SRA fines firm £2,000 for role in stamp duty avoidance schemes
A small firm in Hertfordshire has become the latest law firm to be fined by the Solicitors Regulation Authority for its involvement in stamp duty land tax (SDLT) avoidance schemes.
LeO: law firms should issue two retainers to consumer credit clients
Law firms should issue two separate retainers to clients where they are provided with consumer credit as well as purely legal services, the Legal Ombudsman has suggested.
Artificial intelligence in the law moves step closer as Riverview teams up with top academics
The application of artificial intelligence (AI) to the legal market has moved a step closer after Riverview Law teamed up with Liverpool University to leverage the university’s leading AI expertise.
Senior partner who became direct access barrister sets up alternative business structure
David Hassall, a senior partner turned barrister whose career mirrors recent changes in legal services, has set up an alternative business structure – which he intends to operate on a ‘John Lewis’ profit share model.
Failure to undertake CPD will be “aggravating factor” in investigations, SRA warns
Failure to undertake continuous professional development will be an “aggravating factor” when enforcement decisions are made against those guilty of incompetence, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has said.
Law Society fails to block Find a Solicitor negligence action
The Law Society has failed in a bid to block a High Court action against it for negligent misrepresentation, after a bogus solicitor got himself listed on the society’s Find a Solicitor website and stole money from a house purchaser.
LeO opens door to investigating “tightly defined” third-party complaints
There is scope for the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) to offer redress to third parties, as long as the complaints involved could be “clearly and tightly defined”, a report by a LeO working party has found.
Professor John attacks “unhelpful” BSB complaints report
A report for the Bar Standards Board, which concluded that the regulator handled cases involving ethnic minority barristers in a “transparent, consistent and fair” way, has been strongly attacked by equality expert Professor Gus John.
Big law firms hiring poor-performing barristers, analysts claim
A group of US-based entrepreneurs claim to have carried out pioneering research which has shown that big commercial firms in the UK are “routinely rehiring poor performing barristers while ignoring the best performers”.
Hodge Jones & Allen pioneers fixed-fee divorce arbitration service
London firm Hodge Jones & Allen has launched a fixed-fee arbitration service for divorcing couples in the wake of judicial support for such a move to keep costs down. The firm is encouraging more law firms to get on board.
