Latest news
From the naive to the desperate: SRA reveals anatomy of failing law firms
Misleading funders, inflating work-in-progress valuations and shortages in client account are among the common features of financially unstable firms that are currently under investigation by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, it has emerged.
ABS bids to leverage clients’ trust of solicitors to expand into non-legal services
The trust that solicitors engender among their clients should be leveraged, with other services operating under legal professionals’ banner within alternative business structures, according to the head of one of the newest ABSs.
LSB chair calls on Law Society and SRA to stop “spats”
The chairman of the Legal Services Board has criticised the “continuing spats” between the Law Society and Solicitors Regulation Authority. David Edmonds also praised the improvements made by the SRA to the process for licensing alternative business structures.
Top conveyancing firm warns of separate representation “calamity”
Scotland’s largest law firm conveyancer has entered the separate representation debate, critiquing the move as “politically motivated, opportunistic, regressive” and “anti-competitive”, and a “calamity” for solicitors and consumers.
‘ABS to the shires’ targets membership worth £13bn
An alternative business structure with access to clients with assets of more than £13bn has been launched by the Country Gentlemen’s Association, whose members who are mainly landowners, farmers, and retired military personnel.
Riverview and DMH unveil fixed-fee M&A service
The strategic alliance between Riverview Law and DMH Stallard has borne its first fruit, with the pair promising to handle mergers and acquisitions of any size on a fixed fee.
LSB bids to stamp authority on post-LETR reform agenda
The Legal Services Board is to issue statute-backed guidelines to compel legal regulators to follow its vision of how reforms resulting from the Legal Education and Training Review should be implemented.
SRA puts 1,200 firms on financial stability watchlist – how many more will join them?
The Solicitors Regulation Authority now has 1,200 law firms on its financial stability watchlist, with more likely to join it shortly, it has emerged. It follows the recent request for financial data from 2,000 practices.
Now tax man turns his gaze to partnership service companies
Service companies that law firms and others use to employ their staff and shift profit could be the next target of the government tax avoidance crackdown, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander has indicated.
Slater & Gordon begins push for national brand recognition
Slater & Gordon yesterday launched its first UK television advertising campaign as it bids to become “a household name”. Costing more than £1m in the launch phase, the firm used M&C Saatchi to create a series of adverts, starting with one on personal injury.
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.
