Legal Rights and Political Realities: Governmental Responses to Homelessness in Britain

This article presents a "contextual" study of Britain's Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977. The article addresses the ostensibly perplexing policy question of why Britain's homeless population has almost trebled in the H years since the homelessness legislation was introduced. The answer is found by subjecting the legislation to a very wide-ranging contextualization process. Rather than simply focusing on the administrative arena in which the act is implemented, the article seeks explanations for its apparent ineffkacy in ideological considerations preceding its enactment, in the legislative process itself, in the (im)precise wording of the emergent statute, and in subsequent government policies in various relevant constitutional and social policy areas. The article concludes that a thorough understanding of the impact of this particular law requires it to be located in a series of interrelated contexts, a conclusion that might plausibly be extended to all studies of "law in society."     

Recent changes in the cabinet decision-making system in Ottawa

Abstract: In 1984 significant changes were made in the institutions and procedures which support cabinet decision-making in the Government of Canada. The changes instituted by prime ministers Turner arid Mulroney are summarized in the context of the evolution of the cabinet decision-making system since the Second World War. The principal ways in which the system put in place by Prime Minister Mulroney differ from that prevailing in the latter years of Prime Minister Trudeau's administration are described. The differences include: a larger cabinet; fewer cabinet committees; simplified procedures and fewer expenditure envelopes within the Policy and Expenditure Management System; the consolidation of public service support for cabinet committees within the Privy Council Office, the Treasury Board Secretariat and the Department of Finance; and changes in the interdepartmental consultation process. Sommaire: En 1984, des changements importants ont été apportés aux méthodes et institutions servant le processus décisionnel du Conseil des ministres du gou-vernement canadien. Les changements institués par les premiers ministres Turner et Mulroney sont résumés ici et situés dans le contexte de I'évolution subie par le système décisionnel du Conseil des ministres depuis la deuxième guerre mondiale. L'auteur décrit les principales différences entre le système mis en place par le premier ministre Mulroney et le système qui fonctionnait pendant les dernières aiées de I'administration Trudeau. L'administration Mulroney se distingue notamment de I'administration précédente par les caractéristiques sui-vantes: un plus grand Conseil des ministres; une réduction du nombre de comités du Conseil des ministres; des procédures simplifiées et moins d'enveloppes de dépenses dans le cadre du Systéme de gestion des politiques et des dépenses; une concentration du soutien fourni par les fonctionnaires aux comités du Conseil des ministres au sein du Bureau du Conseil privé, du Secrétariat du Conseil du Trésor et du ministère des Finances; et enfin une modification du processus de consultation interministérielle.     

The mechanism of facial injury

Medicolegal experts are often asked to explain how, why and when facial injuries occurred. This can only be done satisfactorily if they are considered carefully and if all of the associated features are taken into account. One aspect of the topic which has received scant attention in medical and dental texts is Biodynamics, a brief analysis of the principal features of which is reproduced in this paper.     

A Practical Guide for the Formulation of Propositions in the Bayesian Approach to DNA Evidence Interpretation in an Adversarial Environment

The interpretation of complex DNA profiles is facilitated by a Bayesian approach. This approach requires the development of a pair of propositions: one aligned to the prosecution case and one to the defense case. This note explores the issue of proposition setting in an adversarial environment by a series of examples. A set of guidelines generalize how to formulate propositions when there is a single person of interest and when there are multiple individuals of interest. Additional explanations cover how to handle multiple defense propositions, relatives, and the transition from subsource level to activity level propositions. The propositions depend on case information and the allegations of each of the parties. The prosecution proposition is usually known. The authors suggest that a sensible proposition is selected for the defense that is consistent with their stance, if available, and consistent with a realistic defense if their position is not known.     

Changing regulation and the future of the professional partnership: the case of the Legal Services Act, 2007 in England and Wales

The UK Legal Services Act 2007 permits external financing and unlimited non-lawyer ownership of legal practices through the formation of Alternative Business Structures (ABSs). For many, the impact of this changed regulation on the ‘professional partnership’, as the dominant organisational form through which legal services are delivered, will be considerable. However, to date few studies have explored this empirically. This paper addresses this gap by examining organisational changes within ABSs to assess how far these firms have departed from the professional partnership model. Focusing upon the ABS population licensed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority between January 2012 and August 2015, the study findings show a continuum of organisational responses against four specified indicators: incorporation; multi-disciplinary practices; non-lawyer ownership; and external investment. These range from those that depart little from traditional practices to those that are more radical. We conclude that, whilst regulatory reform has yet to dislodge the dominance of the professional partnership, it has disturbed the status quo and increased the variety of ‘economic units’ within which legal services are delivered.