Latest news
LSB names chief executive as BSB starts search for a new one
The Legal Services Board has named Richard Orpin as its new chief executive, having been acting up in the role for the last six months.
Paralegal banned for dishonest emails as supervisor cleared
A paralegal who lied to solicitors in one email and to a client’s relative in another has been banned – but the solicitor who supervised her exonerated.
Top offshore firm eyes new locations after taking external capital
Leading offshore law firm Walkers is eyeing geographic growth after becoming the latest to take external cash after agreeing a “strategic co-investment” into its fund and corporate services business.
Staff churn drops sharply as Knights reports positive results
Listed law firm Knights has significantly reduced staff churn, according to half-year results which showed a 30% rise in turnover to £130m, albeit most of it from acquisitions.
Billing practices and fair briefing among new Bar chair’s priorities
A campaign to improve billing practices at the Bar and work with solicitors on fair briefing are among the priorities outlined last night by the new chair of the Bar Council.
The new Mazur? ‘Solicitor agent’ does not have rights of audience
A so-called solicitor’s agent did not meet the Legal Services Act 2007 requirements for rights of audience, a district judge has ruled.
Tribunal strikes out part of barrister’s claim against BSB
A barrister’s claim that hundreds of people accessed details of a complaint about her held by the Bar Standards Board has been struck out by an employment tribunal.
Clients demanding AI chatbots to “circumvent lawyers”
Large law firms are facing “increasing demands from clients” for AI chatbots to allow them to “self-serve and circumvent the need to direct all queries through lawyers”.
Fixed costs extension “has increased deductions from damages”
The continued push for fixed costs has resulted in more deductions from clients’ damages and raises questions about whether justice is being achieved.
MoJ an international outlier with client account interest plan
Interest on Lawyers’ Client Account schemes around the world do not divert the money to general government coffers, as the Ministry of Justice is proposing, according to research.
Blog
From ‘year zero’ to £6.5m – how a law firm found its second life
In 2018, I hit what I call ‘year zero’. On paper, Olliers Solicitors was a top-tier criminal defence firm but beneath the surface, I could see we were at a crossroads.
Linklaters’ chief growth officer takes the ‘blank sheet’ challenge
In the third and final part of this series, Lucy Murphy, chief growth officer at magic circle firm Linklaters, outlines her vision for the law firm of the future.
The ‘blank sheet’ challenge, part 2 – what would you do differently?
In the second part of this blog series, Shainul Kassam, managing director of small London firm Fortune Law, sets out how she would set up a law firm now.
