Latest news
Men four times more likely than women to appear before SDT
Men are four times more likely than women to appear before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, despite gender parity in the profession, academics have found.
Court of Appeal allows claim over law firm break-up to proceed in full
The Court of Appeal has overturned a decision striking out parts of a claim brought by a solicitor against his former partner in a Middlesbrough law firm, increasing its value significantly.
Dishonest but “humanitarian” solicitor avoids strike-off
A solicitor found to have misled a court, lied to a client about receiving money from them and falsely held himself out as a notary public has avoided being struck off.
Discrimination the “sole cause” of paucity of Black QCs
Discrimination is the “sole identifiable cause” for the paucity of Black barristers, particularly at QC level, a co-chair of the Bar Council’s race working group has argued.
Fears about using judicial data to predict judges’ actions “exaggerated”
Access to judicial data should be made easier to increase public trust, while fears it will be used to create accurate predictions of what judges will do are overblown, a seminar heard last week.
Call for law to enforce undertakings given by incorporated law firms
Parliament should extend the courts’ supervisory jurisdiction over solicitors’ undertakings to cover those given by incorporated law firms, particularly LLPs, the Supreme Court said today.
Supreme Court upholds six-year non-compete clause signed by law firm
A non-compete undertaking given by one law firm to another ahead of them working together was reasonable and not a restraint of trade, the Supreme Court ruled today.
SRA: Number of workplace bullying investigations on the rise
Solicitors under investigation by their regulator are increasingly citing workplace bullying as a reason for their misconduct, according to a report published yesterday.
High Court criticises Bar Standards Board for “unjust” decisions
The High Court has ruled that the Bar Standards Board made “unjust and unsustainable” decisions in refusing a Bar student’s application for an exemption from the vocational element of his training.
Firms “overlooking compliance implications” of homeworking
Most law firms are planning to formalise hybrid working arrangements for staff but a significant number have yet to deal with all the compliance implications, research has found.
Blog
The SRA’s client money reforms: good intentions, questionable execution
On the face of it, the SRA’s plans to tighten protections around client money sounds sensible. The detail, as ever, tells a more complicated story.
Recruitment, retention and reward in the legal accounts world
Understanding the legal finance market is important – not just for those actively involved in it day-to-day but also for leaders within law firms.
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.
