The new Law Society head Paul Marsh has vowed to make the business of law the overarching theme of his 12 months in office.

The Lawyer reported Marsh as saying “This isn’t mutually ­exclusive with the law being a profession. You can be very, very professional and still be businesslike,” said Marsh. “Having a hard nose in business itself will ­provide clients with a better service, especially in the ­current economic climate.”

After winning £60,000 in damages from the News of the World for breach of privacy, Max Mosley launches libel proceedings against the News of the World . Norfolk-based Steeles Law has been retained by Mosley, issuing a writ for defamation against the newspaper on Friday (25 July).

The saga continues…

BT, Virgin, Orange, Tiscali, BSkyB and Carphone Warehouse have all signed up the deal, which will see hundreds of thousands of letters sent to net users suspected of illegally sharing music.

Geoff Taylor, chief executive of the BPI, which represents the music industry, said: "All of the major ISPs in the UK now recognise they have a responsibility to deal with illegal file-sharers on their networks," and added, "Conversations are ongoing between record labels and ISPs."

Mr Taylor continued: "The focus …

Clive Wismayer, of Wismayers Solicitors, Great Bookham filed a High Court order to force a county court to list a hearing on a landlord-tenant case in protest at what he claims is the ‘appalling’ level of administrative failures at courts.

HM Courts Service (HMCS) has declined to comment on individual cases although it did confirm that there has been a decline in complaints in recent years. In 2007-08, 8,556 complaints were made about county courts, 18% down on the previous …

Giuliani appears to be alleging that his golf scholarship at Duke is a contract, in which the University has to provide four years’ tuition, room and board, not terminable at the will of Duke. As a consequence, Andrew will probably have to forego the lucrative PGA career that may have awaited him, and maybe go to law school instead. This is the full version of the complaint.

Andrew Giuliani is suing based on promises allegedly made by his former (deceased) …

The 29-year-old, of west London, has been charged with war crimes in the US. His lawyers say the UK has proof his testimony was given after torture and have launched a court battle to make the UK government release evidence for his defence. A two-day hearing at the High Court will consider Binyam Mohamed’s bid for a judicial review of the matter.

He is to face a military tribunal and could face the death penalty if convicted of conspiring to …

Microsoft, the software giant, has told law firms across the globe that they must trim fees and scrap hourly-rate billing if they want to continue working for the company.

Brad Smith, senior vice president and general counsel, outlined the launch of a plan designed to slash Microsoft’s legal spend over the next 12 months.

Mr Justice Eady said: “The claimant had a reasonable expectation of privacy in relation to sexual activities (albeit unconventional) carried on between consenting adults on private property.”

Eady went on to say: “Nor can it seriously be suggested that the case is likely to inhibit serious investigative journalism into crime or wrongdoing, where the public interest is more genuinely engaged.”

However the latter point has been vigorously contradicted by numerous representatives of tabloid media and the privacy v freedom of expression debate …

It has been reported that Linklaters senior partner David Cheyne and Slaughter and May corporate partner Nigel Boardman joined a discussion recently to consider what might be offered to those nearing retirement age and what help could be given to them finding positions outside the law.

Some of the City’s leading legal names have called for more options to be made available to partners as they approach retirement age. Whatever happened to the golf course or retirement villas in sun …

A cable repairman from Bakersfield in the US had his cherry picker stolen from under him whilst fixing overhead lines.

Police said the Brighthouse Networks truck was pinched on Saturday while 50-year-old Curtis Bartell was elevated 25 feet in the air.

Whilst making his escape, the thief tore down several phone lines before crashing into a utility pole. Police confirmed that the lucky Mr Bartell did not suffer any major injuries.

The bad news just keeps on coming in the world of property with job losses for lawyers and support staff across the country. Barnetts and Dickinson Dees are consulting on potential redundancies and Shoosmiths has seen 23 voluntary redundancies in its Northampton residential conveyancing team. Rumours abound about other ‘voluntary’ redundancies in some of the regional firms property departments.

As one agent put it: ‘We’re seeing both newly qualified and highly experienced residential property solicitors who’ve been made redundant. And …

Everyone seems to be getting in on the green bandwagon these days with oil prices hitting all time highs in the last few weeks and ’sustainable’ growth becoming the new mantra of business and politics but…

Lawyers John Steel QC and James Strachan, representing the Local Government Association, said an existing planning policy statement covered the concept of providing housing in new settlements in an environmentally sustainable way and that there was not clear justification for promoting eco-towns outside the …

Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr has been hit by a $12m negligence claim after anti-virus software maker McAfee accused the US firm of overbilling, writes The Recorder. 

The claim relates to the trial of former McAfee chief financial officer Prabhat Goyal. McAfee is accusing WilmerHale of fraud, theft, negligence and breach of fiduciary duty. 

Radovan Karadzic is wanted on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

He was arrested in Serbia on Monday, and has three days to appeal against his transfer to the UN war crimes court at The Hague.

Svetozar Vujacic, the lawyer acting for the former Bosnian Serb leader has said he will fight moves to extradite him to the The Hague. Mr Karadzic has been indicted by the UN tribunal for war crimes and genocide related to the war …

This may not come as a surprise to many but a recent study discussed in the Journal of Consumer Research has shown that bikinis and other sexy stimuli can make men more prone to seek immediate gratification. Such impulsive behaviour can lead to blown diets, budgets and bank accounts.

Although most firms are not likely to have dress down policies liberal enough to allow bikinis in the office, some men are more easily affected than others. However, don’t assume …

The Bar Vocational Course is set to be renamed as the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) as stakes rise on access to the Bar.

On a darker note….. Our friends across the pond are preparing their partners for sinking revenues as they take stock of their financial progress at the half-year stage.

With US firms having their best year ever in 2007, the top 50 firms generating a collective revenue of $46.8bn (£23.4bn).

However now, With the sky falling in on over zealous mortgage folk, and the ever present end of the economic world predictions, 2008 seems a lot tougher. 

Are we nearly there yet? The UK’s top law firms led by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance and Linklaters are driving through the credit crunch achieving double-digit revenue growth for the third year running with average profits per equity partner (PEP) rising by 7.3%.

Others including Ashurst, CMS Cameron McKenna and Simmons & Simmons all grew their top line by more than 15%, with Herbert Smith and Norton Rose growing their revenues by more than 20%.

Much has been made of the top legal earners recently and a new report suggests that top City lawyers can earn up to ten times the national average for those in the legal profession.

The national average earnings are estimated at approximately £50,000, whilst the average amongst the top earners at City firms tops £500,000.

Dickinson Dees has begun redundancy talks with three of the four departments in its volume business.

Approximately 165 staff, including a number of qualified solicitors, are employed by its volume arm ‘d3,’ which deals in remortgage, conveyancing, repossession and loss recovery and Home Information Packs (HIPs).