Solicitors

The Solicitors Regulation Authority approved a radical overhaul of the separate business rule at its board meeting yesterday, despite strong opposition from the Law Society. The changes are planned to come into force on 1 November this year.

Solicitors, barristers and legal executives have been told by their professional bodies to be polite and non-judgemental when dealing with litigants in person (LiPs), and take “extra care to avoid using inflammatory words or phrases”.

A solicitor has been jailed for five and a half years for his role in a £4.3m land-banking scam. Dale Walker was convicted of possessing criminal property and of aiding and abetting the carrying on of a regulated activity without authorisation.

Only 5% of solicitors would be interested in transferring their client accounts to a third party, a survey of firms in the south east has suggested. The SRA is consulting on whether to allow the move.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has begun work on developing a “centralised assessment of competence” that potential solicitors would have to pass to qualify, it has emerged. It comes as Mayer Brown became the first City law firm to unveil a six-year ‘articled apprenticeship’ programme.

Two men who posted a YouTube video showing them burning a box of court bundles to the sound of Arthur Brown’s 1968 number one hit ‘Fire’ have been found liable for contempt at the High Court.

Law firms should ensure they have a proper exit strategy, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned, after five solicitors were fined for failing to close their firms properly in the space of just nine days.

A solicitor who lied to High Court and was found guilty of contempt – leading the now Lord Chief Justice to refer him to the Solicitors Regulation Authority – has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

A judge has launched an extraordinary attack on “by far the worst solicitor witness I have ever seen giving evidence in the witness box”. Edward Abenson told Legal Futures that the judge was “very harsh” on him.

More than a quarter (26%) of complaints to the Legal Ombudsman are triggered by lack of clarity on fees, a major internal survey has found. Family law has emerged as the biggest offender, followed by wills and litigation.

A poll of larger commercial law firms has shown that a higher number than expected, around a quarter, have opted to introduce the new ‘hours-free’ continuing competence regime for solicitors.

The High Court has rejected a challenge to the closure of an alternative business structure by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. It was the first time an ABS closure decision has been tested in the High Court.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has widened its definition of a ‘small firm’ by doubling the annual turnover limit from £200,000 to £400,000. The limit of four on the number of managers is not changing.

A decision by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) to suspend a solicitor for two years has been reduced to one by the High Court, which described the penalty as “clearly excessive and inappropriate”.

A district judge has described how an immigration solicitor who continued to practice despite being suspended left behind her a “trail of destruction”.