Practice Management

Law firms have seen a U-shaped recovery – and in some work-types, V-shaped – “rather than a dreaded L-type situation where things stay down in the dumps for a long period of time”.

West Midlands referral network Hub.Legal has reported that referrals of work from its 125 member firms have recovered to their pre-Covid level – but several are looking to merge.

A former equity partner in a two-partner North-East law firm faces a claim to repay his overdrawn director’s loan account of nearly £230,000 as the fall-out from its acrimonious split continues.

Consumers of legal services are more likely to shop around and to make a formal complaint if they do not get what they want than in previous years, new research has found.

The Covid-19 pandemic may reverse the trend towards consolidation in the SME legal market, with start-ups emerging as effective competition, according to the former boss of Cartwright King.

City giant Linklaters has introduced a new policy and package of support for employees who are living with domestic abuse, including paying for emergency hotel accommodation.

Lawyers must be able to report “mini-bullying moments” without fear that things will “go nuclear”, the global director of inclusion at Clifford Chance has said.

Solicitors are generally bullish about the future, despite nearly one in four believing Covid-19 will harm their clients’ prospects and many predicting lower demand for legal services.

Corporate law firm Aria Grace Law has pledged to give all of its profits to charity and other good causes forever as part of a commitment to “share the wealth between clients, lawyers and society”.

Law firms need to have the courage to employ diverse and even abrasive characters who help disrupt the legal sector and ensure it does not fall behind other industries.