Is it a setback for diversity that Stephen Parkinson is to take over as senior partner at the top criminal law firm, Kingsley Napley? He succeeds Jane Keir, the firm’s first female senior partner, who said she was “pleased to have played my part in demonstrating that there is no glass ceiling at Kingsley Napley for women with ideas plus the drive and ambition to succeed”. That said, the firm’s managing partner is Linda Woolley and the balance in the partnership as a whole is 50:50. Crucially, Parkinson is to make diversity his theme. All is well.
Gender agenda
Strong words from Sam Smethers, the chief executive of the Fawcett Society, about Britain’s “deeply misogynistic culture where the legal system . . . lets women down because in many cases it doesn’t provide access to justice”. The context was the threat of Brexit to women’s rights, and one demand is to make misogyny a hate crime. But where does one draw the line?
Worthy winners
Delighted to report that last week’s final of The Times 2TG Moot student competition was a triumph for diversity, with three out of the four contestants being female — and the lone man had a beard, as Lady Justice Gloster, one of the judges, pointed out. The competition, which was also judged by Sir John Laws and Lord Justice Jackson, was institution-blind so as to ensure no unconscious Oxbridge bias in the earlier rounds. The knotty issue set by 2TG’s Ruth Kennedy focused on the gig economy and whether security guards known as Stormtroopers had employment rights. There was also a rider question as to whether some of them were discriminated against because of their deeply held Jedi religious beliefs. The outcome was a narrow victory by the BPTC students Katherine Legh and Poppy Rimington-Pounder, thanks to their ability, as Sir John put it, to “come back at interventions by the court by capturing the issues concisely”. The runners-up, Ioana Burtea and Edward Langley, impressed with their articulate presentation.
Poor returns
Are the Consumer Contracts Regulations ruining small online businesses? According to ParcelHero, “specialist retailers reveal the huge problem of customers increasingly exploiting to the hilt their rights”. More than 10 per cent of customers admit to buying various sizes and returning those that didn’t fit. The traders are then expected to pay the return costs. “You can lose all your net profit if the customer returns it,” said one small retailer.