United Kingdom

Guide to the UK Legal System

Online research and resource guide to the legal system in the United Kingdom written by Sarah Carter who was Law Librarian at the University of Kent at Canterbury in the UK and updated by Hester Swift who is Foreign and International Law Librarian at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. The guide was published in 2005 (and updated in 2024) on the Globalex website and made freely available by the Hauser Global Law School Program at the New York University School of Law.

Information Commissioner's Office

The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) enforces the Data Protection Act 1998 and is also responsible for freedom of information. The main functions of the ICO are the promotion of good information handling and the encouragement of best practice in the processing of personal data. The site offers guidance to the Data Protection Act and the Freedom of Information Act with information on specific topics including medical records, CCTV, junk mail and social networking.

Family Mediators Association

A website outlining and promoting the work and services of the Family Mediators Association (FMA), a charitable organisation involved in independent family mediation in domestic disputes and divorce settlements in the United Kingdom. The site describes the foundation and history of the FMA. Background information about family mediation is provided in the form of FAQs along with a selection of practical guides to download. There is also information about collaborative law and the role of family consultants. A directory of mediators can be searched by town or postcode or browsed by region.

Bar Pro Bono Unit

Website for the Bar Pro Bono Unit, which was established to provide free legal advice and representation to those who need it. The Unit helps to put solicitors, advice agencies and members of the public in touch with barristers volunteering to give free advice, client conferences and representation in cases meeting the Unit's criteria for support. The website describes the aims and work of the Unit, with information on the sort of help provided to individuals, community groups and charities.

Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution

The Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) was established in 1990 and is based in London. It provides legal mediation and arbitration, consultancy and training services to firms, and cases are also referred from outside organisations and the courts. The site gives full details of the services available and procedures for application. There is background information on dispute resolution services including adjudication, arbitration, early neutral intervention, expert determination and mediation.

Parliamentary Counsel Office

The UK Parliamentary Counsel Office (PCO) is a team of lawyers based in Whitehall, London, who draft Government Bills for introduction into Parliament (except those relating only to Scotland). The site publishes an overview of the stages in the drafting of a bill and its passage through Parliament. A history of the PCO is presented, and other features of the site include an essay on legislative drafting by Geoffrey Bowman, and a set of links to parliamentary and government websites.

Bird and Bird : International Law Firm

Website for the international law firm Bird and Bird who specialise in the e-commerce, information technology, communications, media, sport, banking & financial services, life sciences and aviation & aerospace sectors. In addition to providing information about the organisation and its specialisations, the site carries a collection of articles written by Bird and Bird's lawyers.

World Law: Cayman Islands

Part of WorldLII's Countries service containing links to internet resources for the Cayman Islands, the British dependency in the West Caribbean. Link collections provide access to Cayman Islands Government and Legislation sites. A stored search will automatically search for materials relating to the Cayman Islands on all of WorldLII. The WorldLII service presents a global index and search engine for law, developed by the Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII) in the Faculty of Law at the University of Technology, Sydney.

Charity Law Unit

Web pages of the Charity Law Unit at the School of Law, University of Liverpool. The Unit was established in 1994 to develop research and teaching on charity law in the UK. The site presents details of its research, conferences, courses, seminars and teaching. Lists of recent publications, conference papers, seminar presentations and recent theses are available; a few of these have links to the full text.

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