Solicitors
SRA urged to tackle mental health problems with ‘fitness to practise’ regime
The SRA needs to activate a dormant power that allows it to introduce ‘fitness to practise’ rules, in the wake of yesterday’s ruling about the role of mental health in solicitors’ misconduct.
Solicitor struck off for fraudulent claim against ex-employee
A solicitor jailed for falsifying documents to bring a civil claim against a former employee, in actions a judge said attacked “the very heart of the justice system”, has been struck off.
Mental health problems “do not justify” solicitors’ dishonesty
Pressure of work or extreme working conditions “cannot either alone or in conjunction with stress or depression” justify not striking off dishonest solicitors, the High Court has ruled.
SRA and Law Society warned over AML helpline confusion
The body that oversees the legal profession’s anti-money laundering efforts has expressed concern over both the Law Society and Solicitors Regulation Authority offering solicitors helpline advice.
Bar chair urges solicitors to act over barrister bias
The chairman of the Bar Council has sent a strong message to solicitors about the need to challenge clients who discriminate against barristers because of gender, race or other bias.
SQE “will increase inequality and deter working class students”
The idea that the Solicitors Qualifying Examination will improve diversity is false and instead it will have “devastating effects” on many individuals, two academics have claimed.
Female Asian barrister returns brief because client wanted ‘white man’
The only female Afghan-born practising barrister revealed yesterday that she had been asked by a solicitor to return her brief because the client wanted “a white male barrister”.
SQE to be introduced in autumn 2021
The Solicitors Qualifying Examination – the new way that solicitors will qualify – will be launched in autumn 2021, with the candidate fee likely to range between £3,000 and £4,500.
SRA chief shrugs off Leigh Day loss: “Just one of those things”
The Solicitors Regulation Authority will not appeal the dismissal of its prosecution of Leigh Day, its chief executive confirmed yesterday as he described the loss as “just one of those things”.
Law firm sees off HMRC demand for records of clients’ offshore activities
A law firm has fought off a demand by HMRC to hand over the details of clients who have sought advice on offshore structures, the prelude to similar requests to many more firms.
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.
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