Compliance & Regulation
Delays spiral and case closures plummet at LeO
The Legal Ombudsman is taking five months just to pass any new complaints to an investigator as it struggles to cope with the impact of Covid-19.
Solicitor rebuked for settlement agreement demand
A solicitor has been rebuked for trying to include a ban on her former employer referring her to any regulatory authority as part of a settlement of disputes between the two.
Now MP targets Herbert Smith over Post Office work
An MP has urged select committees to investigate the role of law firms – and in particular Herbert Smith Freehills – in helping client companies accused of wrongdoing set up compensation schemes.
Advocacy shake-up to hit trainees but not youth courts
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to end the practice of allowing trainee solicitors to obtain higher rights of audience but has reversed course on its proposed approach to advocacy in the youth courts.
SRA to cut Compensation Fund payout limit to £500k
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has decided to implement its controversial plan to cut the maximum award from its Compensation Fund from £2m to £500,000.
SDT rejects a quarter of prosecution agreements
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal rejected a quarter of the outcomes agreed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and defendants last year, its annual report has revealed.
Lawyers face new levy to support economic crime drive
Larger law firms face a new levy of £100-200 per £1m of revenue to support the government’s economic crime plan, under proposals outlined by the Treasury yesterday.
Lawyers have become “de facto agents of Russian state”
Lawyers have become “de facto agents of the Russian state” by helping to smooth the way of Russian money entering the UK, according to Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee.
COFA banned for using disbursement payments to prop up firm
A compliance officer for finance and administration who helped the firm’s owner use £500,000 received for disbursements to prop up the firm has accepted a ban from the profession.
Law firm’s head of BD jailed over indecent images
The former head of business development at a leading defendant law firm has been jailed for four years after a police raid discovered 6,000 indecent images of children on his computer and other devices.
Blog
It’s time for law firms to ask tougher questions
For years, many law firms have treated ID verification as a box-ticking exercise. Run a liveness check, match a face to a document and move on. But that is no longer good enough.
Business fatigue to AI will risk job security
Whilst we know professional learning has always been part of career paths, to hire, retain and keep talent, AI needs to be embedded as a core part of this training.
On good authority? GenAI and the reputational risks to law firms
As GenAI’s influence grows, so do the risks which are already playing out in courtrooms across England and Wales, where some early adopters are setting precedents they would rather not.
