Call for two-tier regulation based on client money
There should be a two-tier system of legal regulation that distinguishes between those branches of the profession that hold client money and those that do not, the chairman of the Costs Lawyer Standards Board has argued.
SRA drops annual diversity surveys to help small firms
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has decided to drop annual diversity surveys of the profession, and make them biennial, to reduce the regulatory burden on smaller law firms. The regulator said the next survey, scheduled for this summer, would not take place until May 2017.
Barrister firm to be like solicitors’ practice – “but a better kind of solicitor”
One of the newest barrister entities has said that using its services will be “like going to a solicitor’s firm, but a better kind of solicitor”. In a separate development, two barristers have set up a BSB-regulated firm to provide clients with a “bespoke service”, principally in sports, entertainment and media law.
SDT allows solicitor who overturned strike-off to return to practice
A solicitor who successfully challenged her strike-off at the High Court can return to practice following a decision by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. A fresh tribunal said it would be “disproportionate” to strike off Rukhsana Kiani.
Fine for CMC that made 17.5m unsolicited calls in six months
A claims management company that made 17.5m automated calls over just six months, asking people if they had suffered hearing loss at work, has been fined £250,000 by the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Solicitor struck off for fraud despite blackmail claim
A solicitor who took money from clients – including telling a personal injury client that he had been awarded less than he really had – has been struck off despite claiming that he was being blackmailed at the time.
US debate on whether to allow ABSs heats up
More than two decades’ experience of alternative business structures has shown lower rates of complaint against lawyers than in traditional firms, a law firm headquartered in Washington DC, which allows non-lawyer ownership, has argued – as lawyers and businesses keen on the legal market lined up against each other.
Mid-market firms losing corporate work “by stealth”, report says
Corporate clients are bleeding law firms without them realising it, as work is funnelled away to cheaper providers by in-house counsel who wish to avoid confrontation over pricing, according to a report. The steady process of commoditisation was behind the shift, it said.
Insurer turns in-house legal team into ABS
Well-known legal expenses insurer Elite Insurance has joined the select group of companies to turn their in-house legal teams into an alternative business structure, Legal Futures can reveal. The Gibraltar-domiciled company aims to reduce its overall claims and legal spend.
SRA warns firms against charging for money laundering checks
Law firms that charge clients for money laundering due diligence checks are at risk of breaking the rules, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has warned in a report that in the main painted a positive picture of how firms are approaching their responsibilities in relation to anti money laundering.
