Solicitors
Immigration solicitors permanently banned from unregulated firms
Solicitors handling immigration work can only do so from organisations overseen by a legal regulator or the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has decided.
SRA to review regime for checking solicitors’ competence
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to launch a review of its approach to solicitors’ continuing competence, amid calls for spot checks or accreditation schemes to reassure consumers.
Legal assistant banned after lying about passing exams
A legal assistant who lied about passing his legal executive exams so that his law firm employer would reimburse the course fees has been banned from working in the solicitors’ profession.
Solicitor amended form of authority not knowing client was dead
A solicitor who amended a client’s form of authority when he could not contact her and then sent it to her former employer – not knowing she had died – has been struck off for dishonesty.
SRA creates expert panel to advise on policy
An economist, a senior in-house lawyer and the head of one of the Big Four’s alternative business structures have been named on a panel created to advise the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Solicitor rebuked for failing to supervise “lying” consultant
The head of a law firm who said she was lied to by a consultant solicitor, who paid £2.25m of property sale proceeds to a third party as part of a pattern of flagrant misconduct, has accepted a rebuke.
Solicitors Indemnity Fund to stay open for extra year
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has agreed to extend by a year the use of the Solicitors Indemnity Fund to covers claims made after firms’ run-off cover expires.
Chambers offers workspace for freelance solicitors
A set of chambers in Birmingham, post Covid-19, is using unused floors in its offices to create a supported workspace for freelance solicitors, Legal Futures can reveal.
Quality of legal advice for suspects “faltering under lockdown”
The quality of legal help for suspects in police custody has “suffered significantly” due to Covid-19 amid concerns over confidentiality and restrictions on lawyers talking to clients, a new report has found.
Solicitor banned from management over accounts failure
A solicitor was kept in the dark by an experienced bookkeeper about improper transfers she was making from client to office account to keep the firm afloat, a tribunal has heard.
Blog
The AI question law firms should answer before a client asks it
Most law firms we speak to are already using AI, whether or not they have approved it, because fee-earners are doing it anyway. The tool people settle on is often Claude.
From chat to Cowork: preparing your law firm for agentic AI
AI is evolving quickly. For law firms still working out how to get consistent value from the tools they already have, the conversation has moved on again to agentic AI.
Why good governance matters when managing Law Society forms
Everyday legal transactions rely on Law Society forms. But they are often treated as static templates rather than what they really are: living documents that change over time.
Reports
Associates
