Latest news
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.
Solicitors fined for misconduct over purchase of law firm
A woman who used a solicitor to buy a law firm while she was still a trainee, and then practised unsupervised, has been fined for misconduct.
Court of Appeal backs strike-out of £68m law firm negligence claim
The Court of Appeal has dismissed a challenge to the striking out of £68m negligence claim against Yorkshire law firm Lupton Fawcett following a failed property development schemes.
Majority of conveyancers do not want binding sale contracts
Seven out of 10 conveyancing solicitors do not want the government to introduce mandatory binding contracts for offers to buy homes, research has found.
Government will put firms “at risk” with client account interest grab
The government’s proposed raid on client account interest “will put high street law firms at risk and force legal fees to rise for those that survive”, the Law Society has warned.
Spot-fixing cricketer’s solicitor cleared of urging false defence
A solicitor who acted for a cricketer jailed for spot fixing has been cleared of an allegation that he encouraged his client to offer false evidence in his defence.
Blog
Fixed recoverable costs: Sacrificing justice for predictability?
The extended fixed recoverable costs regime is failing to achieve its stated objectives. Instead of promoting fairness and efficiency, the rules are creating anomalies that undermine justice.
Expectations keep rising, so prioritise client experience
Law firms are facing growing pressure to place greater focus on client experience or risk falling behind in an increasingly competitive legal market.
Want sustainable growth? Look to operational excellence
Many firms are being forced to reassess where growth will come from. Increasingly, the answer lies in operational excellence: creating capacity from existing teams.
