Thanks to the Impact blog and the IPKAT for drawing this site’s attention to the action brought by the RIAA against one Jeffrey Howell for ‘just’ copying CDs from disk to disk (CD to computer). The Washington Post has the story here but the reaction is at least as interesting as the story itself. And…
My first prediction is that SCL members are in for a bumper year. Even if your stocking was not filled with all that you hoped, I am sure that SCL will more than make up for the fact that the feverishly anticipated wii turned out to be socks. With lots of plans afoot for a…
From Roger Bickerstaff, Partner at Bird & Bird and SCL Trustee: www.twobirds.com 1. I predict an increasing focus on open source software in the business applications environment for major corporate users – not for cost or ideological reasons but more for vendor independence reasons. Open source gives major corporate users an opportunity to develop and…
From Chris Dale, consultant specialising in litigation support and e-discovery: www.chrisdalelawyersupport.co.uk/ A judge strikes out a Statement of Case because the party has failed to comply with the disclosure requirements of the Practice Direction to Part 31 CPR. The Court of Appeal upholds the decision, finding that the judge acted proportionately and within his management…
From Charles Christian, the editor of the industry newsletter Legal Technology Insider Industry news is going to be the big thing in 2008. Will the IRIS Legal group (which now encompasses the old AIM, Laserform, Mountain and Videss businesses, as well as the Bar supplier Meridian) convince the market that its future strategy – including…
Organisations must get cleaner, smarter and more focussed to meet their ever-increasing responsibilities towards the environment and a sustainable economy. Yet, in doing so they should still stay competitive and harness the benefits of IT to drive up business value. They will require the services of professional innovators who, by measured activities, can transmute disjointed…
The CPD questions relating to the December 2007/January 2008 issue of Computers & Law magazine (Online course code HW/SFCL6 – 1 hour)…
In R v Harrison [2007] EWCA Crim 2976, Mr Justice Cranston, giving the lead judgment of the Court of Appeal, has dealt with what he described as a novel argument. The case concerned a conviction under the Protection of Children Act 1978, s 1 and the Criminal Justice Act 1988, s 160 – what might…
According to a new survey published by Kroll Ontrack, there is a serious hole in the plethora of policies relating to corporate risk. The Kroll Ontrack survey of in-house lawyers finds that less than half of organisations (48% in the UK, 43% US) have a strategy or policy in place on how to deal with…
From Simon Briskman, a partner in the Technology Law Group at Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP: www.ffw.com US corporations will lobby Europe to simplify privacy laws, allowing smarter Web advertising. We will also see new Web 2.0 entrants causing valuation jitters for current platform owners. Joost and other peer-to-peer solutions will spread, whilst applications such as…