Latest news
Slater & Gordon makes its personal injury play with trio of acquisitions
Slater & Gordon has today made its move to become a dominant player in the consumer legal market – and particularly personal injury (PI) – by announcing deals to acquire national firm Simpson Millar, Liverpool-based Goodmans Law and the PI practice of Cambridge’s Taylor Vinters.
ABS Quindell posts 900% increase in turnover and profit
The massive acquisition programme of alternative business structure Quindell Portfolio plc – including three law firms – resulted in a 900% increase in turnover and profit in 2012, the company’s preliminary annual results have shown.
ABS acquires conveyancing firm to continue diversification strategy away from PI
Alternative business structure MTA Solicitors is continuing its move to diversify and expand its business beyond personal injury after acquiring volume property practice Solex Legal Services, Legal Futures can reveal.
Forget the City – work-life balance is more of a problem for crime lawyers
Crime lawyers have by far the worst work-life balance amongst all lawyers and the pressure on them risks deterring the next generation, according to new research. Criminal solicitors are almost three times more likely to move jobs because of anti-social hours than others.
Barristers to have tools to compete with solicitors as BSB seeks approval for liberalisation
An end to the bans on self-employed barristers conducting litigation and sharing premises or forming associations with non-barristers is in sight as the Bar Standards Board laid out the first stage of its major liberalisation programme.
LSB director questions independence of frontline regulators from the lawyers they oversee
The influence of lawyers and professional bodies on their frontline regulators is the biggest risk to independent regulation in the law, the strategy director of the Legal Services Board has claimed. Crispin Passmore said a combination of factors led him to “worry how independent regulation actually is”.
SRA chief executive to stand down after seven years
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has announced that chief executive Antony Townsend will be stepping down later in the year. He will leave once his successor has been appointed, having been in charge since its inception in 2006.
You ain’t seen nothing yet, says top banker, with flood of investment and mergers on way
There will be an “enormous amount” of external investment and merger activity in the legal market over the next 24 months, a leading investment banker has predicted. He said investment had only been held back by uncertainty in the volume market.
Unbundled legal services and hourly rates don’t mix, warns Law Society
Family lawyers offering unbundled legal services should be wary of charging clients on an hourly basis, the Law Society has warned. It said “this could increase the risk of the retainer being more broadly interpreted”.
Stobart Barristers sets sights on criminal legal aid contract
Stobart Barristers – the direct access service run by the famous logistics company – has given a strong indication that it will bid for the new criminal legal aid contracts the government is set to offer under price competitive tendering.
Blog
When AI becomes a line on the client’s bill
On 23 June, Legora changed how it charges. The platform announced that its most capable product was moving away from a flat per-seat licence fee to consumption-based pricing
Which legal AI will still matter in 12 months?
Four years ago, when senior partners asked me which legal AI they should buy, I would have walked them through a vendor comparison. Now I tell them the question is wrong.
Supreme Court redraws line between member and employee in LLPs
For anyone advising professional services firms on LLP structuring, and of course for those in LLPs themselves, last week’s Supreme Court ruling is an essential read.
