Compliance & Regulation
Law firms should register deals affecting national security, says QC peer
The government said yesterday it would consider a barrister peer’s call for law firms to register their work on transactions that cover areas of national security.
“Reckless” solicitor suspended for misleading £2.9m costs bill
A solicitor who was “reckless” as to whether the court might be misled over a £2.9 costs bill has been suspended for 12 months by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
High Court rejects solicitor’s challenge to SRA intervention
Sophie Khan, the solicitor jailed for defying court orders to hand over files to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, has now lost her challenge to the regulator’s decision to close her firm.
SRA to start spot checks on firms’ Russia sanctions compliance
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to conduct spot checks on law firms to ensure they are complying with the sanctions imposed on Russian individuals, companies and ships.
Solicitor used residual balances to pay salaries and VAT bills
A solicitor who was a major figure in miners’ compensation claims has been fined for using £140,000 of residual balances in his client account to pay salaries and tax bills.
Rule will require solicitors to challenge colleagues’ improper behaviour
Solicitors will have a regulatory obligation to challenge colleagues who treat others unfairly or without respect as part of a plan to beef up the rules on health and wellbeing at work.
LeO boss: Efforts to close complaints more quickly starting to work
Efforts to close cases more quickly are having a positive impact on the performance of the Legal Ombudsman, with an influx of new recruits set to speed up progress.
Solicitor struck off for lying to avoid paying legal aid debt
A solicitor who lied about not having a bank account or any income other than benefits to avoid having to repay a debt to the Legal Aid Agency (Lhas been struck off.
Ex-Mishcon partner accepts £17,500 fine for AML failures
The partner whose conduct contributed to the record £232,000 fine handed out to Mishcon de Reya has been fined £17,500 himself.
PM issues warning to oligarch lawyers as profession hits back at criticism
Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned lawyers and others involved in “assisting corrupt oligarchs” that they will “pay a price” if they have undermined the interests of the UK.
Blog
The new metrics for success in conveyancing
While technology has made much of the conveyancing process faster, there remains a practical limit to how many matters anyone can manage while still keeping standards intact.
The UK legal market is polarising – and the middle is disappearing
Consolidation and the boutique boom are not contradictory. They are the same market stretching apart at both ends – and it changes what your firm is worth, and to whom.
Conveyancing’s consistency problem is about pressure, not skills
When I qualified, a conveyancer had perhaps 10 or 12 plates to keep spinning. Today’s conveyancers have 20 or 30, and almost none of the room for error I had starting out.
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