Alternative business structures
New ABSs target high net-worth individuals and Yorkshire high street
A Mayfair-based private client firm that has close links to a wealth manager and a personal injury practice that is diversifying into other areas of law have become the first new alternative business structures in nearly a month.
Pinto Potts cites uncertain post-Jackson future as key driver for Quindell deal
The law firm that yesterday agreed to be bought by Quindell Portfolio did so in the face of a “future laced with uncertainty” for personal injury practitioners, its managing partner has told Legal Futures.
Quindell to acquire second leading PI firm
AIM-listed Quindell Portfolio is to acquire its second leading claimant personal injury (PI) law firm after reaching agreement to purchase Pinto Potts for around £14m. The deal also extends Quindell’s offering to insurers beyond PI.
The future of PI: external investment, few CMCs and five or six major claimant firms
“Numerous” external investors will appear alongside consolidation and new structures once the “floodgates of change” hit the personal injury market next year – with just five or six claimant firms likely to dominate – an authoritative new report has predicted.
Oh yes – Direct Line set for ABS as it reveals £110m solicitor referral fee income since 2009
Insurance company Direct Line will shortly make an application to become an alternative business structure, with the referral fee ban set to choke off a source of income that has raised £110m over the past three and a half years, it has emerged.
Exclusive: small business adviser eyes law firm acquisitions as part of push into legal services
A company that currently provides small businesses with accountancy and HR advice is set to move into legal services, with an alternative business structure application and the acquisition of law firms likely, Legal Futures can reveal.
Law firm joins forces with seven other businesses to launch collision-to-settlement ABS
A new business that brings together a law firm with seven other service providers needed to manage a motor accident from collision to settlement has applied for alternative business structure status, Legal Futures can report.
Non-lawyer staff causing law firms problems, says leading regulator
US law firms are increasingly running into trouble when they allow non-lawyers to take an active part in front-of-house relationships with clients, a top California legal regulator has revealed.
Here come the brands: AA applies for ABS licence…
The AA has applied for an alternative business structure licence, Legal Futures can reveal. It follows the success of the motoring giant’s online legal document service, which was launched two years ago.
… as Saga expands into fixed-fee private client services and bids for ABS status too
Over-50s specialist Saga has today launched a new range of legal services which it claims aims to make the market “more straightforward in terms of charges, language and accessibility” – and has also applied for an alternative business structure licence.
Blog
The AI question law firms should answer before a client asks it
Most law firms we speak to are already using AI, whether or not they have approved it, because fee-earners are doing it anyway. The tool people settle on is often Claude.
From chat to Cowork: preparing your law firm for agentic AI
AI is evolving quickly. For law firms still working out how to get consistent value from the tools they already have, the conversation has moved on again to agentic AI.
Why good governance matters when managing Law Society forms
Everyday legal transactions rely on Law Society forms. But they are often treated as static templates rather than what they really are: living documents that change over time.
Reports
Associates
