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Law Blogging Going from Strength to Strength: Blawgs on the WardBlawg Network April 2012

May 2, 2012 Blawg

April 2012 has seen continued strong law blogging from expert contributors throughout the WardBlawg network. YouBlawg: Your Law 2.0 Below are links to the blawg posts on YouBlawg from April:- Space Law; Explored Space. The final legal frontier… Graham Kerr of Legal Media Solutions pens a first class dissertation on significant aspects of space law. […]

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Top 10 most read blog posts on WardblawG this year: 2011

December 20, 2011 General Legal

As we approach the end of another year, I thought it would be useful to announce the top 10 posts on wardblawg.com in terms of traffic according to Google Analytics. They are as follows:- 1. Top 10 Linkedin Tips for Young Lawyers My top ten tips for young lawyers looking to maximise their use of […]

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British Columbia Supreme Court Judge Caught for Plagiarism

April 15, 2011 General Legal

A judge in the British Columbia Supreme Court has had his $5-million judgment thrown out, apparently due to plagiarism.

Justice Joel Groves gave his ruling after an expensive 30-day trial about a brain-damaged baby. As the Vancouver Sun reports, it is “only” the fourth time in Canadian history a judge has substantially reproduced all of the submissions of a participating party in a lawsuit as reasons for judgment.

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Sponsored Post: Ask Legal Questions Through Online Websites

April 14, 2011 General Legal

With the concept of alternative business structures (ABS) featuring more in discussions at boardroom meetings of law firms and with law becoming generally more accessible, for instance with Quality Solicitors announcing the placement of a solicitor in WH Smith branches across the UK, it is worthwhile considering alternative web-based legal advice models. One such model is that of JustAnswer.com, where users get a chance to ask a lawyer legal questions but equally where solicitors can display their expert knowledge and gain a reputation as a specialist in a certain area while receiving some remuneration.

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Tommy Sheridan Sentenced: Live Court Tweeting in Scotland

January 26, 2011 General Legal

Tommy Sheridan has been jailed for three years following his conviction in December of committing perjury during his News of the World defamation action. In sentencing Sheridan, Lord Bracadale said “By pursuing a defamation action against the News of the World, you brought the walls of the temple crashing down”

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Trainee Lawyer Tips: The Eleven Commandments

January 24, 2011 General Legal

In a former life I was a trainee solicitor at one of the biggest commercial law firms in Scotland. Below are eleven commandments which it would have been useful to follow from day one. If you have any queries, please contact me at gavin@wardblawg.com

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How to write a first class dissertation: Chapter 2: Main Body Intro

October 24, 2010 Academia

Comment on writing the first main chunk of your first class dissertation

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Gavin Ward’s WardblawG Update on YouTube

October 4, 2010 General Legal

Gavin Ward of WardblawG giving a presentation on YouTube regarding recent updates to the site.

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Please Subscribe?: Oversubscription of the Practice of Law

September 24, 2010 Employment

Tuesday marked the inception of the new Diploma in Legal Practice at University of Glasgow, separate from the Glasgow Graduate School of Law as it was 10 years ago, but now led b y former head of the Law Society of Scotland, Douglas Mill. And what better to mark the occasion than a series of exquisite speeches from some of Scotland’s best, including Sheriff Principal James Taylor, Lord Wallace and Lord Tyre.

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How to Dominate the Internet: Book One: Protect Your Brand: Chapter 9 of 10: Further Reading

August 30, 2010 Corporate and Commercial

So that’s a brief introductory guide to protecting your IP online. To learn more about IP law and IP protection, I would recommend strongly that you visit WardblawG’s friends at the award winning IP blog, the IPKat, founded and managed by Professor Jeremy Phillips. Subscription to Jeremy’s Google groups will provide your inbox with a flurry of IP related email gems every day plus pictures of one or two cats in peculiar poses. WardblawG’s Gavin Ward’s cat or, as Jeremy puts it, owner Missy has already made one appearance on Wednesday Whimsies.

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YouBlawG

August 3, 2010 General Legal

As WardblawG rockets through the 15,000 hit barrier after just 5 weeks, generating more than £100 in Google Adsense revenue, it is with pleasure that I recommend the webhost I use.

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PQE: Post Qualification Equality?

July 30, 2010 Employment

I have written a 1400 word professional briefing article for the Journal: the members’ magazine of the Law Society of Scotland, the Online version of which is updated almost daily and the RSS feed of which is followed at the foot of this blawG on one of the four sets of columns, navigable through the left and right arrows below. My article should, hopefully, be published in August this year.

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The Frapes of Wrath: High Court fines £10,000 for Facebook Libel

July 29, 2010 Case Notes

Mr Justice Tugendhat ruled that the allegation of paedophilia was serious and could have damaged the plaintiff’s reputation. Now, I don’t know whether Mr Justice Tugendhat has a profile on Facebook or has any idea about social networking sites, but he should be aware, or have been made aware by the defence, that this type of abuse goes on more than he might imagine, albeit not quite as acerbic, indecent and tasteless as in this case. To be clear, the author does not support this sort of bullying in the slightest.

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Walls takes Santander and its Bank Charges Case to the ECtHR under Article 6 ECHR: the Right to a Fair Trial

July 23, 2010 Banking and Finance

WardblawG supports the ECtHR move in its entirety and wishes Ms Allison Walls the best of luck. May Justitia swing her sword in her favour.

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My Bank Charges Saga: Part Two (The End)

July 22, 2010 Banking and Finance

Good news! I have been charged only £5.00 for going 70p into the red. Perhaps fair because the bank was paying its own cash to cover the unauthorised overdraft.

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Law 2.0 Search Engine

July 20, 2010 Banking and Finance

Your tutor said research more with this unique WardblawG search engine:-

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RSSatisfaction-in: A little more conversation

July 20, 2010 E-marketing

As the WardblawG surpasses the 5000 hit mark after only 3 weeks, I have now included two permanent RSS feeds at either side of this blog to “Scots Law” and “Scottish Law” through Google News, which highlight excerpts from quality articles discussing the most recent developments in Scots law, such as through the Scotsman’s or the Herald’s legal journalists.

Similar Google News feeds, as I have already mentioned , can be used to keep track of different clients, industries, technologies, law, and even matters or disputes: A little more action, a little less bark (from clients) and a lot more spark!

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Reclaiming Bank Charges in the Tenties: Santander Demolishes Walls

July 15, 2010 Banking and Finance

Comment

In the author’s personal opinion, it is time for the courts and, perhaps, government to stop sitting on the fence with legal argument that lends itself to squeaky clean judges’ desks. It is quite clear that the public has noted its concern. They realise, (or at least should realise by now!), that banks are businesses unlike any other. And, while the banks might enjoy the benefits of having large capital reserves, somewhat questionable following the recession, the Scottish and, indeed, the British public expect them to be treated as such in the legal systems of the UK. This effective immunity from suit should seriously be reconsidered and, the author hopes, soon.

How to Claim despite Walls being breached

Consumers may be best advised to take the recent shock wave of Allison Walls v Santander with a pinch of salt: there are certain steps, including those from moneysavingexpert.com, which are still worth considering:-

1. Send a style letter and send to the bank;
2. If unsuccessful and the bank continues to charge, send a different style letter to the Financial Ombudsman;
3. If still unsuccessful, consult a reputable solicitor and take the bank to court, but be prepared for considerable legal expenses and long, drawn out proceedings.

Banks would be best advised not to get complacent: a battle may have been won; but the war, most certainly, is not over.

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Plea to the Relevancy: Alternative Scottish Diploma in Legal Practice Structures

July 9, 2010 General Legal

I think many solicitors and students would like to see at least also business management, communication, leadership and motivation, or at least such soft skills, taught either separately on the diploma or the PCC, or more emphatically through the practice management course within the Diploma.

There should be a fundamental distinction between brilliant lawyering and brilliant management, which should be appreciated by all Diploma students and graduates.

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RSS Feeds: the Practical and Legal Considerations

July 5, 2010 Corporate and Commercial

Since starting this blog, I’ve placed emphasis on RSS feeds. Colleagues and readers have been quizzing me on why a legal blog needs RSS feeds and why I don’t spend more time on posts. The reason is that RSS feeds are important tools for modern lawyers and, indeed, professionals around the world. Because of that, I thought it would be useful to set out the practical and legal issues that should be noted and distinguished in order to exploit RSS to its fullest.

In my own experience, RSS feeds avoid the spam-like nature of email updates and allow for fast browsing of updates that suits you, which can help increase your efficiency, productivity, learning and knowledge. Obviously, that demands some initiative on your part, but if you can appreciate how much effort went into each and every post to which the RSS feed links, then it doesn’t take too much effort to get out there and start looking for RSS feeds relevant to you and your clients, such that you can build a collection, much like I have at the foot of this page, for your own personal and commercial purposes.

Alternatively, of course, you could just come to this site to view them all at once. But where’s the fun, (or plug?) in that?

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Take Notice!: Education 4 Ayrshire Ltd v South Ayrshire Council

June 27, 2010 Case Notes

The relatively recent case of Education 4 Ayrshire Ltd v South Ayrshire Council [2009] CSOH 146, CA37/09, concerns the issue of what happens when a contract clearly provides how and when a notice of delay or claims should be given but the parties do not follow the precise form of the notice provisions.

A good theoretical decision in favour of pacta sunt servanda and adherence to what the parties have agreed strictly, it has to be wondered whether this is the right practical decision given that effectively notice, albeit in a different form, had been given. Certainly, I have seen this decision take effect on elements of a recent multimillion pound NPD project, which may have delayed the deal.

The case serves as an important lesson for contractors, not just those involved in PPP / PFI, to take special notice of notice requirements under contracts.

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Alpha Law: Kill or be Killed!

June 26, 2010 General Legal

Written by two US law school professors, it portrays, in no uncertain terms, a rather bleak picture of the landscape of the legal and other top professions…And that was in 2005!

The alpha of any species, by inherent definition, is able to adapt quickly and well to change. It’s now time for lawyers, firms and the profession as a whole to adopt that alpha mentality; for many, it’s time to sink or swim.

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Foreword to the WardblawG: Lawnovation

June 23, 2010 General Legal

With firms and professionals across the UK welcoming web 2.0, which includes new online technologies such as blogs, RSS feeds and even Twitter, so comes the inception, and, I’d like to think, conception of Scotslawblog.com, formerly WardblawG.com.

Founded by me, Gavin Ward, a trainee solicitor at a Scottish firm in Edinburgh, qualifying in August 2010, former tutor and published author in the Juridical Review, this shall be a new platform for me and, indeed, my colleagues and peers across Scotland and beyond, to discuss, in an open environment without too much fence-sitting, the most important and relevant legal and commercial updates affecting Scottish businesses and law firms, together with other topics of interest to the legal profession.

I hope this creates as much contribution and success as the effort I ,and my colleagues, put into it!

Gavin Ward, 23 June 2010

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