Other lawyers
Consumer panel attacks CLC over plans to halve compensation grants
The Legal Services Consumer Panel has strongly attacked plans by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers to cut the size of grants from its compensation fund from £1m to £500,000 – a quarter of the amount clients of solicitors can claim.
Government cuts regulation for firms involved in consumer credit work
The government has reduced the scope of regulation for law firms involved in consumer credit work, such as debt collection. It has also increased the ability of firms to offer payment by instalments.
Lawyers grumble about PC fees without knowing what they’re paying for, survey reveals
Many lawyers, particularly solicitors and barristers, complain about their practising certificate (PC) fees, but there are high levels of ignorance about what they are paying for, a major cost of regulation survey has found.
Peers pave way for new breed of lawyer – licensed probate practitioners
The House of Lords has given the Council for Licensed Conveyancers the power to issue standalone licences for people to conduct reserved probate work without them having to become licensed conveyancers first.
LSB asks regulators to justify restrictions on in-house lawyers
Unnecessary restrictions on in-house lawyers could “impose costs and red tape, frustrate innovation and adversely affect access to justice”, the Legal Services Board has argued.
CLC criticises Law Society’s “quasi-regulatory” conveyancing schemes
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) has criticised “quasi-regulatory” conveyancing schemes launched by the Law Society which could be seen as “duplicating” the CLC’s work.
LSB: regulators making progress – but not on understanding users of legal services
The profession’s regulators are not doing enough to understand the consumers of lawyers’ services, the Legal Services Board has warned. But it said there has been progress since the first assessment in 2012/13.
LSB to call on regulators to make law firms and chambers “accountable” over diversity
Regulators need to do more with the diversity data they now collect in order to drive improvements in recruitment and particularly progression and retention within the profession, the Legal Services Board will shortly say.
CLC moves closer to regulating probate specialists
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers has moved closer towards its goal of regulating specialist probate lawyers who do not have to be conveyancers.
Former diplomat becomes chair of IPS as Bradley leaves CLC
Quinton Quayle, a former British ambassador to Thailand, has been appointed chair of ILEX Professional Standards. Meanwhile, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers has announced that Anna Bradley is stepping down as chair after five years.
Blog
Could unpredictable AI costs finally lead firms to true value pricing?
For years, the legal profession has talked of moving away from the billable hour to value-based pricing without quite managing it.
Is your Google Ads budget funding your competitors’ AI visibility?
If your cost-per-click has crept up again this year, you’ve probably assumed the market simply got more expensive. That’s the wrong way to read what’s happening.
Containing the spread of unapproved AI
Nearly 60% of fee-earners admit to using unapproved tools (like free versions of ChatGPT). Yet 68% of firm leaders are confident there is zero risk of unapproved AI being used for client work.
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