Practice Management

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has published its first decision fining a law firm for not closing down properly after failure to secure indemnity cover by the end of the extended policy period (EPP).

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has hit back at criticism from the Legal Services Board (LSB) over its plans to cut the minimum compulsory cover for law firms from £2m to £500,000.

Two barristers caught up in high-profile disciplinary actions have referred complaints about lack of funding from the Bar Mutual indemnity fund to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), it has emerged.

The Law Society’s latest advertising campaign, launched today, highlights the role of solicitors as regulated professionals, under the slogan ‘Use a Professional. Use a Solicitor.’

There needs to be “significantly more progress” to break the hold of Britain’s elite on the legal profession, the Legal Services Board has claimed. It followed a report published last week that found fewer senior judges went to comprehensive schools than any other group of top professionals.

Yorkshire’s largest conveyancing firm has set up a £150,000 training academy after its workload trebled in the past two years. It comes as the Law Society has predicted increased turnover growth in the legal sector this year and next, in part because of the recovering property market.

The LegalBeagles web forum, set up by a Brighton litigation executive, is providing the town’s oldest law firm with a stream of consumer credit work and what is understood be the first bank charges court victory since 2007.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority expects its compensation fund to have to pay out up to £2.5m in the next practising year to cover the cost of negligence claims against uninsured law firms, it has emerged.

The solicitor in charge of a network of 136 West Midlands firms has said it aims to lead the way in support for small law firms, while remaining outside any national group. Hub.Legal is operated by FBC Manby Bowdler, formerly a hub in Pannone’s Connect2Law network.

The Legal Services Board has been praised for extending the time limit for its decision on whether to approve plans to cut the minimum indemnity limit for law firms, which meant the Solicitors Regulation Authority was unable to implement it this year.

Global demand for non-traditional legal services, such as contract lawyers and document-review services, will rise sharply over the next five years, research for Allen & Overy has found.

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) and ILEX Professional Standards (IPS) are contacting research organisations to prepare the way for an independent review of advocacy in the youth courts.

The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers has successfully complained about an advertisement broadcast by high-profile Liverpool law firm Hampson Hughes that said claimants would receive £2,000 “up front”.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has insisted that a lower minimum limit for indemnity insurance would “attract a discount in premiums” for law firms as it sought to counter widespread criticism of its plans.

The Information Commissioner’s Office has issued a warning to solicitors and barristers over the need to keep personal information secure, especially paper files, in the wake of “a number of data breaches” in recent months.