Litigation/Dispute Resolution
Court refers lawyers to regulators over misconduct in $11bn arbitration
A High Court judge has referred a solicitor and a barrister to their regulators for “indefensible” conduct, motivated by money, that contributed to his decision to overturn an $11bn arbitration award.
Peers fight on to give fraud enforcement agencies costs protection
The House of Lords has renewed its backing for an amendment to draft legislation giving judges more freedom not to award costs against enforcement agencies.
First post-PACCAR bid to invalidate litigation funding agreement fails
The High Court has rejected the first bid to use the Supreme Court’s PACCAR ruling by a company looking to invalidate a litigation funding agreement it had signed up to.
AI could revolutionise lawyers’ approach to costs, says judge
Generative AI like ChatGPT could revolutionise the way that lawyers deal with costs, rendering detailed assessment largely unnecessary, a High Court judge suggested last week.
Judge refuses Indian lawyer right to address High Court
The High Court has refused an Indian lawyer permission to appear for an Indian company that had dismissed its English solicitors and barristers shortly before trial.
Law firm fails in bid to stop winding-up petition advert
The High Court has refused to grant a Welsh law firm that owes a disbursement funder £2.2m an injunction to prevent the lender from advertising a winding-up petition to other creditors.
Insolvency funder to ramp up work on Bounce Back Loan recoveries
Leading insolvency litigation funder Manolete is to receive more cases from Barclays to recover Covid Bounce Back Loans that appear to have been misappropriated by company directors.
Court rejects bid for non-party costs order against claimant’s solicitors
The High Court has rejected a bid to make a claimant’s solicitors pay the costs of assessment proceedings where the protection of qualified one-way costs shifting is in place.
Online probate process “taking longer than paper”
Private client lawyers believe the new online probate process is taking longer than the old paper-based system, with family solicitors and civil litigators also unhappy with digital processes.
Businessman sent law firm manure as part of harassment campaign
A businessman in a bitter dispute with fellow directors sent manure to one law firm and targeted an associate at another as part of a campaign of harassment, a court has heard.
Blog
Regulate sole practices on evidence, not turnover
For a sole practice, the SRA’s plan that I cannot hold a compliance role if my firm has more than £600,000 of turnover is not a measure of risk. It is a ceiling on growth.
Is Google becoming pay-to-play for law firms?
For years, law firms have been told that SEO is the long-term alternative to paying for every click. That principle hasn’t disappeared but search results have changed significantly.
Material information and the case for intelligent client onboarding
Upfront information means work traditionally undertaken after an offer is accepted will need to happen earlier. And that fundamentally changes the role of client onboarding.
Reports
Associates
