Compliance & Regulation
Legal services lead way as government’s first AI Growth Lab
Legal services will be the first sector to join the government’s new AI Growth Labs – providing a regulatory sandbox for AI systems – justice secretary David Lammy announced yesterday.
LeO not set up to handle solicitor/client costs disputes – for now
The Legal Ombudsman is open to a discussion on it replacing the courts for costs disputes between solicitors and their clients – but would not be in a position to actually do it for some time.
“Burn it” solicitor suspended for two years
A senior City partner who told a client to “burn” a private messaging app after it was served with a search order has been suspended for two years.
LeO eyes case fee and scheme rule reform as complaints climb
The Legal Ombudsman will this month set out stronger incentives for lawyers to resolve complaints by reforming the operation of the case fee regime, Legal Futures can reveal.
Increasing number of lawyers view SRA negatively
The legal profession’s negativity about the Solicitors Regulation Authority has increased markedly, but most are still positive about it, according its own research.
Aspirring solizitors to benafit from SQE spellchecka
Aspiring solicitors who have been “hindered” in the SQE2 exam process until now will finally be able to use a new spellchecker in their written assessments next month.
Solicitors faced with SRA demand for privileged material “should delay”
Solicitors asked by their regulator to hand over privileged client material should ask for a delay while the High Court considers the issue, a KC has advised.
Solicitor took money in “fraudulent breach of trust”
A solicitor has been ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds after the High Court made findings of fraud and fraudulent breach of trust against him.
Law firms fined £600,000 for AML breaches
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has fined 59 law firms a total of £600,000 in the past six months for breaching basic anti-money laundering rules.
CLC warns of “regulatory blind spots” on referral fees
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers has warned of the risk of “regulatory blind spots” after a review of referral fees revealed shortcomings in firms documenting arrangements.
Blog
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.
From ‘year zero’ to £6.5m – how a law firm found its second life
In 2018, I hit what I call ‘year zero’. On paper, Olliers Solicitors was a top-tier criminal defence firm but beneath the surface, I could see we were at a crossroads.
