Northamptonshire Law Society Bulletin Spring 2024 Issue

Published by East Park Communications Ltd.

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Media No. 1111

Published May 2024

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The President Writes... My Proudest Role

I always remember the enthusiasm I had when I joined the NLS Council back in 2016. The idea of being part of something greater than myself and to regularly meet with like-minded individuals and contribute to making the legal profession better really excited me. I never once thought that one day I’d be the President of our great Society but Council saw it fit to put me in the seat so who am I to argue with them?

When I first took over this role, I had various milestones I wanted to reach and, I’m happy to say, some of them have been met. I don’t think there are many presidents who achieve everything they set out to do, even with all the will in the world. You just have to give it your best shot and hope that you haven’t let down those people who have entrusted you with this responsibility.

As President, I have had the pleasure of attending various events, all of which have been memorable. I listed many of these events in my last article and won’t repeat them here. Some of the highlights have been attending the Derby & District Law Society Dinner, the Nottinghamshire Law Society Dinner and I have the Leicestershire Law Society and Birmingham Law Society Dinners to look forward to before my tenure ends.

In my time as President, I’ve had the pleasure of working with some really

great minds and have to say Carolyn is simply indispensable to the Society. I have been lucky enough to have immediate Past President Jabeer Miah there to help me navigate my way through it all and a very supportive VicePresident in Sarah Franklin.

I’m extremely grateful to the NLS Council for their continued support throughout and particularly to our members and Patrons who keep us afloat as an organisation.

The journey isn’t over and I would very much like to finish on a high.

Many thanks

Maurice Muchinda President, Northamptonshire Law Society 05.2024

Northamptonshire Law

Society Officers & Council Members 2024

President

Maurice Muchinda

Vice President

Sarah Franklin

Honorary Secretary

Ika Castka - Past President

Honorary Treasurer

Afua Adane

Council Members:

Immediate Past President

Jabeer Miah

Sharine Burgess- Past president

David Browne

Laura Carter

Michael Orton Jones

Euan Temple - Past President

Edward St John Smyth - Past President

Lynsey Ward

Oliver Spicer - Past President

Society Manager

Carolyn Coles

Northamptonshire Law Society

The Gatehouse, Stable Lane

Pitsford

Northampton

NN6 9NG

Tel: 01604 881154

Email: Sec.nls@outlook.com

All Council members should in the first instance be contacted through the Society Manager.

The positive effects of AI in law firms

Much has been said about AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the legal space.

Whichever side of the fence you sit on, AI has undoubtedly caused a stir. This is shown by the size of the global legal technology market. Valued at USD 23.45 billion in 2022; an expected compound growth rate is set to rise 9.1% from 2023 to 2030.

It’s no secret that law firms need to digitally transform in order to successfully meet changing client needs. Yet most legal processes use software that requires humans to make decisions - making transformation a huge challenge.

AI is set to transform law firms in profound ways.

Just a few examples include automating and enhancing tasks such as document review, evidence gathering, and case prediction analytics. AI-powered legal tech enables legal professionals to focus on strategy and client engagement.

For instance, use legal AI to sift through thousands of case files to:

• Identify relevant precedents

• Predict possible outcomes based on historical data

• Draft preliminary legal documents

These are all tasks that traditionally consume considerable time and resources.

AI for legal research

According to a recent Thomson-Reuters report, 82% of lawyers believe generative AI can be used for legal research.

AI is adept at quickly and easily discovering nuances in complex fact patterns – similarities, minute variances, and parallels the human eye might not spot.

Its deep learning capabilities can dissect extensive datasets and mine for the subtlest consistencies or deviations. Even if human lawyers do identify these nuances, it would take a vast amount of manual time.

AI for eDiscovery

As the channels we use for communication have grown more complex, so has discovery.

The overwhelm stems not just from the sheer volume of information, but also the proliferation of disparate communication methods, such as email and short-form messaging applications like Slack and Microsoft Teams.

AI assistants make searching and understanding enormous document productions fast and simple — both finding and identifying evidence, and ignoring irrelevant data.

Perhaps the biggest strategic advantage for legal teams in using AI in the eDiscovery stage is the ability to understand cases and set strategy from the start. Being able to assess risk as fast as possible means you can advise clients whether to settle or not, or who to depose first.

AI for client retention

Effective client retention relies on more than just being able to expertly handle contracts; it hinges on understanding and exceeding client expectations.

Implementing AI in the right way can not only reshape how law firms handle contractual relationships but also enhance the ability to retain and nurture long-term client partnerships.

Clients expect results, and increasingly seek lawyers who can provide not just sound legal counsel but also proactive and efficient services.

AI’s smart features, such as automatic case updates, represent a significant advantage for clients. Keeping clients informed about the progress of their cases in real time fosters both transparency and trust – and with AI, lawyers can offer this without manual, time-consuming updates.

Clients have grown more discerning about the responsible use of technology in legal practice. It has become a common perception that lawyers who harness tech tools like AI can significantly boost their efficiency.

Tellingly, 75% of respondents in the recent LexisNexis Generative AI report believe their clients will expect to be made aware of AI tools in action.

The legal future is AI

This revolutionary way of working alongside AI allows lawyers to spend more time on case strategy and client interaction. Which, in turn, sets firm foundations to increase revenue, get ahead of the competition, and ultimately grow their law firms.

By Becky Whittaker

Legacies on the rise: tracking study out now

Our annual consumer tracking study has found that public appetite for legacy giving is on the rise, with more than one in five charity donors (21%) aged 40+ saying they have included a charitable gift in a Will, up from one in seven (14%) in 2010. Over the same period, rejection of legacy giving has dropped from 13% to 9%.

Figures from 2023, released today, found that supporters with a Will in their 40s and 50s are most likely to have pledged a legacy gift – with almost four in ten (37%) having included a charity. This compares with around one quarter (27%) of those aged over 60. Legacy pledgers are also more likely to be single and without children or grandchildren. Pledger rates are highest amongst those who are affluent, aware of the inheritance tax incentives and who have sought professional advice for their finances.

Three quarters of supporters (77%) say they would be willing to leave a small percentage of their estate to charity, with more than one in ten (13%) saying they would be open to leaving 10% or more of their estate.

Our consumer benchmarking study*, carried out by independent research firm OKO, surveys more than 2,000 charity donors aged 40+ to track legacy giving attitudes and behaviour year-on-year. Over the last 14 years, the study, which follows Prochaska’s Stages of Change model, has tracked long-term forward movement in legacy giving from awareness through to preparation and action.

Lucinda Frostick, director of Remember A Charity, welcomes the findings, saying: “This study shows the long-term positive shift in legacy giving attitudes and behaviour, and that the propensity for giving in this way is gaining ground beyond the Baby Boomer generation, particularly for those in their 40s and 50s. This indicates that there’s great potential for continued growth of the legacy market, but it also stresses the importance of supporter stewardship.

“Legacy income is crucial for an increasing number of charities. While we can’t impact the economic environment that drives legacy values, we can positively influence the proportion of people choosing to leave a gift; by working together, and engaging with legal partners, Government and others to make legacy giving a social norm.”

Will-writing trends

The study shows an incremental rise in Will-writing, with almost two thirds (64%) of supporters having written a Will, up from 63% in 2022 and 62% in 2021. Of those with a Will in place, almost one third (31%) have included a legacy donation, up from 29% in 2022. Around three in ten (29%) pledgers added charities when making changes to an existing Will.

The average age when first making a Will is 51 years, although more affluent individuals are more likely to write their Will at a younger age.

Key life stages, such as births, deaths and marriage are the main triggers for Will-writing, with the death of a loved one featuring more heavily for younger Will-making, and retirement a common trigger for older Will-makers.

Professional advisers continue to play a key role in Will-writing with almost six in ten supporters (57%) saying they have used or would use a solicitor to write their Will and 17% a Professional Will-writer. Free Will schemes are more likely to appeal to younger and less affluent audiences.

Legacy giving is one of the largest sources of voluntary income for UK charities, raising £4 billion annually**.

Additional findings include:

• 64% of legacy pledgers haven’t let charities know they have included a gift;

• Of those, almost half (47%) say it never occurred to them to tell the charity;

• And for 25% of them, they can’t see how it would help to let the charities know;

• The biggest barrier to leaving a gift in a Will for supporters is that they want to leave everything to family or friends (63%).

Remember A Charity works with charities, a network of legal advisers, partners and Government to grow legacy giving all year round. We also hosts the annual Remember A Charity Week, taking place 9-15 September 2024.

*OKO, Legacy Giving Consumer Benchmark Study

Commissioned by Remember A Charity, the consumer benchmark study explores the public’s attitudes to legacy giving, with regular surveys carried out since 2009. The latest survey was carried out by OKO in December 2023; an online survey of 2,001 charity supporters across the UK, aged 40+. The research has been carried out by OKO since 2021, and nfpSynergy before that.

**Legacy Foresight, 2023

The UK’s Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023: New failure to prevent fraud offence

The UK’s Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (the Act) makes sweeping changes to law and regulation to fight fraud, corruption and money laundering, and bolster legitimate business, which are designed to have a significant impact on organisations’ culture and behaviours.

The Act achieves this in various ways, including changing the role of Companies House to be a more active regulator, reforming the rules for creating companies and limited partnerships, and enabling the seizure of crypto assets. It also creates a new criminal offence — the failure to prevent fraud — for which entities can face a heavy fine, and changes the “identification doctrine” to make it easier to establish an entity’s legal liability for economic crimes.

In this article, the first in our two-part series on the Act, we focus on the new failure to prevent fraud offence and identify ways in which Marsh can support organisations. The second article will examine changes to the “identification doctrine” and the implications for directors and officers (D&O) insurance.

Stated aims of the Act

The stated aims of the Act are as follows:

• Support businesses by updating the role of Companies House.

• Prevent criminals from using company and partnership structures to abuse and exploit the UK’s open economic model.

• Strengthen the UK’s response to economic crime by holding entities to account.

• Encourage a culture shift in organisations, such that they take active steps to reduce fraud.

The failure to prevent fraud offence — prevention measures as a defence

The new failure to prevent fraud offence is committed when “large organisations” fail to prevent fraud by an “associate”, where the fraud benefits the organisation or those to whom the organisation provides services. A relevant entity is a “large organisation” only if it satisfies two or more of the following conditions:

1. More than 250 employees

2. More than £36 million in turnover

3. More than £18 million in assets

However, smaller subsidiaries of large organisations are caught by the Act, and smaller organisations that fall outside this definition may also need to take steps if they are an “associate” of a large organisation that now requires them to have appropriate controls in place. It has also been suggested that the definition of large organisations may expand in the future to include more, smaller entities.

“Associate” is a broad term. It covers entities and individuals, and encompasses any employees, agents, subsidiaries, or service providers of the organisation. The Act applies if the associate is based overseas, provided the offence would constitute fraud under UK law or defraud UK residents. Similarly, if an employee commits fraud overseas, the employer can be prosecuted in the UK.

The penalty if found guilty of failing to prevent fraud is an unlimited fine for the entity, though not for individuals. There is no requirement to prove that directors or senior management within the organisation were aware of the fraud. However, there is a defence if the organisation had reasonable fraud prevention procedures in place at the time, to encourage organisations to adopt a more proactive approach to fraud prevention.

What are reasonable fraud prevention measures?

As mentioned above, an organisation will have a defence if it has taken reasonable steps to prevent fraud, or if it can evidence that it was not reasonable for it to have any fraud prevention measures in place. What would constitute reasonable steps has yet to be articulated. The Government is set to produce guidance in 2024, but organisations should review their existing fraud prevention controls to make sure they are up to date and robust.

The question of what fraud prevention measures are reasonable depends on the risk of fraud, making it imperative that organisations properly assess their fraud risk. Although the fraud must benefit the organisation, this can be interpreted widely.

The failure to prevent fraud offence will come into force in late 2024 or early 2025, after the Government issues its guidance. Now is the time for organisations to assess whether current fraud detection and prevention measures are sufficiently robust and what “reasonable” prevention measures means for them.

How Marsh can help

To support organisations in identifying gaps in their fraud risk management framework and improving their internal controls, Marsh Advisory has developed a comprehensive suite of fraud risk management services. Marsh Advisory’s engagement is bespoke to an organisation’s needs and aims to elevate the maturity of the organisation in preventing and detecting fraud via four key areas.

1. Organisation and guidelines

Organisations should ensure there are clearly defined roles and responsibilities related to fraud risk management. There should be endorsement from senior leadership, and internal policies

and procedures need to be put in place and disseminated widely, supported by appropriate staff training.

2. Fraud risk assessment

Organisations should proactively identify and evaluate fraud risks through frequent fraud risk assessments with input from internal and external stakeholders. Findings from assessments should be escalated appropriately and acted upon.

3. Fraud risk monitoring

Depending on the size of the organisation, the use of data analytics tools should be explored to assist with identifying fraud in real time. If advanced technology is out of scope, regular monitoring activities can include random checks, sample audits, inventory reviews, and records audits.

4. Strategic insurance review

For known fraud risks, in addition to implementing mitigation and preventative controls, organisations should assess whether the fraud events are already, or can be, covered by insurance.

Our engagement is specifically designed to meet the unique needs of your organisation and aims to elevate the experience in preventing and detecting fraud via the areas discussed above. For information about Marsh Advisory’s fraud risk management services, contact Thu Nguyen: thu.nguyen@ marsh.com or Nam Qureshi: nam.qureshi@marsh.com

Our second article in this series will be out shortly and will address what this and other changes in the Act mean for D&O insurance.

What is a charitable foundation and why would businesses or individuals set them up?

These are charities set up as a corporate entity or group (or by an individual or their family) that are run independently by their own boards of trustees in the best interests of the charity’s purpose, and which are not beholden to the founders – albeit there may well be continuing links and alignment between founder and charity, for mutual benefit.

Some of the main reasons for setting up charity foundations (with grateful acknowledgement to the Association of Charitable Foundations are):

• A corporate donor is entitled to be proud of the achievements of a foundation it has created and to refer to it, providing only that it never presents those achievements as its own.

• Some companies, after years of establishing disparate CSR activities, unite them all under a charitable foundation to ensure that all are captured in a CSR report and that they complement each other and maximise effort for charitable return.

• Having a foundation can be great for staff morale and building a sense of common purpose and a possible factor in attracting the best new talent to your organisation. Single donations from your company to a charity may or may not even be noticed by staff, but the steady stream of foundation grants or activities can be reported in staff newsletters and employees can share in the pride that their fundraising efforts are going to support a range of charities and build a sense of momentum. Supporting a foundation can contribute to an organisation’s focus on ESG issues, in particular by helping to strengthen its own culture.

• Trust in business is a fragile thing; businesses are sometimes accused of exploiting their charitable activities for commercial benefit. But setting up an independent foundation to do charitable work without being directly controlled by the business is a valid response to all the cynicism.

• A foundation is a constant reminder that businesses are not faceless machines but are run by people and shareholders who take responsibility for seeking to improve the society in which they live and work. It is a visible correction to the assumption that businesspeople only care about the bottom line.

• Individuals may set up their own foundations for similar reasons, as well to create a personal legacy or to imbue successive generations of their family with the philanthropic spirit that has motivated them to seek to make a positive difference.

Setting up a charitable foundation may be an appropriate way of achieving some or all of these goals but it is not the only one and there are alternatives.

By Robert Nieri robert.nieri@shoosmiths.com

Robert Nieri is a Legal Director at Shoosmiths LLP specialising in advising charities and businesses on their dealings with charities, whether to further their CSR or ESG aspirations.

This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It is recommended that specific professional advice is sought before acting on any of the information given.

Headway East Northants London Marathon 2024

This is an article by Eve Burgess, aged 14, daughter of Sharine Burgess, Partner in the Serious Injury department and head of the Personal Injury team based at Shoosmiths Northampton. Headway was Sharine’s charity when she was President of NLS.

The London Marathon first took place in 1981 and is one of the most popular marathons in the world for runners and spectators alike. This year was no exception as around 48,000 runners took part in perfect running conditions on 21 April 2024. This figure included 31 volunteers running to raise much needed funds for local charity Headway East Northants (HEN).

HEN operates an activity centre facility in Irthlingborough, Northants. The charity was established in 1999 as an affiliation of Headway UK, the brain injury association. It provides a range of services for people aged 18 and over that have an acquired brain injury in East Northamptonshire, including counselling, education and respite care, with support also provided to their families.

The work HEN does to support, develop and enrich the lives of adults with acquired brain injuries in Northamptonshire is vital and the money raised by volunteers running the London Marathon is crucial to enable the charity to carry on doing great work in our community.

I am volunteering for HEN as part of my Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award and went down to the London with HEN to watch the event. I had a brilliant, but windy, vantage point at Limehouse at the 14 mile point and took these amazing photos.

It was a great experience. Laura Richards, Admin and Fundraising Co-ordinator at HEN, was with me on the day and said: “It’s an absolute pleasure to be here today to cheer on our Team HEN London Marathon Runners. Their commitment to fundraising for our small charity has been inspiring and everyone at HEN greatly appreciates how hard they have worked to get here. The London Marathon is our main source of fundraising, every penny raised ensures the continuation of our service supporting adults with acquired brain injury within our community, quite simply we couldn’t do that without our marathon runners and their supporters.”

To find out more about HEN please visit their website: HEN - Home (headwayeastnorthants.org.uk)

By Eve Burgess (aged 14)

Safeguarding Estate Administration: The 4 keys areas of Family Tree Verification

In the probate genealogy industry, family tree verification ensures that inheritances and estates are rightfully distributed to the correct beneficiaries. This is a vital step for solicitors and other legal professionals dealing with the administration of a client’s estate. We will delve into the four crucial areas that emphasise the importance of family tree verification, highlighting why legal professionals should lean on the unique expertise and resources of a probate genealogy company.

Importance of a Valid Will

As we know, a Will outlines the deceased’s wishes and intentions to distribute their assets. However, it’s not uncommon for discrepancies to arise, whether due to outdated wills, wills not properly witnessed, or the absence of a will altogether. If the Will is invalid, then the rules of intestacy will apply. This is where family tree verification becomes essential.

Validating the family tree ensures that the correct beneficiaries are identified, and the assets are distributed according to the deceased’s true intentions. Without a reliable family tree, there is a risk of distributing the estate incorrectly, which can lead to legal disputes and emotional distress for all parties involved.

Relying on Family Testimonials (Don’t Do It)

Family testimonials can be a valuable source of information when piecing together a family’s history. However, they are often riddled with inaccuracies, omissions, or biased perspectives. Relying solely on family testimonials for genealogical research can lead to incomplete or incorrect family trees.

To avoid such complications, it is essential to cross-reference and validate the information obtained from family testimonials with official records and other credible sources that may only be accessible by a Probate Genealogist. At Finders International, we are experienced in using an arsenal of tools to ensure the accuracy of family trees.

Ensuring the Full Family Tree is Known (Finding Other Branches)

One common pitfall is working exclusively on the immediate family, overlooking other branches of the family tree. In probate cases, unknown distant relatives may have a legitimate claim to the estate, making it vital to explore and verify the complete family tree.

The diligent exploration of all branches of the family tree can uncover potential heirs who might otherwise go unnoticed. By expanding the search and confirming the authenticity of these extended family connections, Finders International can help ensure that rightful heirs receive their due inheritance.

Importance of Worldwide Research

In many cases, family members may be scattered across the globe and may have migrated, changed names, or settled in different countries, making it challenging to track their whereabouts.

International research is crucial to locating distant relatives and establishing their rightful claims. This often involves engaging with international records, immigration documents, and

collaborating with genealogists or experts in different regions. Our dedicated International Research and Asset teams are here to assist in such matters and elevate the burden of what can be a headache area for legal professionals.

Case Study

On instruction, the solicitors were only aware of the Deceased’s child, David. However, our investigation uncovered paperwork relating to an Aviva personal pension and retirement investment account. These documents identified Ruth as the beneficiary, the Deceased’s wife, who the solicitors initially assumed was a halfsibling to the Deceased.

Further investigation led to the discovery of the marriage record between the Deceased and Ruth and a third marriage for the Deceased. Unfortunately, the Deceased’s third wife had predeceased him, and there were no surviving children from their union.

We successfully located Ruth, who now uses her mother’s maiden name. Through a representative visit, Ruth confirmed numerous details about her relationship with the Deceased, including the fact that their marriage had ended in divorce and that they had no children together.

Unaware of the Deceased’s second or third marriages, the solicitors were surprised by our findings. Our thorough research unearthed crucial information about the Deceased’s marital history and provided clarity on potential beneficiaries, ultimately aiding the solicitors in their probate proceedings. Without our involvement, the solicitors may have faced significant delays, legal complications, and potential disputes regarding the distribution of the estate.

If you need a family tree verified or would like to get in contact regarding any of our services, please contact us via email on quotes@findersinternational.co.uk or visit our website www. findersinternational.co.uk.

CON29DW: The Full Picture

Buying a house can be a long and confusing process for many homebuyers. It can be hard for them to understand and interpret search results, but making sure your client has the full picture of the house they are buying is so important.

Geodesys aims to help demystify and speed up the process for both you and your client. The CON29DW is the only drainage and water report on the market that gives your clients all the information they need and is approved by the Law Society. It is designed to provide information on the public sewage and water networks and how they are connected to a specific address.

So, what makes the CON29DW so unique?

Reliability: You can trust that the data your client receives in a CON29DW is reliable, accurate and up to date. Geodesys gets the information in their report for customers in the Anglian Water region, straight from Anglian Water. Although alternative drainage and water reports are available, known as regulated or personal drainage and water reports, these do not use water company data and data quality may not be as good.

Efficiency: Time is everything in the conveyancing industry. Geodesys understands that the time it takes to receive property information can cause delays and may even result in a transaction falling through. That’s why over 90% of their residential reports are delivered within 3 days of ordering, with many being delivered the same day.

Expert Support: The Geodesys team of expert Customer Service Advisors are dedicated to providing support and answering any questions you, or your client, may have at every step of the way. Your confidence in property decisions is their priority.

The CON29DW also comes with robust terms and conditions to support conveyancers and their clients. The terms and conditions include £10m liability cover and a commitment that in the unlikely event something isn’t right, we take responsibility for the information provided.

Whether you are acting for a residential or commercial property there is a CON29DW to help.

CON29DW Residential

• Answers to all 23 Law Society copyrighted questions on drainage and water.

• Includes two maps to illustrate the position of pipes.

• Includes five pages of homeowner information.

• Easy to navigate with interactive features.

CON29DW Commercial

• Comprises of 27 standard questions aligning with the CON29DW residential report.

• Is specifically designed for those purchasing or leasing land or commercial property and covers land or buildings used or proposed to be used for commercial activities.

• Enhanced T&Cs and Indemnity.

If you’re ready for the full picture, head over to the Geodesys website to get in touch or call on 0800 085 8050. Their team is here to answer any questions you may have.

MIPIM – a week in Cannes!

In March Wilson Browne sent along a seven strong contingent to the international property event MIPIM (Le marché international des professionnels de l’immobilier), which is a property festival attracting public and private sector delegates from around the globe.

We weren’t sure quite what to expect, but it was full on and very tiring – long days and lots of walking (OK with the occasional cocktail thrown in!). There were exhibitions, stands, lectures, networking events, networking opportunities outside of the main hub and much more. Inside of the event there were over 20,000 delegates and 8,000 businesses from 90 countries and 340 stands and pavilions.

The event was held at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, so we got the tread the red carpet where the Cannes Film Festival stars strut their stuff. Sadly no Hollywood stars there when we were!

Surprising the people local to Northamptonshire we met during the week, some of whom have been attending the event for many years. It was good to be able to show that it’s not all about the city firms and it was an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the vibrant Northamptonshire business community.

So did we enjoy it? Yes. Was it hard work? Yes.

Estatesearch Launches New Service to Help Legal Firms Maximise the Potential of their Will Banks

15 May 2023: Leading legal technology provider Estatesearch has launched a new Will Bank Management Service to help private client practitioners manage data more efficiently and maximise their potential pipeline of work from existing customers. The unique service also allows firms to understand their client dataset in terms of mortality and comply with GDPR. Several legal firms are already using Estatesearch’s Will Bank Management service successfully.

Estatesearch which was recently named as the Best Legal Industry Service Provider and the Best Technology and Innovation Provider at the Probate Industry Awards, delivers enhanced operational efficiencies, improved risk mitigation and provides access to value-added services to legal firms.

Ben Furlong, Customer Services Director, Estatesearch explains: “We were approached by a number of clients looking for advice on how to manage their Will Banks and stay intouch with their clients more effectively. Will Banks, like any other database, becomes out of date quickly if not routinely managed. According to the Office of National Statistics, there are over 100,000 movers per month and 55,000 deceased per month. Our clients expressed concerned about out-of-date information which might lead to them attempting to contact deceased clients, or sending letters containing personal information to old addresses.

“Cleaning and maintaining databases can be time consuming and poses a challenge for busy private client practitioners heavily focused on day-to-day caseloads. That’s why we have spent the past 18 months working with clients to develop an innovative, but cost-effective management tool to help private client solicitors.”

Dean Miller, Records Governance Manager Shakespeare Martineau said: “As a national law firm operating multiple offices we have a vast range of data obtained from different practices over which can be of varying format and quality. We recently identified a pilot project using data from one of our offices with the aim of better understanding our client base. Working with Estatesearch we were able to quickly and easily screen the data to understand the potential issues and create a business case for cleaning our data. The Estatesearch service yielded extremely helpful data allowing us to quantify clients who had deceased or changed address, and provided a confidence score for those residing at the known address which allowed us to tailor our approach to clients. I would happily recommend the Estatesearch Will Bank Cleansing tools and look forward to working with them on our next project.”

The Will Bank Management service includes three stages – Screening, Cleansing and Notifications. The initial screen provides a free health check of the testator database. This enables firms to see the percentage of out-of-date records, before proceeding with a full cleanse.

Ben Furlong continues: “So far, our findings suggest that an average of 10% of Will Bank records are deceased. In one example, we identified 60 deceased subjects over 12 months, where the firm was only aware of one in three of those.

“Our bespoke platform pulls information from several data sources to complete the cleansing phase, identifying deceased subjects and the date of death as well as forwarding addresses for anyone who may have moved. Finally, our ongoing monitoring phase notifies firms of life events which may impact files and ensures databases can be updated easily, while alerting the professional to the potential needs of a client.”

Estatesearch’s Will Bank Management Service also reduces overheads in relation to ‘return to senders’ and ad hoc database administration in addition to reducing off site storage costs for invalid or deceased Wills.

Furlong concludes: “Research by Gartner tells us that “65% of a company’s business comes from existing customers, and it costs five times as much to attract a new customer than to keep an existing one satisfied. We have developed this service with that in mind, helping firms to maintain the health and integrity of their Will Bank while also maximizing the opportunity for probate work at the same time.”

Find out more about this service in our live webinar on the 4 June at 2pm.

Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/ register/6117156082160/WN_Z9u9gLV0QBiJyN0XmRBulg

For further information please visit: Services - Estatesearch

Motorsport Legal goes International for 2024!

In the five years since I started Motorsport Legal, I have dealt with all sorts of matters including racing driver agreements, sponsorship contracts, team negotiations and disputes through to representation of drivers and teams at the Motorsport UK National Court. This is essentially a tribunal that deals with disciplinary and investigatory hearings and appeals.

Motorsport in the UK has its own General Regulations which all licence holders are expected to abide by. Each individual series or championship also then has a set of Regulations, usually dealing mainly with the technical aspect of the competition.

If a driver gets penalised after a race for one of the offences such as (the most common) ‘driving in a manner incompatible with general safety and/or departing from the standard of a reasonably competent driver’, they can appeal that decision. Initially appeals are usually dealt with at the circuit by the Stewards. Their decision can also then be appealed to the National Court. That’s were I usually get involved.

Then, one chilly day at Donington Park in October last year changed everything! I was asked about a potential case for an international championship and subsequently took the appeal on. This turned out to be a case where the appeal was to the FIA International Court of Appeal in France and the decision would decide if my clients were International Champions or not. It involved the Spanish motorsport governing body and several other parties. All documents had to be translated and submitted in both English and French and we very soon had an 878 page bundle in readiness for the hearing in January in Paris!

The legal counsel for Motorsport UK looked at me aghast when I said I was dealing with the hearing on my own and without at least one or two assistants/paralegals – but my view was that I had lived and breathed this case for over two months and no one knew it better than I.

I arrived in Paris and went to the FIA building, to be pointed in the direction of the meeting room – a huge room with an oval donut shaped table and lots of tech. Strangely, I wasn’t nervous at all. I knew I was ready and as prepared as I could have been and I was excited to get started.

The hearing was due to have simultaneous translation in English/ French and the translators sat behind a screen at one end of the room. To my left were two lawyers from Motorsport UK. At the end were two lawyers from the FIA. To my right was the Spanish lawyer for the other drivers/team and next to him a lawyer from the Spanish motorsport governing body. At the other end were two administrators/clerks and also the Secretary General of the Court and directly opposite me, four Judges – they were Czech, Belgium, French and Australian. Quite the room full!

The hearing began, and I set out my case, followed by a very thorough questioning by the Judges! All of the other parties then had the opportunity to make representations before I summed up my position on behalf of my clients.

There was never any suggestion that we would get an immediate decision and knew it would probably take several days. However, I kind of figured that I must have done an okay job as one of the Judges came up to me afterwards and asked for a business card!

I decide to stay in Paris for one more day to avoid any rushing to catch a flight and, as I wandered through a park alongside the Champs Elysees, my phone pinged. I opened the email to find that a decision had been made already and … we had won and my clients were now International Champions! I let them know immediately and we were all delighted with the result.

The case was ultimately reported and, for those who are interested, can be found here: https://www.fia.com/ judgements-ica

This year started fantastically and has continued in the same vein, with work involving teams and drivers all over the globe! I love the work that I do and, being a racing driver myself, my clients know I have an insight that a non-racing driver lawyer simply wouldn’t have. So, where do we go from here? Watch this space ………..

By Sarah Franklin

Motorsport Legal is a department of Sarah Franklin Solicitors and Sarah can be contacted on sarah@motorsportlegal.co.uk

£80,000 raised by RoKart with the support of Northamptonshire Law Society

The Rotary Club of Nene Valley have organised Rokart for 8 years. In that time, they have raised over £80,000 for local charities. Shoosmiths have been involved since the first event in 2016. In 2017 they were joined by BMTC, Tollers, Hawsons and Wilson Browne, and a heat was specifically devoted to members of NLS. In recent years they have been joined by 12 legal firms most recently Fullers Family law and Franklins. The winner of the heat takes the trophy and title of ‘Fastest Law Firm in Northampton’ together with a place in the grand final with the other heat winners.

This year the heat had to be postponed when changes in temperature and high humidity made the track slippery and dangerous, finally getting underway on 12th March. Unfortunately, this postponement meant that defending champions DFA Law and a couple of the Shoosmiths teams had to withdraw due to team absences, but it proved to be the quickest of all the NLS heats. Tollers won with 277 laps ahead of Shoosmiths 274.

Organiser from Nene Valley Rotary Club, Neil Hufton, observed “the support over the years says something about the legal firms in Northampton. They are either very sporty, great at supporting charities or maybe they are just competitive or perhaps adversarial! Each year the Northamptonshire Law Society heat has been somewhat eventful with more yellow and red flags than any other heat. This year was a much cleaner event and as a result all the teams completed more laps”. Neil also commented “one of the joys of the NLS heat is that it is not just about the winning, as the newcomers also have a good night. They might start tentatively but can produce some surprisingly good times. This year Hawsons and Franklins had laps below 24 secs similar to the winners and Fullers were only a second behind.”

The trophy was presented by this year’s President, Maurice Muchinda, who commented “it looked a lot of fun with the teams rather competitive-I hope I can actually take part next year!” There is also a rumour that VP Sarah Franklin might also be interested!

It was good to see past president Oliver Spicer back on the track in a later heat with his own team from Daimler Trucks.

RoKart Challenge 2024

Rescheduled Heat 4 - 12 March - The Law Society

fullers Family Law 2

The race was a 2 hour endurance race

Each lap is 400 metres

At least 9 changes of driver were required.

Tollers competed in the Final on April 2nd with the winners of all heats. There are some very experienced and regular Go karters in a couple of these teams and it was a remarkable race. The first 3 teams completed 295 laps and the gap between first and second (David Smith Associates and Wheel2Wheel ) was less than half a second after 2 hours’ racing. Tollers finished fifth with 291 laps, which is a further improvement on their 285 laps in 2023 and is a new NLS record. They are getting closer and closer to the podium.

David Harding, President of NVRC this year, would like to thank NLS members for their support “of course the real winners in Rokart are the local charities we support. This year we raised a further £8,500 that will help The Lewis Foundation and Eve, the women’s refuge in Northampton. Our Rotary Club are undertaking a major refurbishment project of their premises, installing new windows, new carpets and redecorating inside and outside. This is a 2-year project costing over £40,000 and Rokart makes a huge contribution to meeting these costs. We really are indebted to the support we receive from yourselves and hope that you will be with us next year. “

Details and entry forms for Rokart 2025 will be available in September.

More than 18,000 orders for eviction as legal aid remains elusive

With the number of evictions and repossessions rising, legal aid is often the last hope. The UK government must act now to expand access to legal aid, warns the Law Society of England and Wales.

New figures* published by the Ministry of Justice, show that mortgage possession claims increased 28% (from 4,035 to 5,182) and landlord possession claims increased by 6% (23,389 to 24,874) compared to the same quarter last year. Landlord possession orders rose 3% from 17,644 to 18,154.

Law Society president Nick Emmerson said: “We are concerned about the number of people who are at risk of becoming homeless.

“With the cost-of-living crisis and high interest rates, many are struggling with rent and mortgage payments and are at risk of losing their homes. More often than not, legal aid is their only hope but it remains out of reach.

“Our research has found that 25.3m people (42%) do not have a local legal aid provider for housing advice.**

“This means that the government’s attempt to increase housing advice under the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service can only have a limited impact. More and more law firms can no longer afford to offer advice, as legal aid rates have decreased by almost 50% since 1996.

“The pressure points are clear and the government must address them urgently to stop the increase in the number of people being made homeless.”

*Statistics taken from Mortgage and Landlord Possession Statistics: January to March 2024

**View our housing legal aid desert map

Hyperlinks in expert reports

The Case

Stateline Transport Limited (‘Stateline’) had been operating a commercial freight storage operation in Dublin, without planning permission, on land leased from Tesco Ireland Limited (‘Tesco’). After the Fingal County Council commenced enforcement action, Tesco applied to the High Court of Ireland for an injunction requiring Stateline to cease its operations. The parties settled before the hearing, with Stateline agreeing to an order requiring it to cease the unauthorised use.

Stateline then applied, with Tesco’s consent, for a 12 month stay of the order, based on the public interest in their operations continuing, before subsequently appealing to the Court of Appeal of Ireland.

The expert evidence

In applying for the stay, Stateline relied on the evidence of four experts, including an economic expert, Dr Gurdgiev. The trial judge also directed that an affidavit be sworn exhibiting the briefing note provided to Dr Gurdgiev. The affidavit identified two errors in the briefing note.

Dr Gurdgiev’s report assessed the impact on the container storage capacity in the Dublin area if Stateline were required to cease its operations, concluding that it would increase costs for Irish importers and exporters, raising prices for end-users and export customers. The report relied on statistics published on the website of the Dublin Port Company which were accessible via a hyperlink in the report.

The trial judge noted that there were a number of discrepancies between the report, on the one hand, and the briefing note and the information on the Dublin Port Company’s website, on the other. Most significant was the omission from the report of any reference to proposed additional storage capacity to be provided by the Dublin Port Company. This omission undermined the confidence which the court could place in the report. The trial judge also noted that on certain critical matters the report relied uncritically on information provided by Stateline.

The Court of Appeal

One of Stateline’s arguments on appeal regarded the weight which should have been attached to the uncontradicted expert testimony it had adduced.

The judge noted that the trial judge had had no concerns about the credibility of Dr Gurdgiev, who was a highly respected and well qualified economist. He had been asked to produce his report in five days and clearly did not purport to have done independent research to confirm the underlying facts upon which he had been instructed.

The concerns that the trial judge found with Dr Gurdgiev’s evidence went to the weight of the evidence rather than its admissibility. That said, the court was not required to accept

evidence because it was uncontradicted. It was also not strictly correct to characterise this as unopposed evidence, because Stateline knew that Tesco had consented to the application, in a commercial agreement, and would not oppose it.

With respect to the hyperlinks within Dr Gurdgiev’s report, the judge noted that “I do not accept the criticism that the trial judge engaged in independent research rather than addressing his concerns to the appellant. If material is hyper-linked in an expert’s report, then it constitutes part of the reference material upon which the report is based and a court is, at very least, entitled (if not expected) to look at it where it has concerns regarding the content of the report itself. This is not ‘independent research’ but rather an attempt to understand an expert report in its own terms.”

Article by Sean Mosby

For the full article with Learning Points, visit: https://ewi-live-portal.azurewebsites.net/News/hyperlinks-in-expertreports

King Charles III announced as new Patron of The Solicitors’ Charity

The Solicitors’ Charity is delighted to learn that King Charles III will be its new Royal Patron.

Following His Majesty The King’s Accession in September 2022, a major review of more than 1,000 Royal Patronages and charity Presidencies was undertaken. To mark the first anniversary of Their Majesties’ Coronation, the conclusions were shared with The Solicitors’ Charity this week.

Queen Elizabeth II was patron of 492 organisations, while King Charles III was affiliated to 441 and Queen Camilla 100. Following the review, just over 830 have been retained by the king and queen or passed to other members of the royal family.

The Solicitors’ Charity is honoured that His Majesty has accepted the patronage of The Solicitors’ Charity. The late Queen Elizabeth II was the Charity’s previous Royal Patron.

The Solicitors’ Charity has been supporting solicitors since 1858. It provides comprehensive support to improve the wellbeing of solicitors, helping them to overcome life’s challenges.

Chair, Ginny Cannon, said: “We are honoured and thrilled that His Majesty The King is to become our Royal Patron. Royal patronage is a huge endorsement of the vital services we offer to solicitors and the positive impact we make on the lives of the people we help.

We are delighted to welcome His Majesty as Patron of the Charity.”

The patronage was announced by the Royal Household to mark the first anniversary of the Coronation. The Solicitors’ Charity was told that King Charles III was “delighted” to accept the role.

Royal patronage endorses the work of more than 800 charities retained by Their Majesties and Members of The Royal Family, including military organisations, and professional and public service bodies in Britain and the Commonwealth. It allows their achievements and valuable contributions to society to be more widely recognised and promoted.

Find out more about the Charity’s work at: thesolicitorscharity.org

The Solicitors’ Charity provides comprehensive support to improve the wellbeing of solicitors, helping them to overcome life’s challenges.

People approach the Charity for help for all sorts of reasonsbecause of struggles with the cost of living and money management, ill health, disability, distress through domestic violence, and anxiety, often caused by work-related stress or life-connected trauma.

Support in the form of regular donations from trusts, foundations, local law societies, firms and individuals, and unclaimed client balances (RCBs) from firms, is needed more than ever by the Charity in these challenging times.

The Solicitors’ Charity works with clients to identify packages of wellbeing support to help them return to being self-sustaining such as:

Emotional/mental support – with providers of psychotherapy, an initial assessment is offered followed by funded sessions with qualified therapists. The Charity part-funds the mental health and wellbeing charity, LawCare, with trained lawyer volunteers providing peer support.

Financial support – if individuals are struggling with finances and money management, with expert partners, the Charity help with budgeting and drawing up practical money management plans. Because of increasing demand, it signed up Pennysmart to provide more capacity and expertise for clients to tap into in 2024.

Professional/career support – clients may be returning to work after a break or may need to change the sector of the law they practice in. Perhaps they have been made redundant and need support with securing their next job. The Charity funds career counselling support with partner, Renovo.

Physical support – anyone can experience physical illness or disabilities affecting their ability to work or manage at home. The Solicitors’ Charity provides occupational health assessments which help with adaptations to continue with life.

The Solicitors’ Charity Chair, Ginny Cannon (pictured), is delighted to learn that King Charles III will be the Charity’s new Royal Patron

And Finally...

Hello, welcome to the second bulletin of 2024.

Since I last wrote, I have had the pleasure of joining some of my counterparts at the Malmaison in Birmingham for a lunch, where we shared some great ideas, and best working practices. I was able to put faces to names whom I have been emailing over the last few years, meet new people who are trying to get a Law society off the ground in their geographical area- it was a wholesome afternoon!

Joe Hobbins from HCR Hewitsons and I have been busy out plotting the route for the Northants Legal walk, which is taking place on Wed June 5th.

We are meeting outside the Law courts at 5.15pm to have a prompt 5.30pm start. There are 5 and 10km routes. We recommend suitable footwear, as we are walking around Delapre park and golf club for much of the route- and most importantly, Dogs are welcome to join us too!

According to a recent report, the advice sector faces a £15-£20 million shortfall when trying to meet the immediate new demand which has been significantly exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis. The problem is urgent. If the funding gap is not closed, unmet demand will continue to increase while tens of thousands of people remain unable to access the services they need.

Please come along and support us, all are welcome. If you are unable to join us, why not make a small donation via the QR code on the left - It all helps, and it goes to local legal charities.

We have the AGM of the Society booked for July 1st, venue and timings will be published once finalised- please free to come along, this is your Society, come and have your say.

Dates have been confirmed for the Awards Dinner, a Family Law training day, and a full day of training latter part of the year with Ian Quayle. I am also delighted to announce that we will have a NLS golf day to be held at Northants County Golf club, on Weds 23rd October.

More information on the above will be shared with you via mail and LinkedIn.

I would love to hear from you, what is going on in your firm, even if it just to let me know about “Hatches. Matches, and Dispatches”

You can contact me on sec.nls@outlook.com Or mobile 07543 662572

Best wishes

Carolyn Coles Society Manager