Solicitors

A solicitor who “dipped into” a divorce client’s money, repeatedly lied about it and warned her not to complain to the Solicitors Regulation Authority or Legal Ombudsman has been struck off.

Trainee solicitors will be able to qualify without first completing the professional skills course because of the Covid-19 outbreak, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has decided.

The non-solicitor who headed up Coops Law – the successor practice to controversial personal injury law firm Asons – has been sanctioned for frustrating efforts to protect Asons’ clients.

A former junior solicitor who was struck off after lying about losing documents she was working on while acting for the Solicitors Regulation Authority, is appealing against the decision.

A solicitor specialising in intellectual property has described “waiting in the wings” for two years to close down her regulated law firm and reopen as an unregulated business.

A solicitor accused of misconduct in his advice on three stamp duty land tax avoidance schemes has been completely exonerated by a disciplinary tribunal.

An employment tribunal has expressed its “incredulity” at the way a solicitor’s former secretary befriended one of his clients and ended up in the client’s will.

The breach of trust by a solicitor jailed for stealing nearly £100,000 from clients who were his friends has been described as “monumental” by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

SBA, the charity for solicitors, is launching a £1m hardship fund to aid those in financial difficulty following the outbreak of Covid-19. Meanwhile, its barrister equivalent has appealed for donations.

It comes as its barrister equivalent, the Barristers Benevolent Association (BBA), has launched an appeal for funds to support members of the Bar.

The rate of change in the legal market makes it “increasingly difficult” for the regulatory framework laid down by the Legal Services Act to remain relevant, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has warned.

A solicitor who became an alcoholic after taking part in the drinking culture of a former firm has been fined by a tribunal after two drink-driving convictions.

One in seven female solicitors have experienced bullying, discrimination and harassment in the workplace over the past year, while there is also a large gender pay gap, Law Society research has revealed.

A sole practitioner who let his law firm “dissolve into a complete mess” – with his removal from lenders’ panels the major factor behind his financial problems – has been fined £7,500.

A technology platform which supports survivors of domestic abuse and a chatbot helping people with learning disabilities understand their social care rights, have won the Legal Access Challenge.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to become a distinct legal entity within the Law Society Group, potentially triggering a difficult debate over the division of £73m of reserves.