Latest news
Fine for male trainee who told female colleague: “I roofied your drink”
A trainee solicitor who subjected two female colleagues to “harassing and abusive behaviour” at a work Christmas party – groping them and telling one he had “roofied” her drink – has been fined.
Leading firm overlooks another employment claim made against it
“Systematic and human errors” at leading legal aid firm Duncan Lewis meant it failed to respond to a discrimination and constructive dismissal claim against it for six and a half months.
High Court: No case justifies only using grade A fee-earners
A High Court judge said yesterday that he has never come across a case where some of the work could not be delegated to a more junior fee-earner.
Sibling partners embrace employee ownership to maintain team spirit
The sister and brother partners of an Essex law firm have rejected acquisition offers from larger firms and decided to transfer their shares to an employee ownership trust.
Lawtech tipping point “likely to come from non-lawyers”
Non-lawyers will disrupt the legal technology market such as to create a “tipping point”, probably in the next five years, the outgoing head of Lawtech UK has predicted.
Think tank calls for second round of court modernisation
The court modernisation programme has become an “efficiency effort” and a second round of more transformational court reform is needed, the Social Market Foundation has warned.
Accountancy body can finally exit legal services regulation
The Legal Services Board has granted permission for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants to formally pull out of probate regulation, having refused it in January.
Unregulated providers growing share of consumer and SME markets
The unregulated sector may account for up to 9% of the total market for individuals’ legal needs and up to 39% for small businesses, Legal Services Board research has indicated.
Divorce litigation becoming unaffordable for all but the rich, warns judge
Financial remedy litigation seems to be “fast heading for Ritz Hotel status – so expensive that it is only accessible by the very rich”, a senior family judge warned yesterday.
Vos: Online justice will make compulsory mediation debate moot
The question of whether mediation should be mandatory will become moot in the digital justice system currently being built, the Master of the Rolls said last week.
Blog
Your website is losing clients before they even pick up the phone
Your website visitor is likely already carrying stress before they arrive. If your site adds to it rather than relieves it, you have likely lost a prospective client.
The growing importance of higher limits in personal ATE
While the personal litigation market is undergoing a period of significant change as claims become more complex, much of the ATE insurance market has remained relatively static.
The profession can play a greater role in improving access to justice
In this, the third blog of my series, I focus on what lawyers in the UK can do to improve access to justice through greater professional stewardship.
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