth and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 and the important Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000. Ashworth will always be deep, intellectual and dryly academic to some reader, but that aspect can be used to an advocacy advantage whenever issues such as the elements of proportionality are raised in court at the PSR stage.
I have found it very helpful to be able to weigh issues in the wider criminal justice system, and being able to compare those issues with the key issues in sentencing policy which the client is worried about. The term ‘Proportionality’ itself is as important a word for the lawyer as ‘transparent’ is to a poltician today for proportionality is fast becoming the new buzz word for anything European or administrative where a government is in conflict with the citizen who pays the bills.
Chapter 4 of Ashworth covers propertionality extremely well because he merges the theoretical with the practical and dwells on both human rights and European law with a balance of fairness which runs as a consistent stream throughout the book. Emmins takes an altogether different stance with a ‘hands on’, ‘jackets off’ approach which gets down to basics quickly. A most useful ‘quick at a glance’ solution when you might have a number of clients needing your attention for sentence on the same day. So which is the better of the two publications? Dare I make a value judgment here!
Well, I do. Of the two, Ashworth shows the depth and I would be minded to use him to cover much more serious offences where custody is not in doubt. I would probably use him for special types of offence where the mitigation may require an unusual and, possibly, rather detailed approach without too much reference to previous Court of Appeal decisions. After all, there is always the problem of boring the bench to death as their eyes gradually glaze over when you are on your fifth authority. There are some useful new guideline judgments from the Court of Appeal which are discussed in reasonable detail.
But don’t forget or dismiss Emmins as just a PQ +1 starter for the newly qualified. He has strong merits throughout, especially for sentencing in the Magistrates’ Courts. Sentencing has continued its evolution at a rapid pace and the old ‘practical approach’ concept from Blackstone Press still maintains a usefulness for the busy and harrassed criminal practitioner/advocate.
When it comes to the Pre-Sentence Report which one should I use? The typical way out is to say both because the standard of a Probation Officer’s report can be widely different, often depending on the attitude of the subject, (and not the probation team I hasten to add.) Ashworth clearly has an academic use within applied criminology, for postgraduate criminal justice studies (including Bar Vocational Course sentencing topics), and for the practitioner and advocate.
It would be nice to feel that the Magistrates’ Courts and Crown Courts made more reference to both publications although I fear they will not because of the pressure of their tasks. Ashworth’s great benefit is his discussion of the influence of statements made by politicians, public opinion and the mass media. This is quite important point to consider after the perceived public reaction to the ‘get tough on soft drug users’ campaign by certain groups in the autumn of 2000.
To be fair to Emmins, the book was published two years ago so it is bound to miss new developments even though it is written in a clear and reader-friendly fashion. Wasik does concede that it is not always possible to describe and explain the law as clearly as he would like because of the obscurities within the criminal justice system which he rightly says cannot be ignored.
Of particular importance to both publications are the sections dealing with youth crime, and the direction in which the Court of Appeal is travelling at present. Ashworth has a useful piece on the role of the Sentencing Advisory Panel which is well worth reading. So, for a most recent tour around the sentencing system, get Ashworth, but you might find yourself embracing Emmins initially for the quicker solution. In any event, they are both eminently readable and a worthwhile addition to your library. Get them today because they’re worth it!
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BOOK REVIEW FOR ‘THE BARRISTER’
STROUD’S
JUDICIAL DICTIONARY OF WORDS AND PHRASES
Third Cumulative Supplement to the Sixth Edition
By DANIEL GREENBERG
Thomson Sweet & Maxwell
ISBN 0-4218527-0-4 Price: £65
STROUD’S JUDICIAL DICTIONARY OF WORDS AND PHRASES [Hardback]
By Daniel Greenberg and Alexandra was published in December 2001 in a three-volume format
ISBN 0-4217695-0-5 Price: 575
THE SPECIALIST DICTIONARY
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review Editor
A very good starting point for any legal research will be to look at specific words or phrases when you consider writing an Opinion but find yourself stuck. Obviously, both Halsbury and Current Law are favourites, too, but I feel Stroud has the comprehensive approach which many not have tried in the past. First Published in 1890, Stroud has established itself as the main ‘legal’ dictionary which covers case law and statutory material. Almost every legal term or expression has been defined and in Greenberg’s third supplement, he delves deeper into the intricacies of the European Union. Of much greater help and assistance to the researcher are that definitions are cross-referred to case law and the sixth edition itself was re-organised or sub-divided to help the researcher.
THE THIRD SUPPLEMENT
Greenberg has updated the Dictionary to June 1st, 2003, and he continues to include European, Parliamentary and academic material. The ‘Table of Abbreviations’ remains one of the most detailed I have ever seen and is of great help for the more abstruse abbreviations which one can come up against. He starts the Supplement with recent decisions he feels are of particular significance or importance. He begins with Human Rights and examines R v A (No 2) and section 3 of the Human Rights Act 1998. Other areas include:
• cross-contextual influence of statutory definitions
• construction of expressions which change meaning over time
• ordinary versus technical meanings
• purposive construction
• calculation of periods of time
• the creation of doubt by the avoidance of doubt
• criminal statutes and the presumption in favour of the citizen
• modernisation of language
• enactment implementing an international obligation
• criminal versus civil proceedings
• communication technology
OLD FASHIONED ENGLISH
Stroud’s editor, Greenberg, rightly highlights the trend to avoid archaic or obsolete language in legislation. Lord Falconer, as a Home Officer Minister, is quoted: ‘It is the view of Parliamentary Counsel that ‘clearly’ is a clearer word than ‘manifestly’…Our commitment to treat ‘clearly’ the same as ‘manifestly’ is unswerving’. This new approach has much to commend itself to those active legal wordsmiths who wish to see the move away from terms which have moved out of colloquial use.
SPECIFIC WORDS LIKE ‘ANY’ AND ‘IN PARTICULAR’
Specific words are given full and careful treatment. The word ‘any’ is described as ‘may be the most difficult word to use or construe in a legal document.’ Greenberg identifies the big difficulty is that different people will use the word ‘any’ in very different ways. He also examines the use of the phrase ‘any confession’ in Re Proulx: R v Bow Street Magistrates’ Court, Ex p. Proulx [2001], stating that the Divisional Court declined to read ‘any confession’ as ‘any conceivable confession’. Following on from the definition of ‘any’, we come to the phrase ‘in particular’ and the decision of the House of Lords in R. v City of Westminster Housing Benefit Review Board, Ex p. Mehanne [2001] where their Lordships rejected a suggestion that a statutory instrument which required a local authority to reduce a person’s rent by such amount as it considered appropriate “having regard in particular to the cost of suitable alternative accommodation2 excluded consideration of factors other than the one particularised. I found much of this discussion most helpful when considering the issue of construction.
PEPPER v HART
Another useful commentary appeared with a discussion of the effect of the decision in Pepper v Hart. Greenberg says the case ‘did not produce the major change of climate in statutory interpretation which some early commentators predicted’. This will be of some relief to academics and students although there have been a number or recent decisions which illustrate more freedom when it comes to recourse to Parliamentary materials. We will all be relieved to know that the term ‘economic loss’ on page 43 of the supplement does not mean ‘pure economic loss’, although the author then goes on to examine definitions of the ‘European Court’ and a ‘European Institution’ and gives a useful reference to ‘European Community Competition Law’. There are two specific definitions given of the term ‘undertaking’ – both in the context of European Community law – and some useful references are made to Consiglio Nazionale degli Spedizionieri Doganali (C.N.S.D) v EC Commission [2000]. It becomes apparent that since
WORKERS
Many pupil barristers will be relieved to know that Edmonds v Lawson [2000] is well covered, even though pupils are not ‘workers’ for the purposes of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998. Paper boys (aged 15) are also not ‘workers’, so they are not entitled to paid holidays. It is this attention to detail which is such a support if it is a particular word which the lawyer is stuck over. I liked the definition of ‘workstation’ which decides that a cubicle is not a “workstation” for the purposes of regulations implementing the Workplace Directive.
BONA FIDE
One of the longest definitions in the supplement covers the phrase ‘bona fide’. Once some of the general points are considered, a series of relatively recent cases are listed to give what is term ‘a general flavour’ of the courts’ attitude to bona fides’ during the twentieth century. Although we are all told we should not use Latin phraseology, I think it is inevitable that Stroud will be of great assistance for some years to come as we grapple with replacement terminology. It is not so much the modernisation of language but more the need for common sense especially in the field of communication technology which raises a number of challenges for the application of traditional legal concepts and for the interpretation of traditional legal phrases.
Stroud is big competition for publications such as ‘The New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary’ which grace many chambers. But Stroud is by far the most important tool for the twenty-first century legal researcher. Any lawyer with a love of English will cherish this dictionary and find it difficult to put down once opened. There is always the fascination that there might be one more word or expression to cover. So be disciplined and you will find much that would, almost certainly, take much longer to locate in Halsbury’s ‘Laws of England’. It is fair to say that researchers should start with the dictionary – it will save you time, and I wish I have known more about Stroud when I took the Bar examinations.
WORD COUNT (1,133)
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BOOK REVIEW FOR ‘THE WESTERN CIRCUITEER’
To: gillrichards@westerncircuit.co.uk
CHARLESWORTH & PERCY ON NEGLIGENCE (10th edition)
ISBN 0 421 82590 1 (October 2001) £225 Sweet and Maxwell
and
JACKSON & POWELL ON PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE (5th edition)
ISBN 0 421 82600 2 (December 2001) £225 Sweet and Maxwell
NEGLIGENCE IN THE COMMON LAW LIBRARY!
Yes, the Sweet and Maxwell Common Law Library has done it again with two excellent works to grace our chambers library. Jackson & Powell is especially welcome with its timely analysis of Hall v Simons and other leading decisions.
As expected, both of these works are substantial achievements from the leading judicial and academic authorities of today. It may seem that Sweet & Maxwell’s ‘Common Law Library’ publications are extremely boring and dull but they are just the opposite in my view. Throughout each work, there are the detailed footnote references whilst the quality of the text in both is exemplary.
Charlesworth & Percy, in particular, travels through an extensively re-written and crucial chapter 2 on ‘the duty to take care’, which becomes compelling reading for both practitioners and their dedicated support services. As the problem of negligent behaviour continues to stride forth at an alarming litigious pace, both Charlesworth & Percy and Jackson & Powell meet the challenges at the beginning of the journey and see it through to the end in style.
It would also be right to comment that Jackson & Powell remains detailed, but is still of great use to those briefed via Direct Professional Access schemes as this type of instruction continues to expand. But for all barristers, the general principles set out, and the analysis of the abolition of advocates’ immunity from suit, should be required reading in any event at this time.
A review such as this would not be complete without mention (again) of the Human Rights Act. The overblown fanfare which greeted this Act when it came into force has now thankfully subsided as its impact begins to be evaluated seriously. Both these books and the other Common Law Library titles do reflect the practical relevance of this legislation which provides a useful bonus to us as yet another brief crosses our tables with the words ‘do consider these instructions in the light of the Human Rights Act’. We will, and we can do so with the excellent Charlesworth & Percy and the formidable Jackson & Powell by our side!
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£7.99 Penguin ISBN 0 141 00135 6
A review by Phillip Taylor MBE, Barrister Desk Editor
WORDS ARE ALL THAT COUNT
I always remember one of the first pieces of advice I was given some years ago when I studied law at college – law is about words: you can forget the rest. It was emphasised by a senior civil servant in the LCD some years ago and may well be of primary importance today, but I am often reminded in Bill Bryson’s new, updated paperback edition of ‘Troublesome Words’ of the importance of using the correct word in the correct place.
I asked Mr Bryson earlier this year if he would have ‘Troublesome Words’ re-published in paperback form with an update, and he said he hoped that would happen. I am delighted it has because I find the book great fun and highly interesting – you might like to know that he thought my comment that overseas students find this book of such help when English is a second language most flattering: indeed, I suspect he had never realised its impact on other non-English speaking continents.
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‘Glanville Williams: Learning the Law’ (12th edition 2002)
£9.99 Sweet & Maxwell ISBN 0 421 74420 0
Review by Phillip Taylor, Barrister Desk Editor
How to Learn the Law
Whilst we are on reminiscences, do you remember that old chestnut, the ‘guide, philosopher and friend’ called ‘Learning the Law’. I do… and I am happy to say that the Cambridge Professor, ATH Smith, has produced the very best effort for a new edition after an absence of 20 years. It is rightly described as essential reading for all potential lawyers, whether sixth-form students or graduates contemplating the study of law, or those considering career options.
Whenever you are asked – what is the best book to start on if you want to know a bit about the English legal system? The answer is “Glanville Williams: Learning the Law”. Much of the original text survives but Professor Smith has given much needed emphasis to the new legal agenda of the early twenty-first century – gone are the old, archaic references – and in come new, thrusting European Union law provisions which will warm the heart of the most die-hard Eurosceptic. I like chapter 14 the best – it is entitled ‘General Reading’. It gives the best bibliography available for the range of works on the market for those who love the subject of law as much as some of the writers quoted clearly did. To read ‘Learning the Law’ is an unforgettable experience. Thank you, Professor Smith, for bridging the twenty-year gap.
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CHITTY ON CONTRACTS (29th Edition)
General Editor: Professor Hugh Beale
Volumes 1 & 2 £350 (Supplement service available)
THOMSON/SWEET & MAXWELL
ISBN 0 421 842 806
THE PREMIER AUTHORITY FOR 21st CENTURY CONTRACT LAW
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Book Review Editor, ‘The Barrister’
Without question, this is the premier book from the complete Sweet and Maxwell Common Law library of practitioner publications. Easily described as the undisputed heavyweight in all senses, it has comprehensive coverage, scope and detail in contract and agency law. This edition has been extensively updated and incorporates new legislation and many recent cases. It is also a great book for students who wish to gain a ‘First’, and for academics and commentators conducting research.
In two volumes, “Chitty on Contracts” continues to provide a complete coverage of the law of contract, incorporating detailed reference to relevant legislation and cases. Volume 1 deals with General Principles applicable to every kind of contract and Volume 2 covers Specific Contracts such as Sale of Goods, Construction and Credit & Security.
The key benefits from this new edition are:
• An extensive updating of contract law itself incorporating new developments such as the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999, the Enterprise Act 2002, and the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002
• Newly revised chapters cover Crown, Public Authorities and the European Union; restitution; and restrictive agreements and covenants
The New Law Journal described Chitty as ‘overwhelming in its scholarship’, and ‘humbling in its ambit’ – choice phrases which reflect the expertise of this eminent team of contract lawyers who will be familiar to both students and practitioners alike as household names for our profession. Many practitioners welcome the use of a range of experts to observe developments in this area of substantive law.
The Practitioners’ Favourite
Chitty still remains the practitioners’ favourite as few chapters have remained unchanged with the new edition. For the busy civil advocate, it is an invaluable source for all academic and judicial references. The work remains of the highest calibre as contract law enters the twenty-first century. We have much to thank Joseph Chitty for his perseverance in 1826 when the first edition saw the light of day as a modest start to the bedrock of common law. There is really nothing that can compare with this learned work - it maintains the highest of standards in the most fundamental area of common law.
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(Word count: 412)
IDENTIFICATION
Investigation, trial and scientific evidence
By Paul Bogan
Legal Action Group
ISBN 1-903307-25-2
Price: £37
THE EYE SEES WHAT IT IS MEANT TO SEE:
LIVE ISSUES OF IDENTIFICATION
Every year the Court of Appeal hears a very large number of cases which rest on the issue of identification. “Bogan on Identification” is a gem of a book for practitioners because it brings together all the difficulties associated with adducing ID evidence on both sides. It is right to say that police practice and the criminal justice process itself are now highly developed areas where disputes over identity are concerned. The book addresses the many scientific advances concerning ID evidence which have been made in the last few years and will become an indispensable aid to criminal lawyers in future cases.
The continuing controversy on ID evidence
The problem, which Paul Bogan tackles in this detailed work, continues to generate both controversy and debate. What Mr Bogan achieves here is an analysis of the powers and duties of police officers in the collection of identification evidence. He offers a comprehensive guide to the various sources of ID evidence within the trial process itself which is of great forensic assistance. Probably this is the single most important reason for practising barristers at the Criminal Bar to buy this book.
Bogan also offers a thorough insight into the methodology and admissibility of scientific and other expert means of personal identification which remains one of the biggest areas of controversy. He is well suited to this task as he is a member of Doughty Street Chambers and a specialist in fraud, drug trafficking and offences of serious violence. He knows what he is talking about.
Structure of the Book
The book is split into three parts: investigation; trial and scientific evidence. There are 17 chapters and a useful introduction. Many practitioners will find the 7 detailed appendices of great help in their day-to-day practice. It is always a great help to have PACE Code of Practice D on the identification of persons by police officers to hand when considering ID evident – Code D is at Appendix A.
The other appendices cover the following areas:
* The History of Code D;
* The Pro forma Notice to Suspect and identification procedure records;
* Various relevant sections of PACE;
* Home Office Circular 57/2003;
* Judicial Studies Board Specimen Directions;
* A commentary on relevant provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003.
THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT 2003
I found the CJA appendix of particular importance because it introduces a very substantial number of changes to police powers, criminal procedure and evidence as they begin to come into force. I come away with the memory of the late Professor Sir John Smith who always maintained that England and Wales should have full codification of the rules of evidence. “Bogan on Identification” shows the path towards full codification of evidence as one that a future government could take. It remains a pity that the public have to face an annual CJA because Parliament will not get to grips with the issues that are, by and large, not that controversial.
Demand for knowledge on ID evidence
Many practitioners will probably recall from their student and pupillage days the problems connected with ID evidence and will remember some of the practical training exercises set by the examiners. Bogan’s book is a ‘must’ for any barrister involved in the criminal justice process because it is clearly a one-stop shop. All you ever need to know about ID evidence but were afraid to ask! Yes, this has everything for you.
The Story of Adolf Beck
Bogan starts the book with the cautionary tale of Adolf Beck, an innocent who bore a ‘slight resemblance’ to serial con man William Wyatt. I found, going through the book, that many questions I would think to ask over a particular case I might be instructed on were fully explored with useful observations on how Counsel might proceed. Great advice here when we are looking for forgotten themes of defence. As many will know, it is sometimes the most obvious points that can be put aside amid the wealth of evidence, which the Prosecution may present (including the obnoxious unused material which Judges so loathe).
The Contents
In Part 1, entitled “Investigation”, chapters 2 – 8 cover the following areas:
* Introduction to Code D
* Visual identification procedures and their application
* Identification officer, Notice to Suspect and procedure selection
* Conduct of visual identification procedures
* Body mark, photographs, fingerprints and samples
* Juvenile and other vulnerable suspects
* Voice identification procedure
Part II reviews “Trial”:
* Disclosure
* Evidence, admissibility and exclusion
* Submission of no case
* Jury directions
Part III deals with ‘Scientific Evidence” and is a leading 21st century statement on where we are in 2004/5:
* DNA profiling
* Fingerprint and other skin impression evidence
* Facial mapping
* Handwriting
* Voice
* Dog tracking
So you can see that all the main senses are catered for! This is, truly, a book for the twenty-first century - all the technological advances of recent years are incorporated here in a logical way that is of great assistance to the busy barrister and his even busier pupil.
Advising The Defendant
My strongest point is left for the end: this is a great book for the idle prisoner if he cannot get his hands on Archbold. That is what worries me about it. All the detail is here, but I doubt whether it will diminish the number of frivolous appeals in the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division). This book could well force the end to a disastrous court of appeal system which clearly needs to be replaced with an adequate judicial tribunal that can determine failures in the criminal justice system on historic roots of equity and not pure political expediency which has been the fate of criminal appeal courts for at least two centuries.
End note
The law is stated as at 28th June 2004. So, Bogan has succeeded in his aspiration that this book will assist all those who seek a better understanding of the law and practice relating to identification evidence. Well done, you have achieved your goal and we should thank the LAG for this.
-ends-
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CORPORATE LIABILITY:
Work Related Deaths and Criminal Prosecutions
General Editor: Gerard Forlin QC Editor: Michael Appleby
With 15 Specialist Contributors
LexisNexis Butterworths
ISBN 0-406-93176-3
Price: £125
A TOPICAL APPROACH TO CORPORATE LIABILITY
This book is an amazingly detailed and well-researched series of fifteen individually written chapters put together by Gerard Forlin, barrister, and Michael Appleby, solicitor. As readers of ‘The Barrister’ will recall from past reviews, we have observed a number of books in this area of the law in recent years. It is clear that the subject will not go away: corporate liability continues to fascinate both politicians and the legal profession even though little appears to have been done…hence another book – this one is different.
A “Compensation” Culture
The problem which is highlighted in this comprehensive work by Forlin and Appleby, and their colleagues, is the continued failure to deal with some of the issues properly by Parliament. Work related deaths and the compensation culture would appear to be becoming a serious item on the political agenda of all parties, so the book comes at a time of heightened debate and argument.
The Specialist Chapters
A good use is made of the specialist chapters written by experts in the field who are listed at the beginning of the book. These expert contributors show just how much learning has gone into this project and Forlin joins everything together in a logical and concise way.
Lord Cullen’s Foreword is rather short but he rightly describes this book as a valuable resource. In the thirty years of the development of health and safety legislation, increased emphasis has naturally been placed on the legal responsibilities of companies for managing the safety of their workforce and anyone else who may be affected.
Cullen writes ‘it is clear that there are matters in regard to which legal regulation has to be prescriptive in its demands’ and that the ‘law has to provide sanctions for clear failures in the management of safety’ commenting that ‘in this respect the law has perhaps not been fully effective’. His Lordship is spot on here. What makes “Forlin and Appleby” such a good read is the comprehensive nature of the work itself, in one volume, dealing, as it does, with a topical and very important area of law which affects us all in our day-to-day lives.
The International Perspective
I was particularly impressed by Chapter 15, which covers the international perspective. Death resulting from accidents at work, and which have been caused by the failure of corporations to ensure safe working conditions and practices, is now the subject of increased international scrutiny by legislators.
Many examples are given of the world’s worst industrial accidents and this has inevitably led to the imposition of more stringent controls over workplace activities such as those at Seveso, Meda, Bhopal and Chernobyl. Victoria Howes and Professor Frank B Wright wrote the chapter and cover the following countries: the United States of America (with inter state comparisons); Australia; Canada; France; Italy The Netherlands; Germany; Finland; Sweden; Norway; and Denmark. Perhaps anti EU people might like to reflect that we all live on the same planet and have similar problems to face on corporate liability!
The work comprises the following which provides invaluable advice on both practice and procedure for: sentencing; practical issues of corporate liability; the investigation through the police process; the construction industry; railways; roads; aviation; shipping; chemicals; oil and gas industries; health care; waste; environmental issues; and the ever present European Union (I am sorry but there is no escape from the EU).
An Indispensable companion
For all practitioners involved in corporate governance Forlin and Appleby’s ‘Corporate Liability’ is clearly an indispensable companion to Butterworths’ formidable loose-leaf work the ‘Personal Injury Litigation Service’ and other works which relate to workplace deaths and injuries which cover legal practitioners, public and regulatory bodies, companies and health and safety professionals. I will leave the five volumes in chambers and just take ‘Forlin and Appleby’.
The Common Law Library
General Editors: William Blair QC, Lord Brennan QC, Lord Justice Jacob & Mr Justice Langstaff
THOMSON REUTERS SWEET & MAXWELL www.thomsonreuters.com ISBN: 978 847 03117 4
Price: £345
101 FINAL WORDS ON PLEADINGS:
Key guidance on precedents from the ultimate experts
To make the most of your case preparations, the new edition of “Bullen” is an essential guide for you when drafting statements of case in the civil courts.
The sixteenth edition offers a detailed stock of authoritative, well structured precedents of statements of case and a guiding commentary in over one hundred areas of law (101 to be precise), with a useful overview of all the main subject areas. It is a dream book for the trainee barrister sweating over pleadings and I can see how much easier it is to use ‘Bullen’ in its handy Common Law Library format which you can rely on in court with confidence.
Every aspect of the subject is covered so counsel knows there is everything in one place to refer to. It is also an indispensable book for the curious who have little knowledge of how our legal system operates as far as procedures and legal writing are concerned.
NEW CASES AND PRACTICE
The new edition is a complete and extensive update of previous works which is to be expected. So what do we get with it? It covers new legislation and case law including: • it reviews the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, in force from April 2006; • it includes the Consumer Credit Act, 2006; • there are up to date amendments to the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000; • it gives amendments to harassment law, and recent developments covering judicial review of the SDA harassment provision; • it examines claims for springboard injunctions and defences to claims; • it reviews the Commons Act 2006; • it discuses the Environmental Liability Directive 2004; and • it includes two new chapters on the invasion of privacy, and the assignment of contractual right.
For today’s current precedents, “Bullen” sets out new precedents on claims relating to smoking in the workplace which are important now the bans are in force, and it looks at claims under the old package holiday regulations 1992. There is the eagerly awaited new precedent on Defence of NHS Trusts, a fully revised precedent on Compromise Agreements, and new precedents on the increase of rent following a review, and parole release.
Practitioners will know (and students will make a grimace!) that it is always a nightmare to try ensuring that you have the most up-to-date information, so the new edition (although necessarily in two volumes now) does keep us within the current requirements of the CPR with the following useful hints on preparation by: • Containing examples of claims and defences along with practical guidance relating to each precedent; • Referring to recent relevant case law and the citation of pertinent legislation; • Providing indispensible guidance on the drafting of statements of case whilst ensuring that the practitioner is prepared with the most effective pleadings; • Including a variety of templates for drafting which can be modified with ease to suit the case you are working on; • Setting out each section in a logical, standard order, starting with a commentary and following the precedents split by claims and defences to make the work accessible and user friendly; • Covering all classes of litigation including main areas like fraud and property law to diverse areas such as entertainment law and education law; and • Providing contributions from an expert team of compilers giving guidance you can rely on.
The beauty of this Common Law Library series is the revision of content in the main volumes and its regular updating service for each one which tells us what the law is, and with “Bullen” how the procedures operate currently.
No other country in the world produces anything like the Common Law Library as a statement of law which includes academic and practitioner opinion. “Bullen” is at the top of the law library contenders with Chitty, Benjamin, Phipson and Clerk & Lindsell. I am delighted to welcome the hard work of the “Bullen” team; Blair, Brennan, Jacob and Langstaff, and others, for their massive contribution of wisdom to the fundamental principles of precedent of which all lawyers must have a sound understanding and appreciation now, whilst there is such a continued increase in today’s contentious litigation. Thank you so much.
EFFECTIVE MORTGAGE ENFORCEMENT
EFFECTIVE MORTGAGE ENFORCEMENT
By Marc Beaumont
ISBN: 978 1858111773 XPL PUBLISHING
(www.xplpublishing.com)
Price: £40
BEAUMONT UNRAVELS O’BRIEN ISSUES
This excellent work is a little dated today but it remains of historic importance to students and lawyers because of the fundamental problems concerning enforcement are still with us.
In the post-O'Brien era, lawyers continue to remain alert to the tactics of the defence and need access to a range of counter-strategies which Marc Beaumont offers. Those acting for banks and other financial institutions in mortgage litigation will find a ready and reliable companion in this work whilst recent problems with the so-called “credit crunch” have highlighted and exacerbated some of the problems.
Beaumont covers the following areas which tend to arise most frequently in the course of a mortgagee's possession action-
Defeating existing Barclays Bank v O'Brien defences; defeating relevant claims linked to O'Brien defences; defeating forgery defences notwithstanding new legislation since the book was published; defeating overriding interests (a popular examination question for students!); defeating defences under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 which are still in force and coming before the courts; and essential guidance on practice and procedure.
The work also includes example expert reports in forgery and extortionate credit bargain cases which may still remain relevant today although the issues are of historic importance and academic relevance for undergraduates. “Effective Mortgage Enforcement” remains an important work for solicitors in practice seeking a first point of reference or a quick revision of the relevant law as it was a couple of years ago although practitioners will need to cross-refer to recent developments.
The book is not too simple for the practitioner who is seeking to carry out rapid but valuable research and it can be used in conjunction with more recent publications from the Law Society and the Legal Action Group.
Counsel will find the emphasis on recent and unreported case law in this fast-developing area of practice useful although the work now needs to be revised with a new edition to take account of internet law report developments since the beginning of this century.
PREVIOUS BOOK OF THE DAY
THE PATH TO PUPILLAGE
THE BEST PUPILLAGE POCKET GUIDE AROUND
A GREAT POCKET BOOK TESTIMONIAL FOR THE TRAINEE BARRISTER
This is a great little book: most informative for readers of ‘The Richmond Chambers Review’. I did not have something like this when I completed my Pupillage as my training was more in line with of the observations and experiences made by Lord Phillips in his excellent Foreword. It is the modern networkers pocket book and justifiably heavy on detail with a great glossary and splendid sections on funding and resources which are directly relevant for the modern trainee barrister.
There is an impressive list of contributors giving sage pieces of advice throughout and I particularly liked comments on the ridiculous weight placed on the dreadful MCTs which are, to many, one of the hardest parts of the course.
My only constructive observation is the need in a future edition for comments on continuous personal professional development which is the current 'in thing' with so many modern professionals who seem to think this is the future. I am sure any reader will find the opinions in this guide excellent value for the job seeker, and all will know you are only as good as how up-to-date you are with legal reform and the common law reasoning system.
Most of the information is common sense as the student hurdles the various fences of legal training and I would urge all to be realistic about the practice areas you might wish to pursue (they are well covered here).
It has been my experience that whatever your career plan on your individual postage stamp, fate will have surprises in store- this testimonial guide is the best help and I wish I had had it all those years ago.
I would ask Georgina and Alexander to keep this thoroughly revised when it goes into its next edition and please do comment on CPD.
THE PATH TO PUPILLAGE
A Guide for the Aspiring Barrister by Georgina Wolfe and Alexander Robson
ISBN: 978 1 847 03401 4
THOMSON SWEET & MAXWELL
(www.sweetandmaxwell.thomson.com)
Price: £14.95