Compliance & Regulation
“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.
SRA presses on with separating management and compliance roles
The SRA is going ahead with rule changes to separate law firm managers who can “unilaterally” make decisions from compliance officer roles in all but the smallest firms.
SRA ordered to pay solicitor costs after failed dishonesty allegation
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has reprimanded a duty solicitor for backdating documents – but ordered the SRA to pay him costs after he was cleared of dishonesty.
Blog
Why council tenants often wait longest for disrepair to be fixed
Why do council tenants appear to wait longer for disrepair to be resolved, and what does that tell us about the changing relationship between landlords, tenants and accountability?
Alternative dispute resolution comes to credit hire
Following an initial pilot in 2025 that returned encouraging results, phase 2 of the GTA ADR scheme is due to begin in September 2026.
Could unpredictable AI costs finally lead firms to true value pricing?
For years, the legal profession has talked of moving away from the billable hour to value-based pricing without quite managing it.
Reports
Associates
