Compliance & Regulation
SRA: Firms must be held accountable for progress on diversity
Law firms need to be held accountable over efforts to improve the profession’s equality, diversity and inclusion, the chief executive of the SRA said yesterday.
Using the right tech “should be a competence requirement”
Being able to apply the right technology tool to service clients should become a competence requirement for lawyers, the former head of LawtechUK has suggested.
“Manifestly incompetent” solicitor did not tell SRA when firm went bust
A solicitor who admitted “manifest incompetence” and that he was “a poor manager”, failing to disclose that his firm was in financial difficulty, has been suspended for 18 months.
Axiom Ince “has enough assets” to meet claims for missing millions
Axiom Ince should have sufficient assets to meet the claims for the millions in missing money, a lawyer for its global chief executive has said.
IT worker used firm email in bid to influence coroner
An IT support worker at a major London law firm who sought to influence a coroner by sending misleading emails using his work account has been banned from the profession.
Size and amount of property work “main drivers” of PII premiums
Smaller law firms and practices that mainly operate in conveyancing pay twice the level of professional indemnity insurance premium of others, new research has shown.
Four years on, BSB starts paying for Legal Choices again
The Bar Standards Board has decided to restart paying its share to the cost of the consumer-facing website run by all the legal regulators, four years after pulling out.
Vineall urges Bar to lead innovation and keep external investors at bay
Barristers need to lead innovation at the Bar if they want to avoid sharing the fruits of their labours with external investors, the Bar Council chair said last night.
Solicitor who changed date of legal charge is struck off
A solicitor who changed the date on a legal charge having missed the deadline for registration at Companies House has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
SDT fines senior solicitor £25,000 for sexual assault convictions
A senior solicitor convicted of sexually assaulting two women in his local pub has been fined £25,000 by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
Firms risk SDT as they fail to act on new workplace conduct rules
Law firms are struggling to understand the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s workplace environment rules introduced earlier this year, a leading regulatory solicitor has warned.
Government pulls back on single regulator for insolvency practitioners
The government has rowed back on a proposal to introduce a single regulator for insolvency practitioners but will take statutory power to do it in future if needed.
From offensive emails to misusing client money – solicitor struck off
A solicitor whose misconduct “spiralled” from maladministration to using client money to pay personal expenses, and included calling a client a “spastick”, has been struck off.
SRA approves transfer of law firm owned by AIM-listed company
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has approved new owners for an alternative business structure set up by an AIM-listed personal pension provider.
Legal regulators and representatives join government SLAPPs taskforce
Legal regulators and representative bodies were yesterday named as members of a new government taskforce aiming to clamp down on SLAPPs.
Blog
Automation in personal injury claims: The evolving legal risks
As automation tools become more sophisticated, they are increasingly used for more complex tasks, such as interpreting evidence and informing case strategy, particular in the PI sector.
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.
