Bell Yard Blogs
The Q2 2021 Litigation Horizon
So we are on the cusp of a litigation boom if a recent survey by Gallagher, the risk manager and insurance broker, (specifically Its Busines...
Climate change litigation – the heat is on
The battle against climate change is increasingly being fought in the courtroom, with the number of climate litigation cases globally almost...
Right to be offended?
In this seemingly endless time of lockdown, I have found myself hunkering down, fighting a daily battle to block out the constant stream of...
Communications – The Key to Valuing Public Inquiries
It’s been 15 years since the introduction of the Inquiries Act 2005 in the UK, designed to improve the administration of public inquiries...
Comms in the age of Covid-19
Covid-19 hasn’t been good to Sir Richard Branson. A once much-loved public figure, Branson was voted Britain’s favourite businessman in...
CLCA International Summit: reflections from Amsterdam
Despite all the shenanigans of Brexit, Bell Yard was grateful to receive a warm welcome from European colleagues last week at the annual mee...
Language, Timothy!
In an effort to attract hearts and minds, words matter. I’m confident I’m not alone in feeling deep dismay at the debasement of dialogue...
Opposing a pose
Amid the explosive political developments this week surrounding the House of Commons’ vote to rule out a no-deal Brexit, one image above a...
The Singapore Convention on Mediation
The Singapore Convention on Mediation, which opened for signature on 7th August, marked a defining moment in the Alternative Dispute Resolut...
Diversity takes centre stage: Top 6 legal social mobility initiatives
The Sutton Trust recently published a report which found that 65% of the most senior barristers in the UK are drawn from fee-paying schools....
Better kept under wraps?
The recent news that Linklaters obtained an injunction preventing its former CMO from sharing information to expose the firm’s alleged str...
A lesson in sincerity
Gillette’s newest advert, launched last week, created a media storm – but for all the wrong reasons. The advert, riding off the wave...
PR blunders of 2018 – what happened next?
As far as PR crises go, 2018 was a shaky year – retailers were brought to a standstill, CEOs were toppled and one of Britain’s best-love...
NDAs: Beware of what you wish for
Disputes invariably come down to money. Whether you already have much of it and want more, or too little and also want more. Let’s face it...
#MeToo – a year on: Lessons for law firms
It’s a year since the start of the #MeToo movement and perhaps more than any other profession, various big name law firms have found thems...
It’s silly season – but for whom?
A chuckle resonated through western media in June when a Japanese water company issued a public apology to its customers when it was reveale...
Youth, I do adore thee
The race to capture the millennial vote reached the height of farcicality this week when the Conservatives launched an online competition fo...
GDPR: the reputational risks
You’re probably sick of hearing about GDPR – to be honest, so are we! But what does interest us is the reputational risks to a company,...
An unconventional audience: targeting the student community
Disgruntled students received more than £650,000 in refunds and compensation from universities over the last year, with the Office of the I...
The future cost of litigation
Behind many a closed door lies a scandal. The Financial Times’ recent exposé of the Presidents Club’s dirty dinner evinced the venom an...
Paradise Papers: reputations unscathed?
With the media sensation surrounding Paradise Papers tempering, talk has turned to the legal and financial consequences of the leak –...
Data breaches: a crib sheet for the Channel Islands
Reports that Appleby’s office in the Isle of Man may have been hacked in the Paradise Papers scandal, in addition to the firm’s office i...
Lawyers’ clients outline bugbears, and words matter
Reading this research commissioned by the Legal Ombudsman, Bell Yard firmly concurs that an early, simple, but genuine “sorry” can do wo...
The Wife of Weinstein – the unsuspecting victim
A tainted reputation is like a bad cold. It’s contagious and spreads rapidly by association – as the Harvey Weinstein case has so po...
Raising the Stakes – Employment Tribunal Judgments Are Coming Online
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) recently announced that new employment tribunal decisions will be available online from Autumn 201...
Broken Record? Where does Guy Hands’ Reputation go from here?
Having originally lost a lawsuit against Citigroup in New York 6 years ago for fraudulent misrepresentation in relation to his disaster purc...
Litigating in the Glare of Publicity
It takes a brave, or perhaps admirably thick-skinned, person to bring legal action against a former employer, particularly one that attracts...
Privacy, Public Interest and PR
An individual’s right to privacy versus the public’s right to information is a tussle that recently came to the fore once more. The UK m...
Regulation and Reputation
It can’t have come as a big surprise that an overwhelming majority of the public supports an independent regulator of solicitors. A ComRes...
Not just at Xmas
Black Friday may be a bonanza for retailers in revenue terms but it also represents a key risk day for them and their customers, in the guis...
Just a little bit exploitative?
There’s something truly sad, and rather depressing, about the media appearances by the disconsolate father and stepmother of Becky Watts,...
The Pri(n)ce of Silence
Given London’s credentials as a highly cosmopolitan city, it is well known that our court system attracts family disputes involving intern...
Beware the perils of a tempting lawyers ratings site
The new ‘TripAdvisor’ style website for lawyers – ReviewSolicitors – should come with a series of warnings both for disgruntled...
Consumer Rights Act – No Big Deal for Consumers
The Consumer Rights Act, which came into effect today, 1 October, is unlikely to herald a deluge of class actions despite the implementation...
UK Press Regulator Marks First Year Anniversary with Controversy
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has laid into the UK’s press regulator for rejecting his complaint against the Daily Mail over an article...
Women Warriers – not Worriers
I can’t help but feel that gender difference has indeed played a role in the Chelsea FC doctor saga propelling the story to newspaper fron...
London is still an attractive tourist destination for libel shoppers – but for how long?
London has recently been reaffirmed as the libel capital of the world following the case of Russian businessman and former senator, Vladimir...
Crowdfunding – the future for justice?
Crowdfunding gives retail investors a chance to back projects close to their heart and it’s no surprise that early successes have been in...
Sorry seems to be the hardest word
So the boss of Thomas Cook has finally said sorry to the parents of Christi and Bobby Sheppard, the children killed by a leaky boiler during...
Do we need a British Bill of Rights?
“If the UK really wants to be its own boss it would have to formally withdraw from the ECHR” Marietta Cauchi, Senior Consultant...
Did Ronan have it right?
Communicators lose credibility when the audience thinks of the messenger and not the message… All people want is natural honesty, alon...
