Compliance & Regulation
Partner fined for offensive question to gay trainee
A law firm partner who asked if it was acceptable to call a gay trainee solicitor a “poofter” – and repeated the question to the trainee – has been fined £4,000 by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Legal regulators “too slow” with diversity action
Progress by the legal regulators in understanding and tackling ongoing inequalities in the profession is “too slow” and lacks “strategic direction”, the Legal Services Board (LSB) has said. The oversight regulator said there were “fundamental shortcomings” in the collection of… Read More
Top GC defends in-house lawyers’ approach to ethics
A leading general counsel has attacked the assumption that in-house lawyers “leave their morals at the door” when they join their companies.
Law firms “could undermine positive impact” of SQE on diversity
The emphasis on increasing the range and choice of legal training in the Solicitors Qualifying Examination could help remove the blockage to social mobility in the profession.
‘Email threat’ barrister feared “vindictive campaign” against pupil
The drunken barrister who threatened a fellow member of chambers over a tenancy application did so because he believed there was a “vindictive campaign” to damage the pupil’s prospects.
SRA to review regime for checking solicitors’ competence
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to launch a review of its approach to solicitors’ continuing competence, amid calls for spot checks or accreditation schemes to reassure consumers.
Legal assistant banned after lying about passing exams
A legal assistant who lied about passing his legal executive exams so that his law firm employer would reimburse the course fees has been banned from working in the solicitors’ profession.
Appeal judges reject divorcee’s negligence claim
The Court of Appeal has upheld a ruling that a negligence claim brought by a woman against her law firm over its work on her divorce was out of time.
Criminals’ ‘go-to’ solicitor struck off while in jail
A solicitor who was the ‘go to’ lawyer for a gang of criminals because he would not ask too many questions about where their money came has been struck off while serving seven years in jail.
Solicitor amended form of authority not knowing client was dead
A solicitor who amended a client’s form of authority when he could not contact her and then sent it to her former employer – not knowing she had died – has been struck off for dishonesty.
Blog
The questions that determine if the SRA’s client money reforms will work
Both reforms respond to real and well-evidenced gaps in the current framework. The SRA’s changes after consultation feedback shows it’s listening. But structural change on paper is only half the job.
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.
Reports
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