Regulation
Solicitor who kept client’s £1,000 court fee is struck off
A solicitor who kept the £1,000 his client paid for a court fee has been struck off. The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard that he treated the money, paid into his personal account, as a “loan”.
Law firm was “vehicle” for £5.7m conveyancing fraud
A solicitor who “consciously closed his eyes” to the activities of people he knew were fraudsters, agreeing to buy a law firm which was “purchased from the outset as a vehicle for fraud”, has been struck off.
Solicitor leaves profession over bequest from client
A veteran solicitor who failed to ensure that his client took independent legal advice before leaving him money in her will has agreed to leave the profession.
Owner of record-breaking nuisance call firm disqualified
The owner of a company behind 100m nuisance calls, which was fined a record £400,000 by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), has been disqualified as a director. Gregory Francis Rudd, 53, was the sole director of Keurboom Communications, which supplied… Read More
Four days to comply with new money laundering rules
Lawyers have until just this Friday to ensure they comply with the Fifth Money Laundering Directive, the government announced just before Christmas.
Barrister suspended for groping Bar student in taxi
A criminal law barrister who groped a Bar student he was mentoring during a drunken night out has been suspended for six months.
Lawyers and clients’ “mutually assured immorality” on NDAs
Lawyers and their clients have been guilty of “a kind of mutually assured amorality or immorality” in their approach to non-disclosure agreements, a leading critic of the profession’s approach has said.
SDT promises non-parties “open justice” on access
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has promised to make “open justice” central to its response to requests from non-parties for access to papers used at disciplinary hearings.
SRA gives up on major indemnity insurance reform
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has ended a controversial five-year project to reform the professional indemnity insurance regime, meaning the minimum level of cover will not be cut to £500,000.
Barrister suspended for Twitter attacks on fellow counsel
A barrister in a long-running dispute with fellow counsel has been suspended from practice for two years after sending her a series of “obscene or seriously offensive” tweets.
Blog
Listening, learning and leading The Solicitor’s Charity with care
As I prepare to hand over the mantle of chair of The Solicitor’s Charity next month, it doesn’t feel like an end. Instead, it feels like a wonderful journey.
Is competition in the legal sector stifling innovation?
As the legal sector’s competitive landscape continues to evolve, Nobel laureates remind us that innovation is not inevitable,and that competition may not always be an incentive to innovate.
What high-performing consumer claims firms get right
Recurring concerns about parts of the volume claims sector show that the gap between well-run firms and those struggling to manage volume effectively is widening.
