Ludicrous laws from lawmakers…

On the day when The Queen tells us what her government is going to do next (Although Gordon Brown rather ruined it this year by telling us when he became PM) the BBC has coverage of the ‘most ludicrous laws’.

A little-known law which prohibits people dying while in the Houses of Parliament has been voted the UK’s most ludicrous piece of legislation.

There is a whole raft of ludicrous laws in the story: See the BBC.

Hat Tip to Martin George at Clifford Chance sponsored Conflict of Laws.net for alerting me to this vital piece of breaking news. Curious that he thought of me…. but there we are!

To redress the impression of being interested only in Rioja and the bizarre – I am pleased to be able to say that I ‘ll be doing something a bit more useful by doing a podcast with Simon Myerson QC of Pupillage and how to get it on, not surprisingly, pupillage and how to get it.

I was going to do an in-depth analysis of The Queen’s Speech – but now I see that the sun has gone down and as I have been working since 2.00 am this morning – it is Rioja time.

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Podcast 32: Peter Rouse on why you need IMAGE…

Stressed?.. tired?.. depressed?… then you need IMAGE.

Today I am talking to Peter Rouse, Solicitor, following up from an earlier podcast on how to deal with stress, workload and exploring ways to better self management.

Peter’s website covers the IMAGE concept in some detail if you wish to follow up on matters raised in this podcast.

Podcast 32: Peter Rouse on why you need IMAGE

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STOP PRESS! 6 November: FREE Copies of Peter Rouse’s book “Every Relationship Matters” worth £10.The first 10 people who email Peter direct and provide name and address will be sent the book!

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Drink, drugs and rock and roll…

Trawling through the various online versions of newspapers at 4.00 this morning, replete with knowledge from the sensible newspapers about developments in the law, Jack Straw shelving plans to let judges return to practising law and the credit crunch affecting the world banking system, I just had to go to The Sun and The Mirror websites.

First up in The Sun was an item about Drunken Texts. Yes… many of us have sent intemperate emails when over refreshed and, indeed, I may (but make no formal admission) have written the odd blog post while enjoying a glass of Rioja. One example of a drunken text cited by The Sun: “If I could re-arrange the alphabet, I’d put u and I together” had a hint of romance about it but was just a variant of the ‘do you want a shag later’ texts flying around the country on Friday nights.

Then I discovered that “FALLEN soccer star Paul Gascoigne was grounded by airport staff for being too sozzled to fly.” before moving on to a call by The Sun to lock Pete Doherty up for going back on heroin. The Sun wants magistrates to step up to the plate and jail him for his own good… or the good of the newspaper circulation figures.

And then it was on to read about “Macca’s smacker with a married cracker”. It was enough. I could take no more. I pushed a white flag out of my study window and surrendered to Police Community Support officers who were loitering in the vicinity checking tax discs and hedge growth.

Off for an espresso or three and a few Silk Cuts. The Cafe I frequent opens as 6.30 am… mercifully.

I did like the pic (above) warning other newspapers off – it was, after all, a “Sun World Exclusive”. At least I managed to shoehorn a bit of law in…

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One way ticket…

Jack Straw has ditched controversial reforms that would have allowed judges, including former Lord Chancellors, to return to work as lawyers after a stint on the bench. (The Times)

These plans, hatched by former Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, have been scuppered by the senior judiciary. The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips, is reported as saying ” the plans would expose judges to accusations of bias and damage the public view of them as independent and impartial.”

Of course, these plans, had they gone forward, would have allowed Lord Falconer and other judges to return to the more lucrative, yet less stable, world of the Bar or practice in a law firm. The Times does point out that Lord Falconer had always insisted that these reforms would not apply to him because he had appointed judges and could not go back to appearing in front of them.

So… a one way ticket to stability, a pension and a Knighthood (High Court) or remain in practice seems to be the order of the day… and so order is restored.

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Pic by Norman Baird, Consilio 

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