Legal Services Act

Regional law firms have a much more positive view of the impact of alternative business structures (ABSs) and other regulatory changes than City firms, a survey has found. It said 45% of regional firms described ABSs as having a positive impact on their practices, compared to only 18% of City firms.

A third of senior managers at law firms expect private equity to be an important source of funding in the next few years, a survey has found. A quarter also believed that other financial investors, including high net-worth individuals or family offices, will play a key role.

Slater & Gordon has announced that it is taking legal action against Watchstone Group – formerly Quindell – over its £637m purchase of Quindell’s professional services division last year. At the start of 2016 S&G unveiled a massive write-down of goodwill arising from the acquisition.

Listed law firm Gateley has continued its acquisition of complementary businesses by spending up to £2m to buy a firm of surveyors that will work alongside its property practice. Hamer Associates specialises in easements and wayleaves, and compulsory purchase and compensation.

It would be less stressful and less expensive for clients to use their accountants for probate work than solicitors, one of the leading accountancy bodies has claimed. Meanwhile, the head of an accountancy ABS said it made “little sense” for lawyers to handle uncontested probate work.

The transformation of AIM-listed Fairpoint Group into a legal services business continued apace in the first six months of 2016, its half-year results showed yesterday. Revenue increased by 24% to £28.3m in the period, of which £21.5m was from legal services, nearly twice as much as a year before. Profits were steady at £4m.

The changing legal market means that anybody offering legal services – including unregulated providers – should have to offer some kind of access to the Legal Ombudsman, the chief ombudsman has said. Kathryn Stone said this would be “a much more coherent way for us to provide our service”.

Lawyers need to embrace innovation to find new ways of delivering services and simplifying working practices, the government and senior judiciary said today as they unveiled their vision for the digital transformation of the justice system. The £1bn plan includes the prospect of people being convicted online for minor offences, and plans for fixed fees across as much of the civil system as possible.

Reactions from key legal services industry bodies to the Legal Services Board’s blueprint for radical form of legal regulation have ranged from enthusiastic welcome to anger at its timing, while the politician who introduced the Legal Services Act 2007 said tackling unmet legal need was more of a priority.

One of the first local authority alternative business structures is projected to increase its turnover 30% over the next year, and has already cut the fee rates for its shareholder clients by 20%, it revealed yesterday. LGSS Law is now also advising more than 100 client organisations within the public and not-for-profit sectors.