Latest news
Specialist PI firm targets white-label deals with insurers after winning ABS licence
The latest personal injury law firm to become an alternative business structure is eyeing up the opportunity of offering insurers a specialist white-label service, it has emerged. Without the status, “you can’t get off the starting blocks,” said its chief executive.
City solicitors strike deal with commercial Bar over special terms of business
The City of London Law Society and Commercial Bar Association have published model terms of business for barristers instructed in commercial cases after more than two years of negotiation. The Bar Council’s new standard terms were deemed unacceptable by some solicitors.
Revised QASA timetable confirms new nine-month delay
The Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA) will start in September, nine months later than planned, it was announced yesterday. The revised timetable was released just hours before heads of chambers met to discuss their response to QASA.
Bar Council and Law Society at loggerheads as standard terms of contract come into force
Barristers could end up uninsured and in financial hardship if they agree to variations of their new standard terms of contract recommended by the Law Society, the Bar Council has warned. It said it was “surprised and disappointed” at the tone of Chancery Lane’s practice note.
SRA needs to hold "overzealous lawyers" to account for advice that enables client wrongdoing
Transactional lawyers should be held accountable if their advice is used by clients for unlawful acts and strict conduct rules are necessary to police this rather than an outcomes-focused principle, law academics have argued.
Small firms left at the altar as mid-sized practices eye merger opportunities
Mid-sized law firms are looking more likely to secure mergers in the coming months than their smaller brethren, new research has indicated. The survey of 92 firms found that most of the firms that had received or made multiple approaches had at least 10 partners.
Law Society hits out at 'inadequate' client-care rules in Bar's new public access training
The Bar Standards Board’s plans to strengthen public access training for newly qualified barristers in client care are inadequate and should include extensive supervision to ensure competence as is required of trainee solicitors, according to the Law Society.
Simplify the Law owner unveils cash injection from external investor
Evident Legal, the law firm franchise turned online legal service Simplify the Law, has secured a cash injection from a venture capitalist to help it grow. The investor, ARC InterCapital, was set up by former Goldman Sachs vice-president Andrew Dixon.
If at first you don’t succeed… SRA tries again to increase £2,000 fining power
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is again lobbying the government to raise the amount it can fine traditional law firms after its previous attempt to catapult the limit from £2,000 to £250m was rejected last autumn. The revelation came in a consultation on proposed fining guidelines.
ABS specialising in claims by builders and cabbies eyes external investment
A law firm that has innovative web-based personal injury brands, including those directed at the building trades and taxi drivers, is to investigate external investment after winning its alternative business structure (ABS) license.
Blog
The SRA needs to admit it got it wrong about SLAPPs
The High Court judgment in Ashley Hurst v SRA in January raises serious questions about the regulator’s approach to allegations of SLAPP-like behaviour.
Why menopause support belongs on every law firm’s agenda
Progression in the law slows significantly as women approach senior leadership. Most will be at the height of their careers around the average age menopause symptoms begin.
Law firms need to go beyond document checks
At the root of every failed compliance review is a familiar phrase: a calm assertion of “but we did a document check”.
