Practice Management
Home buyers dissatisfied with conveyancers and moving process, survey finds
There is considerable unhappiness among home buyers and sellers with conveyancers and the speed of the moving process, new research has found. More than 40% of consumers were unsure or unlikely to offer them repeat business.
Big fall in firms heading for closure after failing to find indemnity insurance
A total of 49 firms are heading for closure after failing to secure indemnity insurance, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has said. This compares with 138 which were forced to shut for the same reason last year.
Exclusive: in-house lawyers complain about firms failing to offer pricing options
Large corporate clients are demanding “far more” fixed fee and ‘menu’ pricing, but are having to push firms into providing it, a survey based on interviews with 40 in-house teams and 50 top 100 law firms has found.
Lawyer-matching service targets major growth after cash injection
A new lawyer-matching service aimed particularly at tech start-ups has secured £260,000 of funding from e-commerce funder Forward Partners and Jonathan McKay, chairman of JustGiving.
SRA issues warning over letting clients use law firms as banks
There are increasing reports of law firms allowing their client account to be used by others as a bank account in clear breach of the rules, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) warned yesterday.
Law Society to SRA: do not abandon training contract
The Law Society has called on the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) not to abandon the training contract, which it is said was viewed by other jurisdictions as the “gold standard”.
Why tweet when you can ‘moot’? QC launches legal social media site
Lawyers frustrated by having to confine their tweets to 140 characters will be free to express themselves in ‘moots’ of up to 500 words on new legal social media site mootis, launched today.
Allen & Overy expands online service for financial institutions
Magic circle firm Allen & Overy has expanded the online legal service it provides to financial institutions as part of its “strategic vision to integrate a range of new service capabilities and delivery models with its core high-end legal practice”.
QualitySolicitors launches online customer platform
QualitySolicitors (QS) has launched a new online customer platform, which has taken a year to develop and is described by the network as the most advanced of its kind.
Exclusive: 1,000 barristers sign up to “game changing” public access scheme
More than 1,000 barristers have already signed up to a “game changing” initiative that aims to smooth the way for consumers and businesses to use public access, Legal Futures can reveal.
Blog
Why good governance matters when managing Law Society forms
Everyday legal transactions rely on Law Society forms. But they are often treated as static templates rather than what they really are: living documents that change over time.
A letter from the SRA? Your first reaction matters
An email from the SRA has a way of rearranging a working day. It arrives in the same inbox as everything else, often in the same measured tone, yet it carries a different weight.
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.
Reports
Associates
