Compliance & Regulation
Lawyers and law firms “need to talk much more about integrity”
Lawyers and law firms should be “actively” reflecting on and talking about integrity “much more” than they currently do or appear to do, a leading legal academic has argued.
FSCS wrongly tells law firm clients their solicitors are unauthorised
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has admitted writing to law firm clients and wrongly informing them that their solicitors were no longer authorised.
High Court judge “compromised integrity” with CA application
A High Court judge has been given a formal warning after it emerged that he had seen an independent assessment written for his application to join the Court of Appeal.
Second solicitor to face tribunal over “threatening” vaccine letters
A solicitor accused of baselessly threatening legal proceedings over the Covid vaccine is to face the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
Warning for judge who “accidently” liked anti-Israel LinkedIn post
A senior judge has been issued with a formal warning for misconduct after he “accidentally” liked an anti-Israel LinkedIn post which he later described as “repulsive”.
Paralegal banned for discontinuing claim without instructions
A paralegal lied to both her client and her employer over how she handled a holiday sickness claim that she sought to discontinue without instructions.
Harman to lead review of bullying and harassment at the Bar
Solicitor Harriet Harman KC has been named as chair of the Bar Council’s independent review of bullying and harassment, including sexual harassment, at the Bar.
BSB allows university to restart Bar training course
Hertfordshire University can start taking Bar training course students from September again, after the Bar Standards Board reinstated its authorisation. The regulator stopped it enrolling students last August amid concerns about weaknesses in its course delivery and initially said that… Read More
Exclusive: SRA forced to revise SSB advice after five days
The SRA has had to revise an updated statement issued just last week for former clients of SSB Group in the wake of questions raised by Legal Futures.
Axiom fund adviser joins Schools in jail after eight-year sentence
An investment manager at the heart of the Axiom Legal Financing Fund fraud has been jailed for eight years having being found guilty of fraudulent trading after a retrial.
SRA “has gone too far” with demands in SLAPPs guidance
The Solicitors Regulation Authority’s guidance on SLAPPs may go too far in requiring practitioners to ascertain the truth of their client’s case, a senior barrister has suggested.
Oversight regulator ramps up Post Office pressure on SRA and BSB
The Legal Services Board has outlined its “high expectation” of the Solicitors Regulation Authority and Bar Standards Board taking regulatory action after the Post Office inquiry ends.
Pure Legal pulled into SRA’s investigation into SSB Group
The SSB Group scandal – which has seen former clients pursued for costs of claims when they thought they had ATE insurance – has now extended to another collapsed firm, Pure Legal.
Lammy: Law firms should have been prosecuted over dirty money
It is wrong that no law firms have been prosecuted for criminal breaches of anti-money laundering rules “despite the mountains of evidence”, the shadow foreign secretary has said.
Cost of closing down law firms spiralled to £20m last year
The Solicitors Regulation Authority spent £20m closing down a record number of law firms last year, according to new figures.
Blog
A new era of legal operations
What we are seeing in the UK legal market is extraordinary change that will greatly influence how firms operate and compete for years to come.
Strong AML controls are meaningless with incomplete data
One expectation as the FCA takes control of anti-money laundering oversight is a move towards more supervision rather than simply writing new rules.
Navigating the legal AI productivity-profitability paradox
Firms are achieving efficiencies through AI, especially in the practice of law. Yet many are struggling to see that reflected in their financial outcomes
