Latest news
Parabis hires Jabbari to create regional firm network in support of consumer law ABSs
Alternative business structure Parabis Group is to create a branded franchise network of regional law firms to support its consumer law offering, after hiring former Connect2Law chief David Jabbari, Legal Futures can reveal.
SRA: hundreds of companies, public authorities and law centres mulling ABS conversion
The impact of alternative business structures (ABSs) on organisations with in-house lawyers is likely to be felt most in the third sector, major new research has found – but hundreds of private companies and public authorities are looking at conversion too.
Senior City lawyer becomes ABS but faces MDP dilemma
The former head of construction at City giant Norton Rose has turned his legal consultancy into an alternative business structure, but has had difficulty finding a non-lawyer professional partner of similar standing to link up with.
High Court refuses permission to appeal QASA ruling and makes maximum costs order
The High Court has today refused permission to appeal against the recent ruling on the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA), saying there was no reasonable prospect of the claimant barristers making a successful challenge to it.
Blue-chip wealth adviser becomes ABS and predicts global take-up
The chief executive of a blue-chip global wealth adviser that administers £200bn of assets has predicted alternative business structures are a reform of law firm ownership that other countries will have to adopt – having just secured a licence itself.
Unprecedented consolidation, ABSs and only the global or niche surviving – Knowles surveys future
Commercial law firms that think a recovering economy will save them from the imminent and major consolidation of the market are “deluding themselves”, Sir Nigel Knowles has warned. The trends in the legal market – including ABSs – will render many firms’ business models as obsolete.
No more getting your clerk to do it – BSB bids to improve barristers’ diversity reporting
The Bar Standards Board is set to introduce a series of measures to improve diversity reporting among barristers after the vast majority refused to answer many of the questions posed about their backgrounds.
Fifth of law firms miss diversity data deadline
A fifth of law firms failed to meet last Friday’s deadline for submitting their diversity data reports to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). Some 79% (8,396) firms successfully lodged their reports last week, “with many more in progress”, according to the SRA.
SRA imposes conditions on PwC and Direct Line’s ABS licences
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has hedged the award of alternative business structure (ABS) licences to accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers and insurer Direct Line Group with a host of conditions, it has emerged.
Gulf opens between profession and consumer groups over LSB lay chairs proposal
The Legal Services Board’s consultation on its plan to oblige frontline regulators to have lay chairs has met a barrage of opposition from regulators and lawyers, pitted against consumer advocates, which strongly backed the measure.
Blog
Small steps, big impact: how SME law firms are making legal tech work
For SME law firms, the priority is turning the potential of tech into measurable impact: success is driven not just by the technology, but by how firms approach planning and implementation.
Why housing disrepair claims against councils have leapt by nearly 400%
Housing disrepair claims against councils have surged dramatically in recent years, with some areas reporting increases approaching a staggering 400%.
Client accounts: Opportunity, obligation and the risks in between
The profitability gap between well-run firms and the rest is not primarily a function of size, location or practice area – it is a function of financial management.
