
Knights returns to the acquisition trail with £12.5m deal
Listed law firm consolidator Knights has unveiled its first acquisition in over a year – and 22nd in total – by announcing a £12.5m deal for West Midlands firm Thursfields Legal.

Number of LPAs registered soars by 28%
There was a 28% surge in the number of applications for lasting powers of attorney last year, but the Office of the Public Guardian still managed to reduce its backlog.

Sham marriages solicitor is struck off
A solicitor who arranged sham marriages as an immigration lawyer while “falsely representing” to the Home Office that his own marriage was genuine, has been struck off.

TV personalities wade in over agents “forcing” conveyancers on buyers
Estate agents forcing buyers to use their preferred lawyers, or at least charge more if they do not, has come under the spotlight thanks to TV personalities Martin Lewis and Kirstie Allsopp.

Local authority solicitor who lied about care order struck off
A local authority solicitor who provided “false and misleading information” to colleagues over a period of 18 months about an application to discharge a child’s care order has been struck off.

Law Society “must become more responsive to members” after SGM
The Law Society “must become much more responsive to its members working at the coalface of legal services”, the head of the Property Lawyers Action Group has said.

Investors pour $1bn into leading lawtech business
Two leading names in the world of legal technology, Clio and Harvey, announced huge fund-raises this week, valuing them at $3bn and $1.5bn respectively.

Stonewall did not “induce” chambers’ discrimination against barrister
An employment tribunal was entitled to reject a barrister’s claim that LGBT charity Stonewall “caused or induced” discrimination against her by her chambers, the EAT has ruled.

Costs of low-value clin neg claims now exceed damages
Claimant costs bills for clinical negligence claims valued up to £25,000 now exceed damages for the first time, and costs overall have risen by 11%, according to NHS data.

High Court rectifies will after solicitor’s “clerical error”
A High Court judge has rectified a will after finding it was “beyond doubt” that the solicitor who drafted it “made a clerical error” in failing to implement her client’s instructions.








