Legal Services Act

A North West alternative business structure has launched the latest in a series of branded businesses calculated to appeal to its commercial clients and strengthen the bond between them and the firm.

Structures are “far from being as central to the success of a modern set as their proponents suggest”, the joint heads of the newly merged Drystone Chambers have argued. Karim Khalil QC and Andrew Campbell-Tiech QC also suggested that mergers between competing sets stored up problems for the future.

The first independent financial adviser to set up a law firm from scratch has added an estate agency to work alongside its alternative business structure. Leicester-based Bobby Dhanjal Legal Services has also brought its first trainee solicitor through to qualification.

The European directive on alternative dispute resolution will not only extend the period for making complaints about lawyers from six to twelve months, but reduce the grounds for the Legal Ombudsman to reject them from 14 to four, it has emerged.

Irwin Mitchell has said it is “not involved” in discussions with private equity firm Duke Street to buy part of the Parabis Group, contrary to reports in the Sunday Times. The group admitted today that it has held “discreet discussions with other like-minded businesses” as it considered options to restructure its business.

The slow recovery of Co-operative Legal Services remains on track after it announced a “small underlying profit” of £200,000 for the first six months of 2015. In the same period last year, the poster-child of alternative business structures recorded a £5.1m loss.

Two listed companies that own significant alternative business structures – Redde and Fairpoint – both announced strong results to the stock exchange today. Turnover at accident management group Redde, which owns NewLaw Solicitors, was up 26% to £249m, while gross profit nearly doubled to £23m.

International law firm DAC Beachcroft’s Claims Solutions Group, which employs 900 people across the UK, became an alternative business structure yesterday. Craig Dickson, chief executive of the group, said the move would help it respond to the “fluid” legal claims market.

National chambers Clerksroom has announced a partnership with a not-for-profit business that describes itself as the biggest multi-sector ombudsman in the UK, to provide commercial dispute resolution services for up to 10,000 businesses. It could be the biggest mediation opportunity to arise in the UK to date.

The Legal Ombudsman has apologised to solicitors for any inconvenience caused after it abandoned plans to become a certified alternative dispute resolution body without a full consultation. LeO said it would “decide how to proceed” in December.

Slater & Gordon has “a commanding market share lead” in the UK, its managing director claimed today as the Australian-listed law firm announced a 27% in annual revenues to £243m. Its ever-expanding UK operation contributed £121m of this.

A firm of accountants based in rural East Anglia has become an alternative business structure regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Churchgate Accountants said the move was in response to demand from clients, including farmers.

An innovative Hereford-based alternative business structure has set up a joint venture with a Welsh accountancy firm, joining nine other branded businesses in the Kidwell Group, ranging from a barristers’ chambers to a guest house.

The listed company that owns NewLaw Solicitors is to acquire a fleet accident management group that itself has a joint venture alternative business structure with NewLaw. Redde has agreed to acquire the FMG group of companies for approximately £43.2m.

Fairpoint plc’s acquisition of Colemans-ctts has formally completed, meaning legal services now accounts for 62% of the company’s revenue. The deal, first announced at the start of the month, is structured as an acquisition by Simpson Millar, the law firm Fairpoint bought last year to enter the legal market.