The Law Commission

PART IX

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

9.1     At the Law Commission we value our strong links with a wide range of organisations and individuals concerned with the reform of the law. We rely very heavily on the feedback to our consultation papers and we are grateful to all those who give their time to help us with our work. 
9.2     Some of the notable external contacts we have had since April 2003 are as follows. 

Parliament, Ministers and Government Departments

9.3     We have continued to enjoy close links with the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA – formerly the Lord Chancellor's Department), our "sponsor" Department. 

The Chairman met: The Right Honourable Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC the Attorney General the Department of Trade and Industry in connection with the project on Partnership the Chief Executive of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations. The Commissioners and staff have had significant contact with a number of Ministers and officials in other Government Departments. Judge Alan Wilkie has attended meetings and had contacts with a number of Ministers and officials: Baroness Scotland (Minister of State, Home Office) the Attorney-General (Lord Goldsmith QC) the Solicitor-General (The Right Honourable Harriet Harman QC) Lord Falconer of Thoroton, QC, as Minister of State for Criminal Justice, Sentencing and Law Reform and later as Lord Chancellor. We have also dealt with: the Home Office the Cabinet Office the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister the Department of Trade and Industry the Department of Transport We have maintained contact with the National Assembly for Wales. In May 2003, Michael Sayers (then Chief Executive) and Julia Jarzabkowski (a lawyer in the Property and Trust Law Team) spoke about the Law Commission to members of the ODPM/dTp Legal Directorate at a seminar.

Seminars, conferences, lectures and working parties

9.4     In addition to the seminars and conference already mentioned in earlier Parts, we arranged or participated in the following events. 

Our Chairman gave lectures to the Personal Injury Bar Association, the Society for Advanced Legal Studies, and students of the Inner Temple; and as guest of honour and guest speaker, at the Oriel Law Society Dinner. He also took part in: the Legal Services Commission Causes of Action seminar; the Franco British Lawyers' Society Annual Reception; a Symposium on Legal Risk in Financial Transactions at Freshfields; the Internet Services Providers' Association Awards Ceremony; a Chancery Bar Association Seminar; and meetings of the Financial Markets Law Committee.

Professor Hugh Beale is a member of the Co-ordinating Committee and of the Drafting Group of a Study Group on a European Civil Code. He chaired the ERA Conference 'European Contract Law – The Action Plan 2003' in Trier (Germany) and was active in organising various groups working in field into submitting a joint bid for funding under the European Commission's Sixth Framework Programme. He took part in a Law Society seminar on the Action Plan and spoke on the Action Plan, at the British Institute for International and Comparative Law conference on the Action Plan.

Professor Beale has lectured on the following topics: 'What has been done, what is going on, what is to be expected: principles, model laws, regulations or …?'(on the Action Plan) in Helsinki 'General clauses and specific rules in the Principles of European Contract Law: the "good faith" clause' (Society for European Contract Law, Paris) 'The General Nature of English Contract Law' (Gothenburg) 'The Registration and Priority of Security Interests: the Law Commission's project' (University of Manchester, and Max-Planck Institute for Private International and Comparative Law, Hamburg) 'The work of the Law Commission' (Lincoln's Inn study weekend, West Dean) 'The Law Commission Project on Registration of Security Interests' (Finance and Leasing Association, Motor Finance Convention) 'Reform of Security Interests over Personal Property' (The Roy Goode Commercial Law Lecture Series, Queen Mary, University of London). As General Editor, Professor Beale published: "Third Cumulative Supplement to Chitty on Contracts"; and, with Oliver Radley-Gardiner, Reinhard Zimmermann and Reiner Schulze, he published "Fundamental Texts on European Private Law". As a member and co-ordinator of the British-Hungarian Joint Academic Research Programme: Policy Issues in Legal Development (funded by the British Council and Hungarian Scholarship Board) Professor Beale advises on reform of the Hungarian Civil Code.

In the course of the year Mr Stuart Bridge spoke at the following events: seminars organised by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners ("STEP") on Trustee Exemption Clauses – held in Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, London and Plymouth; and the "STEP" Annual Conference the Society of Advanced Legal Studies seminars on: (i) Trustee Exemption Clauses and (ii) Termination of Tenancies – both held in London the Reading Property Law Conference (keynote speech) on "The Prescriptive Acquisition of Easements".

Professor Partington spoke at the Valuation Tribunals Annual Conference. He continues to be a member of the Civil Justice Council and chairs its Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee.

Judge Wilkie spoke on Partial Defences to Murder at a Judicial Studies Board course. He also spoke at a meeting of the Combined South Eastern Circuit Family Law Bar Association in connection with our project on non-accidental injury to children. In addition, in response to an invitation, he chaired one of the regular meetings organised by University College, London at which the guest speaker was Professor Andrew Simester of the Faculty of Law, University of Nottingham. Judge Wilkie is a member of the Judicial Studies Board Criminal Committee and the Criminal Justice Council.

Socio-legal Research

9.5     Socio-legal, economic and empirical research is of great benefit in some of our law reform projects. It can provide sound evidence on which to base our conclusions, whether we use existing research or commission new research. 
9.6     In connection with Partial Defences to Murder, we commissioned empirical research by Professor Barry Mitchell ie a public opinion research survey. In addition, empirical research was conducted into the defences of provocation and diminished responsibility by Professor Mackay on behalf of the Nuffield Foundation. Both the Foundation and Professor Mackay have very kindly made the results of the research available to us. We ourselves conducted empirical research by way of a survey of the Judges' Reports, which are prepared in all cases (duly anonymised) where there has been a conviction for murder. This was complemented by a survey undertaken at our request by the Crown Prosecution Service. 
9.7     The Housing and Administrative Justice Team commissioned research by Diane Lister on user preferences in relation to forms of rental agreement. 
9.8     We also have strong links with the socio-legal community. For example, several Commissioners and members of staff took part in the annual conference of the SLSA; and the Commission continues to be represented on the Socio-Legal Research Users' Forum, which is chaired by Professor Partington. In November Commissioners held an annual meeting with the Society of Legal Scholars, the SLSA and the Association of Law Teachers. 

Scottish Law Commission

9.9     Our close contacts with the Scottish Law Commission have been sustained, and we have worked together on Unfair Contract Terms, Statute Law Revision, Consolidation and Partnership Law. Members of the Law Commission visited the Scottish Law Commission. 

Other Contacts

9.10     Commissioners met with representatives of the Law Society. 
9.11     A significant number of distinguished visitors came from overseas, as shown at Appendix D. All these discussions are of great benefit and interest to us. 

Publishing and the Internet

9.12     Most of our publications are either consultation papers or reports, and most deal with law reform projects. We also publish reports about consolidation or statute law revision, and new programmes of law reform. In particular, this year we published our seventeenth report on statute law revision. It contained a draft Statute Law (Repeals) Bill, which was introduced in Parliament on 16 December 2003. This has not yet been enacted and awaits Royal Assent. Further details about the publications issued during the period can be found elsewhere in this report. 
9.13     We continue to publish in traditional hard copy format,^[1] while at the same time also making all our publications available electronically on the Internet.^[2] Our website contains the full text of all the consultation papers and reports we have issued since March 1997, together with executive summaries of most of them. Some earlier publications have also been added. Full lists of all our publications are available on the website. These lists include those older publications that are not themselves available electronically. Resources do not allow us at present to archive the rest of our catalogue of previous publications. 
9.14     A list, showing our implemented reports since 1985, is reproduced at Appendix B to this report. A fuller list, including all publications issued since 1965, is available on request, without charge. 
9.15     Our website contains details of all our current law reform projects, and other useful information about the Commission. Each team has its own page, which sets out the work that is currently under way, and which provides links to all the relevant publications. The website also includes a bulletin entitled "Law under Review", which is published three times a year and is available free of charge. This contains details of a range of Government or Government-sponsored law reform projects, including our own, and also gives a list of our reports which are awaiting implementation. The latest edition summarises about 150 projects. 
9.16     We are continuously seeking new ways of using the website for making more information available about what we are doing. For example, we use the website to publicise our yearly recruitment campaign for research assistants.^[3] Like all publicly funded bodies, there is a limit to the resources we can call upon to develop our Internet presence, but we always welcome suggestions for ways we can improve our communications. 
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Note 1    We are grateful to TSO (The Stationery Office) for their assistance in publishing our consultation papers and reports.    [Back]

Note 2    Our website address is http://www.lawcom.gov.uk.     [Back]

Note 3    See the section on Research Assistants under “Staff” in Part X.    [Back]