Legal Services Act
Community Justice Fund grants hit £6m in four months
The Community Justice Fund has now handed out more than £6m in grants since it was set up in May to support not-for-profit legal advice providers through the pandemic.
Demand for fraud partners “to rise dramatically” after pandemic
Demand for partners who specialise in white collar crime will increase just as dramatically after the pandemic as it did after the financial crisis in 2008, a report has predicted.
Metamorph leads way in autumn merger rush
Law firm consolidator Metamorph has unveiled its latest acquisition as one of a slew of mergers and acquisitions that has been announced. Insurance renewal season usually sees activity increase.
DWF partners rake in £4m from first share sales
Partners at DWF cashed in shares worth £4.25m yesterday at the first opportunity to sell some of the stock they received when it listed, as the firm announced a pause in M&A activity.
Solicitor launches unregulated nanotech firm
A solicitor has launched what he believes is the first legal consultancy in the UK devoted entirely to nanotech firms, the latest to use the rules that allow solicitors to practise from unregulated firms.
Ruling exposes claims of Ince’s ex-French partners
The joint administrators of Ince & Co have been granted permission to apply to stay or dismiss claims brought against them in France by the former French partners of the City law firm.
Shop nationally for cheaper legal fees, LSB tells consumers
Research showing significant regional variations in the price of legal advice “for what are fundamentally the same services” should encourage consumers to shop around, the Legal Services Board said today.
Firm’s accounts spoiled by joint venture ABS collapse
Lyons Davidson has had a good-looking year spoiled by the collapse of its joint venture with NAHL plc, meaning that it has posted a £2.8m loss for the last financial year.
LeO presses ahead with plan to publish decisions in full
The Legal Ombudsman is to press ahead with plans to publish its full decisions, as well as annual reviews of the most complained-about lawyers and firms, it has decided.
Leading regional accountants launch ABS to expand offering
A major Lincolnshire-based firm of accountants is moving beyond offering probate services by becoming an ABS to provide clients with a “wrap-around” service.
Arizona to drop rule banning non-lawyer ownership of law firms
Arizona has become the first US state to allow alternative business structures on a permanent basis in what its supreme court called a “generational advance in access to justice”.
New instructions surge past pre-lockdown levels
Legal activity has bounced back to 130% of pre-Covid levels with conveyancing continuing to rise steadily and several other practice areas also buoyant, new figures have shown.
Former trainee doctor in contempt for online campaign against judge
A former trainee doctor has been found in contempt of court for repeatedly breaching injunctions imposed on him to stop using a website to harass a circuit judge.
Law firms cheered by U-shaped recovery
Law firms have seen a U-shaped recovery – and in some work-types, V-shaped – “rather than a dreaded L-type situation where things stay down in the dumps for a long period of time”.
Accountants offered new route to setting up ABSs
Accountants and firms regulated by the ACCA will have a pathway to handling all the reserved activities under the plan to transfer supervision of their legal work to CILEx Regulation.
Blog
It’s time for law firms to ask tougher questions
For years, many law firms have treated ID verification as a box-ticking exercise. Run a liveness check, match a face to a document and move on. But that is no longer good enough.
Business fatigue to AI will risk job security
Whilst we know professional learning has always been part of career paths, to hire, retain and keep talent, AI needs to be embedded as a core part of this training.
On good authority? GenAI and the reputational risks to law firms
As GenAI’s influence grows, so do the risks which are already playing out in courtrooms across England and Wales, where some early adopters are setting precedents they would rather not.
