Solicitor jailed for stealing money using powers of attorney
A solicitor has been jailed for two years after admitting abusing her position to steal tens of thousands of pounds from two vulnerable people, one of whom was her father.
Dechert pays £3m to settle businessman’s hacking claim
Dechert has settled the UK portion of a long-running dispute with an Iranian-born American businessman who accuses the international law firm of trying to ruin him.
Government set to commission review of third-party litigation funding
The Ministry of Justice is set to commission the Civil Justice Council to consider whether third-party litigation funding needs to be regulated, it emerged this week.
Legal helpline adviser not under duty to advise prospective client
A legal helpline adviser at Irwin Mitchell was not under a duty to advise a prospective client of steps she needed to take to protect her position, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
Acquisitions for law firms backed by hedge fund and private equity
One law firm backed by a hedge fund and another by private equity have each completed significant acquisitions, the former creating one of the UK’s biggest debt recovery operations.
MoJ to press ahead with fixed costs changes amid JR threat
The Ministry of Justice is pressing ahead with reforms to the fixed recoverable costs regime that came into force in October, opening the door to a possible court challenge.
GLD apologises to tribunal over trainee’s advice to Home Office
The Government Legal Department has apologised to the Upper Tribunal after a trainee solicitor failed to properly advise the Home Office about undertakings in a consent order.
SRA to investigate regulating CILEX paralegals and students
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to consult on how it would regulate CILEX paralegals and students in the next stage of its work on assuming oversight of the legal executive profession.
Criminal legal aid “coming apart at the seams”, High Court says
Two High Court judges have described the system of criminal legal aid as “slowly coming apart at the seams” and reliant on solicitors’ goodwill and sense of public duty.
LawCare handles twice as many reports of bullying
The number of lawyers talking to wellbeing charity LawCare about problems of workplace bullying and harassment more than doubled last year.
