McFarlane tells family judges to curb out-of-hours hearings
The president of the Family Division has told judges and lawyers to stop the increasing practice of holding virtual hearings outside of normal court hours, citing wellbeing concerns.
Minister urges councils to speed up searches amid conveyancing rush
The housing minister has written to local authorities whose delays in returning searches are putting conveyancers under pressure ahead of the stamp duty holiday deadline on 31 March.
Pinto: Gender parity a long way off in fraud work
The immediate past chair of the Bar Council has welcomed work by the CPS to ensure greater gender parity in its instructions but said female fraud barristers are “a long way from parity”.
Young solicitor who faked email in “moment of madness” avoids strike-off
A young solicitor who amended an email to give a client a false impression of when it was sent has avoided being struck off for what a tribunal described as a “moment of madness”.
Court rejects solicitor’s claim that she hand-delivered files to SRA
A solicitor failed to comply with court orders to produce files to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, a High Court master has ruled, despite her claim that she hand-delivered them.
Inappropriate behaviour by potential QCs “not being recorded”
The current process for awarding the title of QC does not allow “sufficient opportunity” for inappropriate behaviour witnessed by opponents or even court staff to be recorded, the Law Society has warned.
Judge fines trio who provided unregulated legal advice
Directors from two legal businesses which generated £2.5m in fees by providing unregulated immigration advice have been fined nearly £17,000 and ordered to pay over £28,000 in compensation.
Tribunal clears solicitor but refuses to order costs against SRA
A solicitor has been cleared by a tribunal of misleading the court but failed in his bid for the Solicitors Regulation Authority to pay him almost £100,000 in costs as a result.
Complaint over law firm’s radio advert rejected
A Merseyside law firm has been cleared of breaking Advertising Standards Authority rules with a radio advert that highlighted the fear of “a social worker at your door to take your child”.
UK unexpectedly reduces tax scheme reporting burden on firms
The government has unexpectedly announced that DAC 6, an EU cross-border tax transparency rule with major implications for international law firms, will be rewritten in the wake of the Brexit trade deal.
