William Adams, a judge who was seen beating his eldest daughter with a belt on Youtube, received a temporary restraining order that prevents him from having contact with his youngest daughter. Adams is not allowed to see his youngest daughter without getting permission from his ex-wife. Additionally, Adams is not allowed to drink alcohol within 24 hours of seeing his daughter if permission is granted. However, it is unlikely that his ex-wife, and mother of his children, Hallie Adams will allow visitation as she is seeking to have William’s parental rights denied or only allow him to see his youngest daughter under supervised visitation.

Last month, William’s oldest daughter Hillary posted a video of being physically beaten with a belt by her father. The 8 minute video caused a public outrage which led to many calling for Adams to lose his job as a judge. The videotaped incident was from 2004 when his daughter Hillary was around the age of 16.
Local and federal prosecutors are not pursuing criminal charges against Adams. However, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct is investigating the matter. Adams hasn’t presided over any cases since the video came out and it’s unclear when he will return.

On Monday November 21st, William Adams will appear in court for a hearing on his parental rights of his youngest daughter. State District Judge Kemper Stephen Williams will determine whether or not Adams will be allowed to see his youngest daughter. As of now, there have been no indications that Adams has abused his youngest daughter.

While the amount of unemployed decreased over the last month, the news isn’t so good for those employed in the legal sector as around 1,300 jobs were lost according to the Wall Street Journal. Even owing to the nearly 5000 new positions that were created over the summer months there has still a huge number of lawyers currently seeking work and the rate of unemployed lawyers has risen sustainably over the past year or so.

Indeed, it isn’t just the downturn in the economy that is causing such a dramatic rate of unemployment among some of the brightest minds in the country; computers are also responsible for many lawyers and legal assistants being out of work. While technology is often credited with causing unemployment in manufacturing or industry based professions, new software (such as E-discovery) is allowing fewer attorneys to do the work required. The New York Times actually claimed that this new software could allow a couple of lawyers to carry out the work and duties of some 500; so you can see the dramatic effect that it is having.

However, all is not lost according to legal experts and while corporate law may be happy with a computer doing all the work, others argue that if you specialise in family law then you should be safe. While these ‘robots’ can undoubtedly work at a much faster rate and speed than a human lawyer it cannot give clients the human and personal touch that is needed in sectors such as family law and many believe that the sector is not in such a bad state as the numbers would suggest.

A poll released by Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind ahead of a crucial referendum in New Jersey seems to indicate that its citizens want a change in the law to allow sports betting within the state. The New Jersey state constitution currently outlaws betting on professional sports games in the state however the new poll seems to show that a majority of residents – 52 percent – approve the change to the law. Only around 32 percent of New Jersey citizens believe that the ban should continue and many see it as a great revenue making venture.

However a simple passing of the non-binding referendum will not be enough to change the law in the state and, if passed, it will be up to the state legislature to overturn the federal ban on sports gambling. Even with Atlantic City, many people have been frustrated at being unable to place a bet on a major sports game owing to the legal code of the state however should the majority of the electorate be in favour of such a move then it is likely to be passed into law.

However the law will not change in relation to college sports – such as football – as a ban on being able to bet on these games within the state will continue. Sports betting has been illegal in the state since the federal ban in 1992 and political wrangling and squabbling have been attributed to the ban being in place for so long however the new poll and referendum looks set to change the law.

The ability to sell consumer legal services in both England and Wales is to be extended following the passing of the Legal Services Act into law. The new act means that, for the first time, supermarkets and banks will be able to offer consumer advice due to the new legislation and relaxing of previous laws.

Proponents of the change in the legal system argue that it will essentially open up new markets for law firms and allow them to expand into other areas of legal expertise – this has been tightly regulated beforehand. Furthermore, many believe that it will allow a greater freedom of choice for the consumer and, as such, the quality of legal services and advice should rise accordingly.
Solicitors are not able to contribute in this new legal change until it is reviewed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and barristers could be in for a brighter future as the new legislation means that they could effectively form partnerships themselves as, at the moment, they are currently classified as self-employed. A similar system is in place in Scotland where the Legal Services Bill was passed last year.

However the new change to the legal code has its fair share of critics. The legislation was first announced back in 2009 and has been under sustained attack from some quarters since; many argue that it could spell the end of localised law firms as the big supermarkets and banks will ruin the competition however the likes of Tesco have admitted that they are not currently seeking to enter into the legal business just yet.

The Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Nick Clegg, has urged the legal world to open up its doors and allow a greater diversity of people to work within the system. Clegg, of the Liberal Democrats that form part of the Coalition Government, has been a long standing proponent of social mobility and access for all and has stated that the legal system in the UK is, more often than not, dominated by white, middle class men.

Clegg argued that Britain must be built upon a fair society and he feels that opportunities, especially for ethnic minorities or immigrants, is lacking in the legal profession and it should do its upmost to try and rectify the current situation. Indeed, former Justice Minister Bridget Prentice first spoke out about the attitude towards immigrants and ethnic minorities within the legal system back in 2007 when she argued that they were essentially ‘pigeon-holed’ into certain parts of the legal profession such as immigration issues or family work and that their expertise could be better used elsewhere if they legal world was more open to them.

While Nick Clegg did acknowledge that the legal system had came on leaps and bounds over the course of the last century of so he still argued that it could be far more open and diverse than it currently is. Furthermore, he announced the doubling of a fund (to £1m) that will allow recent law graduates to go into schools and talk about their experiences both at university and within the profession in order to try and get more people, especially those from disadvantages backgrounds, interested in law as a career option.