Practice Management
National litigation practice bought by private equity house
A national practice best known for its credit hire work has become the latest addition to the ranks of law firms owned by private equity.
Top offshore firm eyes new locations after taking external capital
Leading offshore law firm Walkers is eyeing geographic growth after becoming the latest to take external cash after agreeing a “strategic co-investment” into its fund and corporate services business.
Staff churn drops sharply as Knights reports positive results
Listed law firm Knights has significantly reduced staff churn, according to half-year results which showed a 30% rise in turnover to £130m, albeit most of it from acquisitions.
Clients demanding AI chatbots to “circumvent lawyers”
Large law firms are facing “increasing demands from clients” for AI chatbots to allow them to “self-serve and circumvent the need to direct all queries through lawyers”.
Government will put firms “at risk” with client account interest grab
The government’s proposed raid on client account interest “will put high street law firms at risk and force legal fees to rise for those that survive”, the Law Society has warned.
Two more acquisitions for leading PE-backed group
Two of the law firms owned by Lawfront, the largest buy-and-build group backed by private equity, have made their own acquisitions, in our first M&A round-up of the year.
AI tool aims to capture “invisible thinking” of lawyers
A legal tech startup led by a solicitor turned behavioural psychologist is aiming to capture the “invisible knowledge” of senior lawyers for the benefit of both junior lawyers and clients.
AI use and employee ownership trigger staff bonuses at leading firms
Staff at two leading regional law firms have been awarded significant bonuses – one for use of AI and the other for their work in an employee-owned practice.
Magic circle pay trainees less than US firms – and work them harder
The biggest City law firms are paying their trainees less than their US competitors but working them harder, according to new research showing how pay continues to spiral.
Don’t forget human support in the rush to digital, lawyers told
Both the structure and delivery of legal services – such as a lack of guidance and reactive communication – can cause difficulties for consumers, new research has found.
Blog
When the person who needs help is the partner
A law firm can have excellent support on paper and still have a serious gap. The gap is the person who cannot imagine using it.
SRA supervision and AI: what firms will be asked to prove
AI intensifies scrutiny of whether firms can demonstrate that they were in control of the systems through which legal services were delivered.
How ELD NextGen will improve employers’ liability tracing
The Employers’ Liability Tracing Office is continuing work towards the launch of ELD NextGen, the next generation of the employers’ liability database, in early 2027.
Reports
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