Practice Management

Law firm mergers are still being planned, despite the coronavirus pandemic, although they may take longer to get over the line, experts have predicted.

Most solicitors and their staff north of the border have experienced mental health problems, a major survey by the Law Society of Scotland and mental health charity See Me has found.

Most law firms have continued to resist radical measures to cope with the Covid-19 crisis, taking “moderate steps in the short term to ensure resilience in the long term”, new research has found.

The coronavirus crisis has given law firms a “platform to accelerate change” in promoting equality, the chief operating officer of Bristol-based law firm Burges Salmon has said.

AIM-listed law firm Gateley has moved underemployed staff to support counter-cyclical services that are “extremely busy”, it reassured investors yesterday.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to look again at whether to close the Solicitors Indemnity Fund – which covers claims made after firms’ run-off cover expires – in September this year.

Anxiety among aspiring solicitors has “skyrocketed” due to the Covid-19 crisis, a survey has found, with 75% of trainees and paralegals expecting it to lead to “significant job losses at my level of seniority”.

The coronavirus crisis has not stopped a series of mergers taking place across the country in recent weeks, as well as specialist law firms starting up.