Compliance & Regulation
Bar Council clashes with BSB over scrapping degree requirement
The Bar Council has strongly attacked plans by the Bar Standards Board to scrap the requirement that Bar students must have at least a lower second-class degree.
SQE “working well” as firms get to grips with qualifying work experience
Around 2,750 students who took one or both parts of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination have now qualified, new Solicitors Regulation Authority figures have shown.
Lack of immigration advisers “encourages illegal services”
A lack of immigration advisers “encourages those who seek to provide advice illegally”, the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner has warned.
SRA pulls prosecution after Foreign Office warning
The SRA has withdrawn all its allegations against a solicitor and non-lawyer after the Foreign Office advised against taking evidence remotely from a crucial witness in Dubai.
Law Society seeks extra £1.76m from solicitors to fund activities
The Law Society wants solicitors to pay £1.76m more towards its operations next year, taking the amount the profession contributes to nearly £37m.
Solicitor’s tweets moved from legitimate argument to antisemitism
The solicitor struck off for tweets on Israel and Palestine shifted from making potentially valid political points “to being purely offensive and stooping to use racist and antisemitic language”.
Treasury seeks to improve “proportionality” of AML rules
HM Treasury is seeking improved “proportionality” and “additional clarity” in plans for technical changes to the 2017 Money Laundering Regulations.
LSB chief: Why are lawyers forced to pay for professional bodies?
The outgoing head of the LSB has questioned why ‘trade associations’ like the Law Society and Bar Council receive a “statutory funding stream” from regulatory fees paid by lawyers.
Legal Ombudsman delays – still lengthy but falling
Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman that require investigation will have to wait for nearly three months before work begins and up to nine months for a conclusion.
Solicitor convicted of US tax fraud is struck off
A solicitor jailed in New York for 20 months after being convicted of conspiring to defraud the US Internal Revenue Service has been struck off.
Blog
Accountability has to live within governance, not with one person
The assumption has long been that a COLP or COFA is personally exposed to the consequences of anti-money laundering breaches.
The SRA’s client money reforms: good intentions, questionable execution
On the face of it, the SRA’s plans to tighten protections around client money sounds sensible. The detail, as ever, tells a more complicated story.
Recruitment, retention and reward in the legal accounts world
Understanding the legal finance market is important – not just for those actively involved in it day-to-day but also for leaders within law firms.
