Accountancy body can finally exit legal services regulation
The Legal Services Board has granted permission for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants to formally pull out of probate regulation, having refused it in January.
Unregulated providers growing share of consumer and SME markets
The unregulated sector may account for up to 9% of the total market for individuals’ legal needs and up to 39% for small businesses, Legal Services Board research has indicated.
Divorce litigation becoming unaffordable for all but the rich, warns judge
Financial remedy litigation seems to be “fast heading for Ritz Hotel status – so expensive that it is only accessible by the very rich”, a senior family judge warned yesterday.
Vos: Online justice will make compulsory mediation debate moot
The question of whether mediation should be mandatory will become moot in the digital justice system currently being built, the Master of the Rolls said last week.
Call to beef up rules on discrimination and harassment by barristers
The rules against discrimination and harassment by barristers need to be strengthened by removing the requirement that the actions be unlawful, two QCs have argued.
Pure Legal’s unsecured creditors set to recover little of £23m owed
The prospects of unsecured creditors of Pure Legal recovering any of the £23m they are owed have dimmed significantly in the first six months of its administration.
Law firm fails in summary judgment bid over negligence claim
A law firm being sued for more than £2m over a failure to advise properly has failed in its bid for summary judgment over several of the allegations made against it.
Axiom Law enters regulation for first time with US ABS
Leading alternative legal services provider Axiom Law has moved into regulated services for the first time after being granted an ABS licence in the US state of Arizona.
Initiative extends pro bono opportunities to firms’ business services staff
A new initiative extending pro bono opportunities to business operations professionals at large law firms has gone live, linking them with third sector organisations needing volunteers.
Judge calls for guidance on rights of unqualified agency advocates
County court judges would benefit from “more authoritative guidance” from the higher courts on whether unqualified solicitor’s agents have rights of audience, a circuit judge has said.
