Month: May 2018
Developments in ODR and the online court
In an earlier contribution to the Newsletter I made the point that the partly hidden “A” as in Online Alternative Dispute Resolution, which tended to focus ODR’s perceived remit on out of court solutions such as mediation and arbitration, was beginning to disappear altogether as more focus was made on introducing ODR into the justice […]
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Re-consenting to marketing under GDPR?
One of the questions we’ve most commonly been asked in recent months is “does the GDPR mean we have to get fresh consents from our entire marketing database?” In many (indeed, perhaps most) cases, the answer is “no” – though the explanation for this is not all that straightforward, and so the confusion here is […]
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IT and practice management for chambers
There are not as many IT and practice management services for barristers as for solicitors but there are some very strong players available. Here are the key players in this market (based on my web page www.venables.co.uk/chambers-it.htm), followed by two short articles from key providers of services to chambers, Martin Poulter and Helen Ford, providing […]
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Cryptocurrencies explained
Cryptocurrencies are a form of decentralised digital currency based on principles of cryptography. They use blockchain technology which is essentially a cryptographically secured method of recording data transactions which cannot be altered retroactively (see What is the blockchain?). Complicated mathematical equations need to be solved in order to generate each unit of the currencies, a […]
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When and how to use 301 redirects
301 redirects are a way of ensuring online traffic gets sent to the most up-to-date version of a URL. For example, if you delete a page on a website and your customers try to access that page and it’s no longer there, they get an error message, which isn’t a great user experience, right? So, […]
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Algorithms in law
Algorithms as artificial persons In Algorithms and the Law, a paper by Jeremy Barnett, Adriano Soares Koshiyama and Philip Treleaven, the authors discuss the emergence of algorithms as artificial persons and the need to formally regulate them. It aims to start discussion in the legal profession regarding the legal impact of algorithms on companies, software […]
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Online justice news
The new HMCTS divorce online service has moved out of Beta and is now online at www.gov.uk/apply-for-divorce. It offers prompts and guidance to assist people in completing their application. The whole process can be completed online, including payment and uploading supporting evidence. The service has already contributed to a 95 per cent drop in the […]
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The Law Society Guide to Good Practice
The “fully updated” second print edition of The Law Society Guide to Good Practice includes 100 current Law Society practice notes, plus details of useful contacts and further resources, an index and tables of citations. It is 972 pp, weighs 1.5 kg, occupies 4.3 cm of shelf space and costs £60. All 119 current Law […]
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Automated Intelligence – a strategy that delivers tangible business benefits today
A constant stream of technological innovations has now become the norm, with each new technology promising to be a game-changer for business in the future. Artificial intelligence (AI) immediately comes to mind as the latest ‘silver bullet’. In fact, the widespread view is that AI is going to take the legal sector by storm – […]
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