Practice Management
Figures reveal low level of negligence claims against barristers
The average barrister only makes one notification of a possible professional negligence claim every 20 years, figures from the Bar Mutual Indemnity Fund have revealed.
GCs: Covid-19 has showcased lawyers’ adaptability
Many aspects of the adaptability shown by lawyers during the Covid-19 crisis should stand them in good stead in future dealings with clients, it has been claimed.
Top female lawyers’ careers squeezed by bias and harassment
The role of discrimination on the part of both general counsel and clients in disadvantaging female lawyers was revealed yesterday by a survey on improving diversity at partner level in law firms.
Solicitors Indemnity Fund to stay open for extra year
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has agreed to extend by a year the use of the Solicitors Indemnity Fund to covers claims made after firms’ run-off cover expires.
“Relax apprenticeship levy rules” to help law firms
The Law Society has called on the government to allow firms to use the apprenticeship levy more flexibly than now to create new jobs and retrain staff as part of the support needed in the wake of Covid-19.
Apprenticeships “not working for the disadvantaged”
Workers from disadvantaged backgrounds are being left behind by the apprenticeship system, including in the law, with numbers slumping by more than a third since the apprenticeship levy was introduced.
DoNotPay targets UK expansion after $12m investment
The ground-breaking DoNotPay chatbot – which describes itself as the world’s first robot lawyer – is to ramp up its UK offering after securing $12m (£9.6m) in backing from Silicon Valley.
Email interception “weakest link” in fight against cybercrime
Security experts have highlighted email interception as the “weakest link” in firms’ defences against cybercrime in the property market.
PE company adds legal tech business to law firm portfolio
A private equity company that last year bought two major volume conveyancing firms has now taken a minority stake in a solicitor-owned legal technology company for £1.5m.
SRA to launch project on BAME student underachievement
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is set to begin a multi-year project to increase understanding of why Black, Asian and minority ethnic students perform worse than white students.
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.
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