Conference Report: The Future of the Law
| Published date | 01 January 1999 |
| Date | 01 January 1999 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X9907200113 |
| Subject Matter | Conference Report: The Future of the Law |
CONFERENCE REPORT:
THE FUTURE OF THE LAW
Delegates convened at One Whitehall Place on February 18, 1999 to explore issues
surrounding "The Future
of
the Law and the Politics ofOrder". The conference, run
by the Social Market Foundation and chaired by Lord Mackenzie, heard panel
speeches from Ian Blair, Professor Richard Susskind and Janet Daley, followed by a
keynote address from the Home Secretary Jack Straw.
One of the starting points of the conference was that crime is a political issue, with
an increasingly diverse and international dimension. The role of the Police in
activating a direct response to crime and preserving the status quo was detailed by
the Chief Constable of Surrey Police, Ian Blair, who called for a comprehensive
modernization of the Service. He advocated an approach which aimed not merely to
catch criminals, but one that sought to maintain community stability in a broader
sense. Policing, he said, should be simplistic in its outcomes yet variable in the
methods employed, ie, it should be adapted to meet the needs of different areas with
different problems. To achieve this, police managers should find applicable and
acceptable approaches for policing individual communities whilst reflecting the
diversity within such communities. Mr Blair made the criticism that the Police had
relied on pragmatism for too long and he welcomed the notion of "inclusiveness" in
strategy and delivery.
Professor Richard Susskind, IT adviser to the Lord Chief Justice, discussed how
we should be thinking in terms of a vision-based as opposed to a legacy-based future.
He suggested that we can "invent" the future to a large extent, allowing for
innovation which may include entirely new ways of delivering criminal justice.
Professor Susskind perhaps sounded a note of warning to lawyers when he saidthat
legal life in five to ten years' time will have altered significantly, in that much of the
expertise currently provided, at a cost, by advocates will be directly available on the
Internet. High value, complex, or socially significant cases will continue to require
legal advisers (although such will be streamlined through the use of technology),
whilst routine, representative legal work will become systematized and
commoditized. Lawyers will, of necessity, have to adapt to changes brought about
by new technologies.
Columnist Janet Daley delivered a speech on the contentious subject of youth
crime. She worked from the premis that there has been, over the years, a breakdown
in the moral infrastructure of society, most noticably with the adult abdication of
responsibility to control young people. She put forward a view that the upward trend
in youth crime has been exacerbated by the lack of any "absolute rules" in today's
society, and called for a clear definition of acceptable standards of behaviour and a
return to traditional family values.
In his address to conference, the Home Secretary stated first and foremost that
good order arises from good laws. From the politician's perspective, he stressed that
successful solutions take time and may embrace a certain element of risk. In keeping
with the theme of the conference, Jack Straw said that the future lies in laws adapted
or designed to meet the needs of the 21st Century; laws that reflect the reality of
crime, not those trapped in ideology. As to the enforcement of such laws, crime-
fighting partnerships should pave the way for a coordinated approach to tackling
crime at local and national levels. He reitereated Janet Daley's words by promoting
the responsibility of individuals and communities to take a proactive lead in reducing
crime, even when this involved direct intervention.
January 1999 The Police
Journal
93
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