LSB: new Legal Services Act needed to finish the job of market reform
The Legal Services Act 2007 has improved quality and, to some extent, competition in legal services, but further legislative reform is necessary to complete the liberalisation of the market, the Legal Services Board said today in its triennial evaluation of the Act.
Tribunal strikes off solicitor who claimed misconduct was a “cry for help”
A solicitor who took money from vulnerable people for whom she was the court-appointed deputy – and even kept some of it in cash in her wardrobe – has been struck off after the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal ruled that her conduct was more than just a “cry for help”.
Boost for TheLinkApp as Knowles joins advisory board
Sir Nigel Knowles, the former global co-chairman of DLA Piper, has joined the advisory board of The Link App, the communications application for law firms and their clients created by former The Apprentice candidate Lauren Riley.
Mishcon de Reya first out of the blocks with legal bid to ensure Parliament triggers article 50
London law firm Mishcon de Reya has begun legal action to ensure that it is Parliament, rather than the prime minister, that has the power to trigger article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and the formal start of the UK’s exit from the European Union.
Firm caught up in investment scheme collapse forced to close after insurance dispute
The partners of a 41-year-old Black Country law firm have expressed their “bitter” disappointment at having to close down due to a dispute with their professional indemnity insurers. At the same time, four lawyers from Sanders & Co are facing the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal over their involvement in a complex overseas investment scheme.
NewLaw owner sees share price bounce back after positive trading statement
Redde plc – the AIM-listed accident management company that owns NewLaw Solicitors – has seen its share price bounce back following the post-referendum stock market falls, with the help of a positive trading statement.
ABS solicitor set to face disciplinary tribunal
A solicitor who failed in his attempt to challenge the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s closure of his alternative business structure is now to face a disciplinary tribunal, it has emerged. Michael John Elsdon is facing 15 charges, largely in relation to his conduct of probate matters.
Solicitor suspended after accepting caution for possessing indecent images
A solicitor who received a caution for possessing a small number of indecent images of children has been suspended from practice for a year. The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal accepted that he had “stumbled” across the images, which were in the lowest category of severity.
QC crowdfunds legal advice in bid to derail Brexit
A high-profile tax silk has taken less than a day to successfully crowdfund £10,000 to take legal advice over whether it is Parliament, rather than the prime minister, that has the power to trigger article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and the formal start of the UK’s exit from the European Union.
Disciplinary tribunal sanctions barrister who ignored BSB for four years
A barrister who failed to pay a fine and costs imposed by a disciplinary tribunal and then ignored the Bar Standards Board’s efforts to contact him for four years, has been suspended from practising. Meanwhile, another barrister has been reprimanded for telling the CPS she was qualified for a role there when she was not.
