Compliance & Regulation
“We could yet intervene in Axiom Ince,” SRA boss says
The Solicitors Regulation Authority may yet intervene in Axiom Ince, the law firm that now seems on the brink of collapse, it confirmed yesterday.
SRA steps up pressure on immigration firms with new warning notice
The SRA has today ratcheted up the pressure on immigration firms, with a warning notice reminding them not to be “complicit in providing false or fabricated” information.
Fee-earner who favoured one client over another fails to lift ban
A non-solicitor fee-earner banned from working for law firms after favouring the interests of a woman who suffered from Alzheimer’s over her mentally ill husband has failed to overturn it.
Jail for lottery scam ex-solicitor who stole £2m of client money
A solicitor struck off for plundering £2m from his firm’s client accounts as well as trusts after falling victim to a lottery scam has been jailed for four years.
Solicitor to face SDT over “misleading” Covid threats to schools and GPs
A solicitor accused of sending misleading threats to schools and GP surgeries over Covid vaccinations for children is to face the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
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.
Blog
Accountability has to live within governance, not with one person
The assumption has long been that a COLP or COFA is personally exposed to the consequences of anti-money laundering breaches.
The SRA’s client money reforms: good intentions, questionable execution
On the face of it, the SRA’s plans to tighten protections around client money sounds sensible. The detail, as ever, tells a more complicated story.
Recruitment, retention and reward in the legal accounts world
Understanding the legal finance market is important – not just for those actively involved in it day-to-day but also for leaders within law firms.
