ABS update: Parabis, Slater & Gordon, DAS Law and EY
The Parabis Group – the first law firm to be bought by a private equity business – is on the verge of being broken up, two months after problems first emerged. Meanwhile, England cricket captain Alistair Cook has helped launch a drop-in centre at Slater & Gordon’s flagship Manchester office.
Suspension for barrister who appeared in court without practising certificate
A Bar disciplinary tribunal has suspended barrister Martin Wynne Jones for three months for representing clients in court without a practising certificate, while disciplinary action has also been taken against a barrister who falsely claimed to have a law degree, and another who made false declarations about criminal convictions.
LSB to probe whether competition has brought down cost of legal services
A probe into what impact post-Legal Services Act competition has had on the cost of legal services has been launched. The Legal Services Board said that understanding changes in prices over time was one of the “key measures of the impacts of regulatory reforms designed to promote competition”.
Direct access service winning work mostly from solicitors and other barristers
Clerksroom Direct, which has over 1,000 direct access barristers on its books, has said that only around only 20% of its recent cases have come directly from members of the public. Half came from law firms and the rest from barristers’ chambers.
CA adds extra negligence finding and £375k damages on top of High Court’s £1.6m Withers ruling
The Court of Appeal has made an additional finding of negligence against leading London law firm Withers over its drafting of an LLP agreement and increased the £1.6m in damages awarded in the High Court by a further £375,000.
Barristers “under pressure” to agree not to act against big clients if they want their work
Barristers need to resist pressure from big clients and government departments to agree not to act against them in the future if they want instructions, the Bar Council has said. It said it would be “professionally improper” to agree to such a condition.
LIBOR documents drawn up by Clifford Chance are protected by legal advice privilege, High Court rules
Documents drawn up by Clifford Chance for a special RBS committee dealing with the LIBOR scandal are protected by legal advice privilege, the High Court has decided, saying that lawyers must have able to give clients “candid factual briefings” as well as legal advice.
SRA shuts several law firms, with dishonesty allegations to the fore
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has closed a host of law firms in recent weeks, including two London firms on the grounds of suspected dishonesty.
Artificial intelligence “could be good news” for lawyers and clients alike
Artificial intelligence and associated technologies do not necessarily spell universal doom and gloom for the legal profession, Legal Futures’ latest Insight publication has found. They might also assist lawyers to expand their services, supply them more cheaply, and create new, different kinds of employment for legal professionals.
Report: Law firms’ unwillingness to change opening the door to new market entrants
The slow pace of change in the legal profession means it is “not surprising” to see new types of firms, with completely different business models, winning market share, an authoritative survey has found, adding that “the market is ripe for change”.
