Latest news
LSB: regulators making progress – but not on understanding users of legal services
The profession’s regulators are not doing enough to understand the consumers of lawyers’ services, the Legal Services Board has warned. But it said there has been progress since the first assessment in 2012/13.
The ultimate one-stop shop? Lawyer offers divorce advice, anti-ageing cream and sex therapy
An international lawyer is bringing new meaning to the idea of a multi-disciplinary practice after launching a business in London that combines legal advice for DIY divorce clients with anti-ageing serums and sex therapy.
Calls for UK legal services report to include ABSs, small firms and diversity
Delegates at the Global Law Summit have questioned why a major report on the health of the legal services industry included so little on new entrants to the market, smaller firms and diversity.
Consultancy chief challenges Susskind over impact of technology
Professor Richard Susskind, IT adviser to the Lord Chief Justice, has warned lawyers that they have a “window of opportunity” before technological changes in the 2020s transform the way they work.
Innovation Nation – how SME firms are driving change in delivering legal services
Innovation in the legal market is – to some extent, at least – a state of mind, and structure is secondary to how your run your business. But the availability of ABS status and new competition has focused minds, a new report has found.
Law firm ‘named and shamed’ for failing to pay minimum wage
A law firm ‘named and shamed’ today by the government for failing to pay the minimum wage has hit back strongly. It was included in a list of 70 employers because it “neglected to pay £530.96 to a worker”.
Law to become “younger profession”, BLP managing partner predicts
The legal profession of the future is going to be younger, Neville Eisenberg, managing partner of City law firm Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), told the Global Law Summit in London today.
SRA stays on report over ABS licensing
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to remain on report over its performance in licensing alternative business structures until it outlines how it will stop making “disproportionate” requests for information from applicants, it has emerged.
Emerging countries and business will lead UK on court technology, experts say
Emerging countries and large corporations will lead the way on court technology while the UK and USA lag behind, experts at the Global Law Summit in London have predicted just a week after the Civil Justice Council unveiled its blueprint for online dispute resolution.
Quindell shares jump on positive news of Slater & Gordon deal
Alternative business structure Quindell plc indicated today that progress is being made on Slater & Gordon’s acquisition of its legal arm. The AIM-listed company’s shares jumped by 40% in early trading as a result.
Blog
Awaab’s Law phase 2: New hazards council tenants can now claim for
The conversation on housing disrepair is moving beyond damp and mould alone. With the rollout of phase 2 of Awaab’s Law, the scope of issues covered is expanding significantly,
Beyond PCP: Can regulators and lawyers work better together next time?
Nearly a decade after the Financial Conduct Authority began investigating the car finance industry, the story of the PCP commission scandal is still unfinished.
Accountability has to live within governance, not with one person
The assumption has long been that a COLP or COFA is personally exposed to the consequences of anti-money laundering breaches.
