Barristers
High Court allows new harassment claims against barrister
A High Court judge has allowed three new harassment allegations against barrister Barbara Hewson to go ahead, while upholding an earlier ruling that a host of other ones should be struck out.
Barrister fails in appeal over “seriously offensive” tweet
The High Court has upheld the reprimand and fine issued to a barrister who sent a “seriously offensive” tweet in a private capacity that was “racially charged and derogatory to women”.
LSB ramp ups pressure on regulatory independence
The Legal Services Board is ramping up pressure on the Law Society, the Bar Council and other approved regulators over ensuring the independence of their regulatory arms.
Lawyers hit back at complaint publication plans
The Law Society and Bar Council have strongly attacked plans by the Legal Ombudsman to extend its publication of information about complaints, arguing that it would not help consumers.
Pupils must have written agreements from May
Written pupillage agreements will become compulsory from 1 May 2020, the Bar Standards Board has decreed, while all chambers have to bring their recruitment into line with the pupillage gateway.
Obscene tweets barrister “could have reached the top”
A barrister suspended for sending obscene and offensive tweets “might well have scaled the heights of the profession” had it not been for her actions outside of her practice, a tribunal has said.
Bar investigates training on how to deal with suicidal clients
The Bar Council is to explore how to deliver training to barristers about dealing with suicidal clients after a family law practitioner related her own harrowing experiences confronting the issue.
Chambers introduces mandatory “anti-oppression” training
A London chambers has made it compulsory for all members to attend “anti-oppression” sessions covering the range of protected characteristics.
Bar regulator struggles with rise in complaints from public
The Bar Standards Board is struggling to cope with the rise in complaints from members of the public, missing its performance target by a big distance, its annual enforcement report has revealed.
Union’s arrested head of legal mulls claim against Met Police
A barrister working as a trade union’s in-house lawyer is considering a claim for false imprisonment against the Metropolitan Police after he was briefly arrested on a picket line.
Blog
Modern search is about ‘knowledge’ retrieval
Search has long been understood as data retrieval – the ability to call back information and check a box on finding something. Legal professionals today need more of a 360-degree view on a matter.
Lessons from Sir Keir Starmer for SRA chief
The proposed 29%, or £25m, increase in the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s budget announced last week should really come as no great surprise.
The hidden risks in client account reconciliations
The client account reconciliation process will be second nature to most people in legal finance – and so is also a potential area for a problem to be undetected until it becomes serious.
