Ashurst adds two Sydney lawyers to its board

Ashurst adds two Sydney lawyers to its board
The board of Ashurst has three new members including two Sydney partners.

Restructuring, insolvency and special situations partner James Marshall and tax partner Barbara Phair have been elected to the board along with London partner Karen Davies. They will serve three years.

Marshall has been with the firm since 1989 and has been a partner for the past 20 years. Phair joined the firm in 1986 and has been a partner since 2000. Davies joined in 2011 and made partner in 2012.

“I congratulate Karen, James and Barbara on their election. Their experience and insight will be exceptionally valuable. They will make a significant contribution to the Board and play key roles in guiding the firm towards achieving its strategic objectives," said Ashurst chairman Ben Tidswell.

UK launches “biggest challenge” to its legal system in 40 years
The British government began the technical process of unravelling more than 40 years of legislation ahead of Brexit.

The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill intends to transfer all current EU legislation into UK law and creates both opportunity and risk according to the president of the Law Society of England & Wales.

"Transposing vast swathes of legislation accumulated across four decades is an eye-watering undertaking and we must make sure that in the process hard won rights are not lost," said Joe Egan.

He highlighted the risks to the country’s economy but also to the level of scrutiny expected from the parliament and to the many opportunities and rights our EU membership has guaranteed.

"The challenge ahead is immense but solicitors stand ready to work with all sides to ensure that Britain's future is bright," he added.

Among the key calls of the Law Society: guarantee fundamental rights; ensure access to justice through continued co-operation with the EU; maintain legal certainty during this period of upheaval; and protect the strength of legal services which underpins the UK economy.

Trump threatened with legal action over blocked Twitter users
President Trump is a prolific user of Twitter but while he holds nothing back in his opinions, he appears less keen to hear the views of others.

Now those blocked by the US leaders on the social media platform are being represented by a lawsuit filed by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, which says the president’s action is unconstitutional.

Central to the case is the claim that @RealDonaldTrump is being used as a public forum by the president, which under the US Constitution’s First Amendment cannot restrict participants.