Reasons for development of law on creation of floating charges, effect of early cases, bills of sale legislation, construction of floating charges, role of hypotheca and position and use of floating charges in commercial world today. (LegaL Journals Index)

This article examines the view, expressed authoritatively in the Macpherson report (1999), that racial disproportionality in police stop and search is attributable to officers selectively targeting minority groups. The research on which this article is based replicates Home Office research (Miller and MVA 2000) that profiled the population ‘available’ in public places to be stopped and searched. Using a combination of data sources, this article extends that research in two directions: first, by exploring the issue of visibility and how it has an impact upon decisions to stop and search; and, secondly, by investigating whether disproportionality might arise indirectly from the way in which police direct their efforts in relation to time, place and types of motor vehicle. Finally, we discuss the implications of this research for the concept of ‘institutional racism’.

Victim retraction is almost universally viewed by criminal justice officials as a problematic outcome in cases of domestic violence, consequently policy initiatives have been designed to increase support to victims in the hope that more will decide to continue with their cases instead of retracting their statements. However our understanding of the various causes and full consequences of retraction remains limited. Using data from five Specialist Domestic Violence Courts (SDVCs) in England and Wales, we analysed a sample of 216 domestic violence cases to assess the relative influence of victim characteristics, offence characteristics, features of case processing, and evidence available from case files on the decision to retract. Despite the innovative courts, each embedded in strong multi‐agency partnerships, half of domestic violence victims still chose to retract. The policy implications of these results are discussed in the context of current British government initiatives designed to `Narrow the Justice Gap' and `Bring Offenders to Justice' while at the same attempting to locate the victim “at the heart of the criminal justice system.

The paper explores the effects of organisational change on UK managers' perceptions of their organisation and on their well-being. Cost reduction is the prime driver for change and has been implemented using delayering, redundancy, downsizing and off-shoring often supported by culture change programmes. These changes have resulted in work intensification, have not delivered productivity gains and have had a negative effect on managers' well-being. The effects of change were perceived differently by directors and other managers. Despite continuous cost reduction, productivity in the UK remains below that of European competitor nations. This calls into question the prevailing cost reduction ethos as a means of delivering increased productivity in the UK.

Although efforts for developing e-democracy have been underway for over a decade, recent literature indicates that its uptake by citizens and Elected Members (EMs) is still very low. This paper explores the underlying reasons for why this is so from the perspective of local EMs in the context of UK local authorities. It draws on findings reported in earlier works supplemented with primary case study data. Findings are interpreted through the lens of Giddens structuration theory, which assists in drawing out issues related to three dimensions of human agency: communication of meaning, exercising power and sanctioning behaviour. The paper abstracts categories of agency from the findings and uses these to formulate eight propositions for creating an e-friendly democratic culture and enhancing EMs uptake of e-democracy. These propositions provide an indication for future e-democracy research direction.

This article deals with the debate over civil liberties in the United Kingdom, particularly the argument that civil liberties have been unreasonably restricted in the UK as part of the state's counter-terrorist policy. Arguments that the UK is facing an unprecedented threat to its civil liberties are examined, as are counter-arguments, including the idea that defenders of civil liberties display an excessive pessimism. The article argues that civil liberties have been constrained, but a focus on counter-terrorism shows the situation is not as bad as critics think. The main threat to civil liberties may come from outside the field of counter-terrorist operations and lies in some developments in normal criminal investigation and public order but more importantly, the processes and practices of the public and private sector (particularly surveillance) as part of what is termed the ‘risk society.’

This paper reports on the final phase of a three-year study into the role of lawyers in the development of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) following the implementation of the Civil Procedure Rules in 1999 and draws comparisons between US and Canadian studies. The paper centres on the use of mediation, which is recognised as the pre-eminent ADR process in the UK. Data are analysed from 30 interviews with specialist commercial and construction-related lawyers who have utilised mediation in the dispute resolution process. Interviewees were selected from respondents to a national survey of lawyers specialising in commercial and construction-related practice. Whereas reaching settlement is typically regarded as the measure of success, this research focuses on other "mediation outcomes" experienced by solicitors and barristers, the majority of whom are repeat-users of the process. The data reveal that achieving settlement in a timely and cost-effective manner is among the chief advantages mediation has over litigation, but a number of other benefits can make the process an eligible option in dispute resolution. In particular, the process of mediation allows the parties to focus on or narrow the issues in dispute. Lawyer-interviewees also report tactical advantages from engaging in mediation. These range from providing the opportunity to examine the strengths and weaknesses of the case to testing witnesses and evidence. The data suggest lawyers are developing new practices in mediation, such as proposing the process in order to provide proof to the courts of willingness to compromise or participating in mediation in order to send messages to the opposition. Mediator-interviewees report a trend in mediation where cases are more difficult to settle and the participants more cognisant of mediation tactics.

The concept of compliance has developed over recent years. Gone are the days when satisfactory compliance in a bank consisted of making sure that a set of rules provided by a regulator had been met and each could be 'ticked off' and that appropriate returns had been sent in. Now the accepted approach is one of ascertaining the risks facing the institution and adopting appropriate measures to manage them. Regulatory guidelines are a tool to this end. A good example of this are the FSA rules in relation to financial regulation which, through their aims, their content, their guidance notes and their structure, clearly determine exactly this approach. However, while dealing with compliance in this way forces the bank to engage in a more careful and precise analysis of the risks facing it, problems can arise. The aim of this paper is to analyse how a bank can best succeed while approaching compliance as a risk-based issue. This is done while bearing in mind the various internal departments and external agencies that can impact on, or be impacted on by the procedures adopted. The paper considers the role of the regulator, compliance risk analysis itself and the relationship between the compliance department, other departments and external agents. It then goes on to consider the factors affecting risk, how compliance systems can best be built and shaped and how they can best be enforced. Finally, it considers the key issues that can be synthesised from this.

Purpose – The paper seeks to examine the debate on mediator style and provide empirical evidence on mediator orientation, which has implications for party choice and the development of professional standards for construction mediators in the UK. Design/methodology/approach – This paper analyses the theoretical arguments and distinctions in mediator style and assesses the available evidence relating to the utilisation of evaluative or facilitative mediator approaches in the UK and US construction industry. The paper reports on data from qualitative interviews with construction lawyers experienced in using mediation in the UK to assess the level of evaluative conduct experienced. Findings – The findings suggest that interviewees had experienced a mix of evaluative and facilitative interventions by mediators. The data support the contention that construction mediation in the UK mirrors the experience of the USA and is becoming “lawyer-driven” and adversarial, with mediators utilising evaluative techniques which some members of the legal profession prefer. Research limitations/implications – The qualitative data are based on a small sample of mediation users in the UK construction industry. However, interviewees were selected from respondents to a randomly conducted large-scale postal survey of commercial and construction lawyers. All interviewees were repeat users of the process and all but one had received training in mediation or are practising lawyer-mediators. Practical implications – The data provide evidence of different mediator techniques currently utilised in the UK construction industry and the practices of lawyers in the mediation process. The findings have implications for party choice and should inform the development of professional standards in construction mediation practice. Originality/value – The paper provides original data on the practices of mediators and lawyers in construction mediation.

Various researchers have recently challenged contingent models of managerial and leadership effectiveness, arguing that logic suggesting the universality of manager and supervisory leader behaviors is compelling, although there is sparse empirical evidence to support this view. A comparative study of the findings from three previous empirical factor analytic studies into the criteria of managerial effectiveness, carried out in three different types of public sector organizations in the United Kingdom, support the view that universalistic as opposed to contingent models are more consistent with the facts. A generic model of managerial and leadership effectiveness is presented, and the implications for HRD research and practice are discussed.