Private Client
Court upholds Covid will witnessed through car window
The High Court has praised the “ingenious arrangement” of witnessing a will through a car window in the early days of the pandemic.
Solicitor who forged trustees’ signatures struck off
A solicitor who used forged cheques from trustees or money from another client to cover up the fact she had failed to submit tax returns on time has been struck off.
Firm ordered to pay wasted costs for “inexplicable” error
A law firm which started proceedings when its client did not have standing to bring them has been ordered to pay wasted costs because it failed to check this.
Co-op to offer wills through Amazon as it unveils soaring finances
Co-operative Legal Services recorded a 19% increase in revenue and 60% rise in profit in 2022 as it became the first law firm to strike a deal to offer services through Amazon.
Solicitor who misled clients over LPA forms is struck off
A solicitor who told clients that the Office of the Public Guardian was to blame for what were actually her own errors in registering lasting powers of attorney has been struck off.
Reserved activities set to stay as they are for now
A full review of the reserved legal activities is not justified at the moment without a “fundamental” reappraisal of the Legal Services Act too, the Legal Services Board has concluded.
Trust business launches ABS for own and other law firms’ work
A company which specialises in trust work has launched an alternative business structure to handle both its own work and instructions from other law firms.
LPA reform which ends legal executive anomaly backed by MPs
Legislation to modernise lasting powers of attorney, including allowing chartered legal executives to certify copies, sailed through its latest stage in Parliament this week.
Man jailed after solicitors catch £2m will fraud
Solicitors have helped rumble a man now jailed for creating a false letter of wishes in an attempt to steal more than £2m from a deceased friend’s estate.
Islamic fintech company buys law firm specialising in Shari’ah wills
A law firm specialising in Islamic wills has been acquired in a seven-figure deal by a fintech company providing Shari’ah-compliant services.
Blog
The new metrics for success in conveyancing
While technology has made much of the conveyancing process faster, there remains a practical limit to how many matters anyone can manage while still keeping standards intact.
The UK legal market is polarising – and the middle is disappearing
Consolidation and the boutique boom are not contradictory. They are the same market stretching apart at both ends – and it changes what your firm is worth, and to whom.
Conveyancing’s consistency problem is about pressure, not skills
When I qualified, a conveyancer had perhaps 10 or 12 plates to keep spinning. Today’s conveyancers have 20 or 30, and almost none of the room for error I had starting out.
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