Compliance & Regulation
Peers back widening eligibility to become Crown prosecutors
The House of Lords last week backed government plans to expand eligibility to become Crown prosecutors to CILEX lawyers and other non-solicitors and barristers.
Legal Services Board urged to ratchet up focus on SRA
The Legal Services Board should increase its oversight of the SRA to ensure the failures around Axiom Ince and SSB Group are not repeated, the Law Society has said.
SRA ordered to make £400k interim costs payment to Zahawi solicitor
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has been ordered to make an interim costs payment of £400,000 to the solicitor for former Conservative Chancellor Nadeem Zahawi.
PM Law clients receiving files and emergency payments
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has begun making emergency payments to clients of collapsed law firm PM Law, it revealed yesterday.
Veteran solicitor who misled mortgage provider struck off
A solicitor’s 50-year legal career has ended with being struck off after he misled a mortgage lender about when completion on a conveyancing transaction had taken place.
Strike-off for advocate who lied about arriving after court hearing
A self-employed advocate who lied in an attendance note about a court hearing in an attempt to cover up the fact he had missed it, has been struck off.
Legal Ombudsman receives record number of complaints
The rising tide of complaints to the Legal Ombudsman continues to accelerate, with 37% more in the last quarter of 2025 compared to a year earlier and the most in a quarter ever.
Justice system “should not be funded by client money”
The justice system is a core public service that should not be funded “through the appropriation of client money” by an Interest on Lawyers’ Client Account scheme, the Law Society has said.
ILCA schemes “work really efficiently around the world”
Interest on Lawyers’ Client Account schemes “work really efficiently” in 77 jurisdictions around the world, MPs were told yesterday.
Legal Services Board faces first review in nine years
The Ministry of Justice yesterday announced a long-awaited review of the Legal Services Board – the first of the oversight regulator since 2017.
Two law firm workers banned from profession after theft convictions
Two women who were separately convicted of theft from the law firms where they worked have been banned from the profession.
Barrister disbarred over bid to avoid paying chambers rent
A barrister who misled a client into thinking he was working through chambers when he was not – so as to avoid paying rent on the income – has been disbarred.
ILCA: Law firms will look to hold money outside of client accounts
An Interest on Lawyers’ Client Account scheme will likely push law firms to hold more client money outside of a client account, to the detriment of consumer protection.
Barrister disbarred for sexually assaulting child
A barrister who sexually assaulted a child in 1992 and “used his position of trust to groom that victim” has been disbarred.
Government presses ahead with HMRC register plan for conveyancers
The government gave no sign of backing down on requiring conveyancers to register as tax advisers with HM Revenue & Customs in this week’s debate on the Finance Bill.
Blog
Why is Andrew Malkinson still paying for a crime he didn’t commit?
Like many in my profession and beyond, I have been moved by the case of Andrew Malkinson, the man who spent 17 years in prison for an awful crime he did not commit.
What is tech bloat and why is it a problem for law firms?
Too many law firms are adopting shiny new tech without first retiring their legacy systems, causing duplication and unnecessary costs.
The civil courts and the digital divide
Despite the government’s decision to increase Ministry of Justice funding, its budget for 2025-26 is still 14% lower in real terms than in 2007-08.
