News

Prosecutions for the possession of cannabis have declined dramatically in the UK over the past decade, according to new figures. New analysis from House of Commons researchers shows that the number of prosecutions fell by around a third from 160,733 in 2010/11 to 110,085 in 2019/20.

Russian laws are more difficult to understand than the work of Immanuel Kant, new research has found. A researcher at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics compared 600 laws with the philosopher's Critique of Pure Reason.

Rival dynasties, councillors, bankers and union officials have been dragged into a major row over the future of a prestigious Bordeaux vineyard. The 32-strong Duffau-Lagarrosse family is selling Château Beauséjour in Saint-Émilion, which it has owned since 1847, The Times reports

Two law firms have merged to form MacAllister McAleese Solicitors, a new full-service practice based in Larne and led by experienced solicitors David McAleese and Kevin MacAllister.

Irish lawyer Mark Quigley has been appointed as general counsel of The ID Register, a global hub for investor onboarding. Mr Quigley, who is qualified as an attorney in New York and a solicitor in Ireland, first joined the company's Cork office as a legal manager in 2017.

A new government taskforce has been established to look at the mental health and addiction needs of prisoners both during and after their detention. Former minister Kathleen Lynch has been appointed as the independent chair of the high level taskforce, which will include representatives from a wide

The Labour Court has been asked to consider the establishment of a joint labour committee (JLC) in the childcare sector. JLCs under the Industrial Relations Acts provide a wage-setting mechanism that determines terms and conditions of employment, as well as setting minimum rates of pay for workers i

Horwich Farrelly's Northern Ireland team has moved to larger premises in Belfast following its continued growth. The defendant insurance specialist firm, which opened its Belfast office in 2018, has moved into Urban HQ in Upper Queen Street after outgrowing its former base in the Scottish Provident

Retired Boyle solicitor Thomas L. Callan, former partner in the predecessor firm of Callan Tansey Solicitors, has passed away. Mr Callan was a partner in CE Callan & Co., which became Callan Tansey after a merger in 2008.

One in five law firms in Northern Ireland made redundancies last year as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to new research published by the Law Society of Northern Ireland. The results from two Law Society surveys of member firms, conducted in May 2020 and November/December 2020, have bee

The winter 2020 edition of the Journal of Elder Law and Capacity has been published by the Law Society of Northern Ireland. Available from the Law Society website, it includes articles on advance directives, discretionary variation of trusts and solicitors' experience as executors, as well as book r

A serving police officer has been convicted of a terror offence for the first time in UK history after a court found he was a member of the proscribed neo-Nazi group National Action (NA). Ben Hannam, a 22-year-old Metropolitan Police officer, joined the group in March 2016, nine months before it was

Lawyers in Pakistan have condemned waiters for stealing their uniform – a black suit with a white shirt and black tie. Three bar councils have written to local authorities and hotel operators to demand changes in the dress code for hotel and restaurant staff.

The Supreme Court has held that the sale and leaseback of a Scottish care home did not dispose of the seller’s entire interest in the property for the purposes of VAT legislation. The appellant, Balhousie Holdings Ltd, acquired the care home in Huntly, Aberdeenshire in 2013. It was origin

The Law Society of Ireland has announced it has reached a reciprocal qualifying agreement with the Solicitors Regulation Authority in England and Wales. A slightly more complex agreement, involving a reciprocal exam, has also been reached with the Law Society of Scotland.