All posts by Roger Smith

Technology and the Delivery of Family Law

Family law: distinct but similar  The delivery of family law has a number of particular characteristics. it is a major area of court activity and legal practice in almost all jurisdictions – reflecting the social prevalence of family problems. In 2020, there were just over 100,000 divorces granted in England and Wales. Throw in partners, … Continue reading Technology and the Delivery of Family Law

Pinball, International Conferences and Access to Justice

The International Access to Justice Online Forum has been like ‘pinball with flashing lights and ringing bells’ said a reflective Lynne Haultain, executive director of Victoria Law Foundation that organised it jointly with the University of California Civil Justice Research Initiative. The videos of discussion over three days have recently gone online. We need to … Continue reading Pinball, International Conferences and Access to Justice

Zoom and Legal Outreach: the Manchester experience

Pretty well all legal service organisations will have made use of video communication over the Covid period. Some have used it for community outreach work as well as internal communication between staff and external with clients. A previous post covered experience in British Columbia (where the People’s Law School started experimenting with zoom educational outreach … Continue reading Zoom and Legal Outreach: the Manchester experience

Division in the courts – small claims this way, others that

An obvious major issue for those involved in digitalising the courts is whether innovation might be more in the interest of some involved in litigation at the expense of others. The senior civil judge in England and Wales, Master of the Rolls Sir Geoffrey Vos, has just walked into a mild (his critics were, after … Continue reading Division in the courts – small claims this way, others that