This Practice Note explains the statutory regime underpinning the personal injury (PI) referral fee ban Not all PI referrals are prohibited. This Practice Note will help you understand the statutory regime. It should be read in conjunction with Practice Note: Personal injury referral arrangements—SRA requirements completes the regulatory picture. See also Practice Note: Personal injury referrals—SRA examples, flowchart and guidance, which pulls together examples given by the SRA of prohibited and permitted PI referral arrangements. It is illustrative only. Statutory regime LASPO 2012 introduced a high-level statutory framework for the PI referral fee ban, which was implemented in April 2013. The statutory framework is implemented by front-line regulators such as the SRA and Financial Conduct Authority. Certain powers are reserved to the Lord Chancellor to make secondary regulations. To whom does LASPO 2012 apply? LASPO 2012 applies to regulated persons. This includes persons authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (which regulates claims management companies), the Bar Council and Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). What sort of claims are covered by LASPO 2012? LASPO

This Practice Note summarises guidance and examples given by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) about what may constitute a permitted or prohibited referral arrangement for personal injury matters: The SRA guidance was published under the SRA regime 2011, but appears to apply equally to the SRA 2019 regime. What is prohibited? To fall foul of the personal injury (PI) referral fee ban, you must: • receive a referral • of a PI or ancillary claim • pay a prohibited referral fee, ie a fee for the referral itself, rather than in consideration for the provision of services or for another reason For more guidance see Practice Notes: Personal injury referral fee—the statutory regime and Personal injury referral arrangements—SRA requirements—What does the SRA prohibit? SRA guidance It is clear from Solicitors Regulation Authority's (SRA) guidance that there are two circumstances in which it considers the referral fee ban will not apply: • there is no referral as defined by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO 2012) and the SRA Glossary • there

A personal injury trust is a trust for holding and managing funds received as a result of an injury.

Types of personal injury trust How to choose between the different types of trust Personal injury trusts are often considered in the context of the injured person having full capacity and being the settlor. However, they can also come into existence through a court order during or at the end of a personal injury claim. Such trusts are established on behalf of an injured person with or without impaired capacity. Watt v ABC (see Practice Note: The Court of Protection versus personal injury trusts) suggests that such orders may be made either by the court which hears the claim and makes the award or the Court of Protection, but concedes there are jurisdictional issues to be clarified. While these notes assume the injured person has sufficient capacity to establish the trust, the analysis of the different types of trust are relevant to preparing a trust for the court to approve. It follows that assessment of capacity of the injured party to establish a trust is crucial, as if there is doubt the court will need to approve

PI & Clinical Negligence analysis: The High Court dismissed a claim for noise-related injury in Bevan v Ministry of Defence, where the claimant alleged ‘acoustic shock’ from military headset use, valued at over £530,000. Although breach of duty was admitted, the claim failed on causation: the court found that the Grindleford Criteria for diagnosing acoustic shock were not satisfied. The court considered that the Grindleford Criteria were the appropriate framework for diagnosis. For practitioners, the decision provides authoritative guidance on handling acoustic shock claims and confirms that exposure and injury are insufficient absent a clear causal mechanism. Written by Jim Hester, barrister at Parklane Plowden Chambers.

The definition of a tattoo is to mark a part of the body permanently by making punctures in the skin and filling them with coloured ink. Tiny needles containing ink puncture the skin and penetrate both the outer layer (epidermis) and inner layer (dermis) of skin, which contains the blood vessels, hair follicles, glands, nerves and lymph vessels. The process causes inflammation and the immune system works quickly in sending a type of white blood cell known as macrophages to assist with healing the area. A tattoo is therefore made permanent, although as with a scar it may fade over time. The macrophages absorb the dye particles to speed up the wound healing process. Some will return to the lymph nodes and other will stay in the dermis. The rest of the dye is soaked up by fibroblast skin cells and these together with the macrophages make the tattoo permanent. Tattoo machine Modern hand-held tattoo machines, sometimes referred to as ‘tattoo guns’, use electromagnetic coils to move an armature bar up and down. Connected to

This Practice Note is a summary of bankruptcy and its impact on legal proceedings from a dispute resolution perspective. What is bankruptcy? Bankruptcy is an insolvency process for individuals. Until 6 April 2016—unlike its corporate equivalent liquidation—only the court could make an individual bankrupt. However, on 6 April 2016, the bankruptcy applications regime came into force replacing debtors' bankruptcy petitions (but not creditors' petitions). Although the change did not affect debtors' petitions presented prior to 6 April 2016, any individual who now wishes to be made bankrupt must make an online bankruptcy application which is determined by the adjudicator (an official within the Insolvency Service), and not by the court. For further reading, see News Analysis: New bankruptcy applications regime to come into force. The making of a bankruptcy order—whether by the court or by the adjudicator—frees the debtor from the debts they owe to their creditors (save for some statutory exceptions) and prevents unsecured creditors from commencing—or continuing with—any legal process against the bankrupt or their property. A trustee in bankruptcy

This Practice Note contains a summary of individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) and their impact on legal proceedings from a dispute resolution perspective. What is an IVA? An IVA is an agreement entered into between an individual and their creditors (and possibly with third parties) for a composition of that person’s debts or a scheme of arrangement of their affairs under the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986). The type and content of the composition or scheme is a matter for the debtor and their creditors with the assistance of an insolvency practitioner (who is described as the nominee before the IVA is approved, and the supervisor after). IVAs are proposed in circumstances where an individual is in financial difficulties, and can often follow the presentation—or the threat of presentation—of a bankruptcy petition or to avoid a threatened bankruptcy petition. The aim of the IVA is usually the release of liabilities outside of the context of bankruptcy, without the stigma and prohibitions that bankruptcy entails. It is possible for someone who is subject

A member has a personal interest in any business of their authority that relates to, or is likely to affect, a registrable interest, or is likely to affect the well-being or financial position of the member, their family or close associates more than it would affect the majority of people in the ward or electoral division affected by the decision, or in the authority's area.

Practice Compliance analysis: How can governments and international organisations develop systems that are not only effective, but also dynamic and proactive in preventing money laundering? Michelle (Michala) K Meiselles, a solicitor and law lecturer at the Law School of Université Jean Moulin (Lyon), looks at the approach to money laundering offences in the US and UK.

A promoter is personally liable for a contract made by or on behalf of a company when the company has not been formed where the promoter purports to act for the company.

A service based on number translation which enables a customer to be called using a single 'personal' telephone number but to receive those calls at virtually any telephone number in the UK.