Virtual law firm has highest “success rate” in senior courts litigation
A virtual law firm, Keystone Law, has beaten the big players to achieve the highest “success rate” in litigation in the senior courts, a report has found. Data analysts Premonition also said litigants in person were more successful in winning cases as a group than the profession, as it robustly defended its quantitative approach to recording the performance of lawyers.
Non-lawyer managers setting bar high for equity partners, survey finds
Fee income per partner at larger firms soared last year from an average of £777,000 to almost £1.4m, a survey has found. Accountants MHA, who produce an annual benchmarking report, said the main reason was a fall in the number of equity partners at these firms, helped by an increase in profitable work.
Bird & Bird loses bid to overturn £2m planning negligence ruling
A leading City law firm has failed to persuade the Court of Appeal to overturn a ruling that it was negligent in failing to highlight a major development planned to take place near a £26m residential property whose purchase it was handling.
Judiciary joins forces with techies to run online court hackathon
Two leading lawtech organisations have linked with the judiciary to stage a hackathon which will develop tools aimed at assisting the online court, it has emerged. The Society for Computers and Law, London lawtech community Legal Geek, and the Judiciary of England and Wales, will jointly host the event on 1-2 July.
Tech industry specialist barrister launches BSB entity
A barrister who specialises in advising technology companies has launched a Bar Standards Board entity to house her employment practice, while the legal group she co-founded is poised to release a product geared to helping clients navigate European data legislation.
Tech start-up incubated by law firm gains cash and high-profile investors in latest funding round
A contract review technology company incubated by Cambridge-based law firm Taylor Vinters has raised more than $1m in its latest funding round, with investors including former Vodafone UK CEO Guy Laurence, and Michael Findlay, chairman of Morgan Sindall and former co-head of investment banking for Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Government lawyers discriminated against autistic student with training contract test, EAT rules
The Government Legal Service discriminated against a law graduate with Asperger’s Syndrome by refusing to make reasonable adjustments when she took a test that forms part of the application process for training contracts, the Employment Appeal Tribunal has found.
Legal Aid Agency criticised for trying to prosecute major law firm fraud through local authority rather than CPS
The Crown Prosecution Service has taken over prosecution of a major legal aid fraud by a law firm after the Court of Appeal criticised the Legal Aid Agency for trying to run the case through the fraud department of a local authority instead. It expressed surprise that both the agency and Thurrock council had tried this course of action.
Barrister with history of failing to co-operate with BSB and LeO suspended for two years
A commercial barrister has been suspended from practice for failing to comply with an order of the Legal Ombudsman and requests from his own regulator, only two years after a series of similar findings as well as a suspension for handling client money when he should not have done.
Don’t just blame the lawyers for blocking innovation, City IT chief says
Lawyers are the not the only ones blocking innovation in larger law firms, the head of IT at DLA Piper has said, highlighting also the need to decentralise responsibility for innovation and allowing it to happen in individual practice groups.
