News

QualitySolicitors experienced an “unbelievable spike” in web traffic and calls following its primetime television advert last week, even though it was aimed more at brand awareness than direct response, founder Craig Holt has reported.

The Law Society has squeezed a minor concession out of the unnamed professional indemnity insurer to whom it complained about giving solicitors just seven days to accept quotes.

The Legal Services Board believes that reserving will-writing work to lawyers could lead to fewer people making wills and would do nothing about unfair bundling of estate administration charges, Legal Futures can reveal.

The Legal Services Board’s initial reaction to the Law Society of Ireland’s threat of legal action over the new rules for overseas lawyers requalifying as solicitors was that it might just be a “negotiating ploy”, Legal Futures can reveal.

Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) complaints two years ago about the way some conveyancing law firms were advertising their prices led the Law Society to issue guidance last week on “headline pricing”, Legal Futures has discovered.

There is no sign of a resolution to the Law Society of Ireland’s threat to judicially review the new Qualified Lawyers Transfer Scheme (QLTS), meaning that from tomorrow Irish solicitors will no longer benefit from the automatic exemption that they do now. The judicial review started by the Law Society of Ireland has been stayed until 30 September.

The property slump has had a major impact on the ranks of licensed conveyancers, with the number of students more than halving in just two years. But they are starting to take up their new probate rights.

Our weekly round-up of other interesting regulation/Legal Services Act type stories begins with the Law Society Gazette’s ever-interesting Euro blog by Jonathan Goldsmith, secretary-general of Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe. He looks at a European Commission consultation on how it can encourage e-commerce, with lawyers one of the key targets.

Junior barristers are facing huge rises in their practising certificate fees under reforms unveiled by the Bar Council. Women and black and minority ethnic barristers are set to be disproportionately hit by the increases, although the Bar Council says the waiver system for low earners will offset this.

The claims management regulator has launched a crackdown on companies that are cold-calling consumers and taking up-front fees without giving clients a reasonable period to consider the agreement they are signing.