Latest news
Law Society set to recruit “harassment advisers” to protect staff from bullies
The Law Society’s ruling council will today consider whether a network of “harassment advisers” should be set up to crack down on bullying at Chancery Lane.
Comparison sites sign up to consumer panel’s good practice standards
Two comparison websites have become the latest to sign up to the groundbreaking good practice standards pioneered by the Legal Services Consumer Panel.
CMCs to pay up to £40,000 each to benefit from Legal Ombudsman
Claims management companies will have to pay a separate ‘Lord Chancellor’s complaints fee’ of up to £40,000 on top of their annual regulation fee with the shift in complaints handling from the Ministry of Justice to the Legal Ombudsman.
LSB to put heat under approved regulators over how they spend practising fees
The Legal Services Board is to tell the approved regulators that they must consult those they regulate about setting the level of practising fees beyond what is needed simply for regulation, it has emerged.
Withers bids to lure entrepreneurs with fixed-fee start-up kit and host of extras
Leading private client firm Withers has launched a programme including start-up legal advice and magazine subscriptions aimed at helping entrepreneurs grow and protect their businesses.
QASA set for further delay as barristers win permission to appeal
The introduction of the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA) is likely to be delayed yet again after four barristers won permission to appeal against the dismissal of their judicial review application by the High Court in January.
Self-proclaimed entrepreneurial lawyers spearheading change
Solicitors who consider themselves entreprenerial are proving much more active in changing the way they practise law, new research has suggested. However, only 22% of those polled said they believed the introduction of ABSs was a “positive”.
Majority of respondents to SRA consultation backed ban on unrated insurers
The SRA has acknowledged that the majority of responses received to its consultation on banning unrated indemnity insurers favoured a ban. Of 31 responses, 18 were in favour and 13 against.
Bar Council sets sights on solicitors’ advocacy ‘conflict of interest’
The Bar Council has called for strict new rules to check that criminal law solicitors are acting properly when they guide clients to in-house advocates as opposed to external counsel.
Stobart Barristers boss cleared of contempt allegations
The Court of Appeal has allowed an appeal by Trevor Howarth, the founder of Stobart Barristers, and Stobart Group chief executive Andrew Tinkler against their committal for trial on contempt charges brought by a litigant in person.
Blog
Preparing people for the pace of technological change
While technology often dominates the conversation, I believe the most important challenge facing law firms is not adopting new tools – it is preparing people to adapt alongside them.
Reorientation in the AI era must begin with the client
Much of the discussion about AI in the legal industry focuses on technology: which tools to adopt and which tasks might get automated. But this misses the deeper story.
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,
