Regulation
From law student to partner in less than 12 months
A trainee chartered legal executive has spoken about how she is due to become a partner in a law firm less than 12 months after finishing her law degree.
New SRA chair to dial down calls for total independence
The new chair of the Solicitors Regulation Authority is set to dial down its strident calls for complete structural independence from the Law Society. Anna Bradley was speaking six weeks into the job.
Solicitors gear up for leasehold negligence claims
National firm Simpson Millar has set up a team within its professional negligence department to handle potential actions against solicitors who failed to warn leasehold clients of damaging clauses.
Client paid off debts of solicitor he saw as “surrogate daughter”
A solicitor has been fined £25,000 after receiving payments to help clear her debts from a client who viewed her as a “surrogate daughter”. She had “very foolishly” given the client her financial details.
Solicitor “tried to get assault complainant to withdraw statement”
A solicitor who tried to persuade the alleged victim of a sexual assault to withdraw her statement – and was convicted of attempting to pervert the course of justice as a result – has been struck off.
Regulators “need to sustain” social welfare law training
The government, legal regulators and others need to come together to ensure that the next generation of lawyers have the chance to study social welfare law or face even more ‘advice deserts’.
Solicitor struck off for misconduct prior to qualification
A solicitor has been struck off for taking money from a friend while he was a trainee and then suing her for more. It was accepted that the SRA principles applied to his conduct before he qualified.
SDT: Solicitor “terrified” by Court of Appeal was incompetent
A criminal law solicitor who described himself as “absolutely terrified” by a Court of Appeal appearance was incompetent but not dishonest, the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has concluded.
Solicitor paid himself over £800k from litigation funding schemes
A solicitor who paid himself £817,000 out of litigation funding schemes set up to back his law firm has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
From 100% to 37% – huge variation in LPC providers’ pass rates
Some institutions teaching the legal practice course have recorded 100% pass rates, while others are under 50%, and a performance gap based on student ethnicity continues.
Blog
A new era of legal operations
What we are seeing in the UK legal market is extraordinary change that will greatly influence how firms operate and compete for years to come.
Strong AML controls are meaningless with incomplete data
One expectation as the FCA takes control of anti-money laundering oversight is a move towards more supervision rather than simply writing new rules.
Navigating the legal AI productivity-profitability paradox
Firms are achieving efficiencies through AI, especially in the practice of law. Yet many are struggling to see that reflected in their financial outcomes
