Compliance & Regulation

A full review of the reserved legal activities is not justified at the moment without a “fundamental” reappraisal of the Legal Services Act too, the Legal Services Board has concluded.

A large firm of licensed conveyancers and its senior partners have been reprimanded and fined £33,000 after a Covid-related work surge overwhelmed its ability to handle complaints.

A barrister infamous for his conviction for possession of drugs that led to the death of his boyfriend has now pleaded guilty to obtaining drugs from clients he was representing.

A trainee solicitor who stole more than £100,000 of client compensation to fund a gambling habit – severely damaging the law firm he worked for – has been jailed for two years.

A High Court judge was right to hold that a barrister’s conduct of litigation in her own right was not a private matter beyond the Bar Standards Board’s reach, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

The Solicitors Qualifying Examination was implemented well in its first year but has still to win over training providers, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has found.

In-house lawyers are generally able to withstand pressures on their independence but a minority report demands to act unethically, according to Solicitors Regulation Authority research.

A solicitor has been fined for arranging 47 loans between clients – one of which was his own late mother’s estate – totalling almost £1.8m, many of which were made without written agreement or security.

A barrister jailed for fraudulently using his grandmother’s bank account and bank card to withdraw cash and transfer funds to himself has been disbarred.

An experienced solicitor who failed to react to a series of red flags on two dubious property sales has admitted to being manifestly incompetent. He and his supervisor were fined.

Former solicitor Sophie Khan is heading to jail for a second time for contempt of court after again failing to hand over documents sought by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

A CILEX member running an unregulated business conducted litigation in breach of the Legal Services Act 2007 when she acted on a possession claim, the High Court has ruled.

A solicitor who kept £60,000 of client funds in cash in the firm’s safe has been banned indefinitely from managing law firms.

A review of legal services in New Zealand has recommended the introduction of alternative business structures and an independent regulator.

A solicitor who lost £230,000 of a client’s money by moving it into her personal bank account and then investing in a scheme which turned out to be a scam has been struck off.