Market monitor
Last chance saloon as MPs and peers urged to derail whiplash tariff
Claimant representatives are urging MPs and peers to push back on the “derisory and offensive” new tariff for whiplash injuries when put for approval in Parliament this week.
Top Chinese firm eyes non-lawyer partners with ABS move
A leading Chinese law firm has converted its London operation into an alternative business structure with a view to bringing non-lawyer partners on board. It is already in talks with some.
Rocket Lawyer fuels growth with £161m investment
Online legal services provider Rocket Lawyer has received a £161m funding boost to meet growing demand and scale up its cloud-based case management system.
Lawyers ramp up efforts to use law to fight climate change
The Chancery Lane Project, a global collaboration of lawyers looking to fight climate change, has published the latest set of model contract clauses, which it says are increasingly being taken up.
Listed business make major move with £30m law firm acquisition
RBG Holdings, the listed business that owns City law firm Rosenblatt, has more than doubled in size after announcing the £30m acquisition of London practice Memery Crystal.
Citizens Advice reveals huge demand for help during pandemic
Citizens Advice gave one-to-one advice to two million people during the year of the pandemic, the “vast majority” of them remotely, the service has said.
NDA initiative aims to promote benefits of standardisation
More than 700 individuals and businesses have agreed to use a standard non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for use when beginning negotiations over corporate transactions.
Senior City lawyers want to continue working flexibly – or will leave
The major City law firms are on notice that their big hitters want a permanent post-Covid change in work patterns or some will look to leave, new research has found.
160 firms sign up to consumer app aiming to transform access to lawyers
An app linking consumers to lawyers who provide free video consultations has been launched this week after three months of testing with 20 law firms – more than 160 firms have now signed up.
Solicitor unfairly dismissed for refusing Covid variation to contract
A solicitor fired after refusing a demand to vary her contract so her firm could furlough her or reduce her wages to help it cope with the impact of Covid has won a claim for unfair dismissal.
Blog
Change in regulator shouldn’t make AML less of a priority
While SRA fines for AML have been climbing, many in the profession aren’t confident they will get any relief from the FCA, a body used to dealing with a highly regulated industry.
There are 17 million wills waiting to be written
The main reason cited by people who do not have a will was a lack of awareness as to how to arrange one. As a professional community, we seem to be failing to get our message across.
The case for a single legal services regulator: why the current system is failing
From catastrophic firm collapses to endemic compliance failures, the evidence is mounting that the current multi-regulator model is fundamentally broken.
