Compliance & Regulation

Decisions to suspend solicitors should stay in the public domain for three years after they return to work, the Legal Services Consumer Panel has argued.

The Legal Services Board is on a “mission impossible” in imposing an ongoing competence regime on the legal profession that will generate disproportionate costs for lawyers and consumers.

Solicitors’ contributions to the SRA Compensation Fund will fall next year because an anticipated spike in the level of claims arising from dubious investment schemes did not transpire.

The Labour Party has called for the role of associate prosecutors to be expanded so as to help reduce the massive backlog in criminal cases awaiting hearings.

In-house lawyers’ regulatory responsibilities, for example the SRA principles, should be written into their employment contracts to ensure their independence, the former head of LawtechUK has argued.

The volume and value of motor insurance claim frauds fell last year, which also covered the first seven months of the Official Injury Claim portal.

The first solicitors to qualify via the Solicitors Qualifying Examination will enter practice next month after 77% of candidates passed the second set of assessments.

The home secretary has made clear that she wants to see lawyers and other ‘enablers’ of kleptocrats jailed for their involvement with “dirty money”.

Lawyers have reacted with scepticism at the suggestion that Lord Chancellor Dominic Raab wants to “extend” higher rights of audience to more criminal defence solicitors.

There is little evidence of bullying, discrimination and harassment on Bar training courses, students have reported as part of research into equality and diversity at the vocational stage of training.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to issue guidance on when litigators are allowed to label letters as ‘private and confidential’ and/or ‘without prejudice’.

The “seismic shift” in time limits to complain to the Legal Ombudsman will require close monitoring to ensure that consumers do not lose out.

Californian legislators have blocked efforts by the State Bar to consider non-lawyer ownership of law firms, in the latest battle over alternative business structures in the US.

The SRA is planning huge increases in the fines it can impose for misconduct by wealthy solicitors – from the current £50,000 to £805,000 – while reducing them for lower earners.

A solicitor who called himself a notary when he was not and ‘apostilled’ documents despite not being allowed to has been rebuked after he said he was unaware of the restrictions.