Compliance & Regulation
Still no timeline for ABSs in Scotland despite new law
The Law Society of Scotland has declined to confirm when it will introduce alternative business structures now that all ownership restrictions on them have been removed.
No “generalised” ethical failure among solicitors, insists Law Society
High-profile scandals like the Post Office are “not indicative of a generalised failure of ethical standards within the profession”, the Law Society has insisted.
CJC calls for “urgent” government review of SSB-style funding
The government needs to urgently investigate the type of litigation funding used by collapsed law firms like SSB Law and Pure Legal, the Civil Justice Council said yesterday.
City partner “erroneously” paid out £2.2m to developer client
A partner at DWF has been fined £14,000 for wrongly approving £2.2m in payments to a developer which later went bust, leaving the firm to recompense out-of-pocket buyers.
Solicitor who worked for three firms at same time struck off
A locum solicitor whose timesheets claimed for the same time from two different firms – while employed full-time at a third – has been struck off.
Law firms “must tell clients how to complain at end of cases”
Law firms must tell their clients how to complain at the end, as well as the beginning, of their cases, under new rules proposed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Property lawyers attack “punitive” AML fining regime
The “punitive” fining regime for anti-money laundering rule breaches operated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority has left lawyers feeling “fearful”.
Court quashes part of LeO’s £51,000 award against law firm
The Legal Ombudsman was wrong to find that a law firm failed to adequately assess a client’s capacity and should pay her £15,700 in compensation, the High Court has ruled.
Barristers “should tell chambers and regulator” about complaints
Barristers will be required to inform both their chambers and their regulator about the complaints they receive, under plans published yesterday by the Bar Standards Board.
LSB lays out actions for SRA to avoid another Axiom Ince
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has been given statutory directions to address the multiple failures in its oversight of Axiom Ince.
Blog
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.
Linklaters’ chief growth officer takes the ‘blank sheet’ challenge
In the third and final part of this series, Lucy Murphy, chief growth officer at magic circle firm Linklaters, outlines her vision for the law firm of the future.
The ‘blank sheet’ challenge, part 2 – what would you do differently?
In the second part of this blog series, Shainul Kassam, managing director of small London firm Fortune Law, sets out how she would set up a law firm now.
