Overcharged by a solicitor? Go to a barrister instead, says new direct access service
Barristers’ bid to persuade consumers to come direct to them for legal advice has stepped up with a new direct access service claiming that more than half of Britons think solicitors overcharge. Absolute Barrister claims to be able to halve the cost of some legal matters.
Council gives Law Society chiefs a bloody nose
The Law Society council yesterday gave the body’s management a bloody nose after rejecting its proposals to remove representation for groups representing black solicitors, sole practitioners and solicitors working in-house in commerce and industry, and local government.
AIM-listed ABS sees "opportunity for growth" in the financial problems of traditional law firms
The financial difficulties facing many law firms offers a real opportunity for growth, AIM-listed alternative business structure (ABS) Abbey Protection has claimed. It announced a 7% rise in turnover in 2012 to £38.7m and 3% increase in profits to £10.3m.
Criminal Bar gears up for industrial action over QASA
Criminal barristers are preparing to boycott the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA), but only if there is a pledge from counsel outside those circuits affected first not to step in and take the work.
Barristers fight back in defence of cab-rank rule
Barristers yesterday launched a two-pronged assault on a controversial academic report recommending that the cab rank rule be removed from the Bar Code of Conduct, with twin assessments by high-powered silks contradicting its findings.
iSolicitor launched to offer wide range of unbundled services to DIY clients
A sole practitioner has launched a business offering a range of unbundled legal services at fixed fees, including consultations via Skype for people who need help conducting their own cases. iSolictor UK offers a web ‘shop’ with a menu of fixed-fee services, run by a team of freelance lawyers.
Claims management companies win ABS status as SRA launches referral fee ban guidance
A company that provides both claims management services and legal expenses insurance has joined forces with a law firm in an alternative business structure that needed a waiver to allow a 27-year-old solicitor to be its head of legal practice. It was one of two newly licensed CMCs.
Here comes the legal executive law firm as CILEx applies for independent practice rights
The prospect of chartered legal executives setting up their own law firms moved closer to reality yesterday after their regulator submitted an application for the full range of independent practice rights. It has won immediate support from a Conservative MP.
Hourly billing leaves family law clients out in the cold, research finds
More than half of those going through a divorce were priced out of the legal services they would have bought and felt they needed, new research has found, with nine out of ten people told by solicitors to take or leave pricing on an hourly rate.
Law Society battle over in-house lawyers and sole practitioners
The Law Society council will this week receive conflicting recommendations about the future representation of in-house lawyers and sole practitioners among its number. The future representation of the Commerce & Industry Group, Solicitors in Local Government and Sole Practitioners Group hangs in the balance.
