Latest news
Earnings up sharply at leading conveyancing ABS
Countrywide plc has reported a “promising first half trading performance” for its conveyancing division, with income up 4% and earnings 12%. Countrywide Property Lawyers is an alternative business structure regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers.
SRA “loosening shackles” of separate business rule
There are signs of the Solicitors Regulation Authority relaxing its strict interpretation of a key rule which may be “dampening” innovation and new entrants to the market, according to the Legal Services Board.
Call for ‘intervention lite’ to turn around distressed firms and halt asset-stripping
The Solicitors Regulation Authority needs to establish a new expert panel that would be called in to help avoid formal intervention into failing law firms – dubbed ‘intervention lite’ – a specialist solicitor has claimed.
Legal Services Board mulls formal probe into SRA’s handling of ABS applications
The Legal Services Board is weighing up whether to launch a formal investigation into the way the Solicitors Regulation Authority is handling alternative business structure applications, Legal Futures can reveal.
Interventions fall but number of solicitors struck off rises by more than half
There has been a 25% fall in the number of law firms closed down by the Solicitors Regulation Authority in the past year, new figures have revealed. But despite the number of solicitors before the tribunal also falling, there was a 55% increase in the number of strike-offs.
IT-driven and partners who manage full-time: is new ABS the model PI firm of the future?
Liverpool-based SGI Legal has set its sights on reshaping the way personal injury law firms operate having received its alternative business structure licence from the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
LSB: concern over behaviour at top of Bar Council and BSB sparked independence probe
The Legal Services Board’s initial probe into the independent regulation of barristers uncovered “a number of concerns about the Bar Council’s and the Bar Standards Board’s behaviour at both junior and senior executive as well as board level”, it has emerged.
Lawyers urged to adapt when advising clients with learning disabilities
Lawyers needs to improve their interpersonal skills, be patient, respectful and remove jargon to provide disabled clients with a better legal service, research has claimed. More also needs to be done to advertise legal services to people with learning disabilities.
Ebay’s former online dispute resolution team targets UK after $5m cash injection
An online dispute resolution business that spun out of eBay is heading to the UK after receiving a $5m cash injection from venture capitalists. Modria is setting up its European operation in the UK, where it will be headed by solicitor Graham Ross.
MPs attack insurers over referral fees and ABSs
MPs have attacked insurance companies for not being more transparent over the referral fees they receive from a range of sources. The transport select committee said “the motor insurance sector remains as opaque as ever”.
Blog
The best legal AI doesn’t replace rules-based engines – it completes them
There is a belief circulating in legal tech that AI can solve everything – that LLMs are universally superior to what came before. It is not always true, however.
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%.
