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Two law firm partners have been fined by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal for failing to properly supervise a legal cashier who stole over £30,000 from their firm’s office account. She also cashed cheques made out to the firm, but these were repaid by the bank as it was not meant to allow anyone other than a partner to do so.

Outgoing Law Society chief executive Catherine Dixon is to take up the same role at one of the largest agricultural and further education colleges in the UK. Askham Bryan College, which is near York, has nearly 4,000 students at sites across the north of England.

A solicitor who built up residual client balances of nearly £200,000 has been rebuked and fined by the Solicitors Regulation Authority – six years after he was advised as to his conduct for the same failure. He also admitted failing to register lasting powers of attorney on behalf of clients.

The government’s own assessment of the impact of its planned personal injury reforms “makes the implicit assumption that solicitors, and the civil justice system as a whole, produce no benefits to society”, according to independent economists. They said the reforms would benefit insurers at the expense of consumers and taxpayers.

One of the longest-serving members of the QualitySolicitors network has quit after six years as it bids to refocus on its local market and expand the range of services it offers. Kent-based Martin Tolhurst Solicitors revealed plans for what it called “a major investment” in the non-conveyancing parts of its business.

The government’s proposed personal injury reforms have to at least match the current 86% pre-court settlement rate of the RTA portal or there will be serious consequences for the justice system, one of the few cross-profession respondents to the Ministry of Justice consultation has said.

The senior judiciary has acted to remind the profession that implementation of Lord Justice Briggs’ Civil Courts Structure Review will cover much more than just the introduction of the Online Court. The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Thomas, and Master of the Rolls, Sir Terence Etherton, today issued an unprompted joint statement.

A newly qualified solicitor, described as “completely incompetent” and “like a rabbit caught in headlights”, has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. His firm admitted twin allegations of failing to operate an adequate system of supervision and to provide a good standard of service to clients.

The recently ratified Paris Agreement on ending human-caused CO2 emissions offers “huge new opportunities” for law firms to assist with the transition to a zero-emissions economy, a report has claimed. It said firms should consider “getting in on the ground floor” with advising companies producing electric vehicles.

An AIM-listed provider of online B2B platforms – which white labels MoneySupermarket’s conveyancer search – has bought Conveyancing Alliance for an initial £7.2m as part of its strategy to become the country’s leading handler of conveyancing.