Private Client

A probate solicitor who blamed multiple breaches on the “emotional entanglement” he felt when handling his brother’s estate has been fined and given a seven-year restriction order.

Calls to reform the Legal Services Act 2007 overlook the many unused provisions in it that could facilitate major changes in regulation, the chief executive of the Legal Services Board has said.

Octopus Legacy, the fast-growing estate planning and bereavement business, has predicted its probate work will jump by 1,000% over the next 12 months following a major acquisition.

Both artificial intelligence and online influencers are becoming a source of “inadequate, outdated or misleading advice on wills and financial planning”, according to research.

A solicitor who backdated a document and sent a misleading email to a client has been struck off, despite evidence he was experiencing significant mental health difficulties at the time.

Two fast-growing private equity-backed law firms in the North-West have unveiled acquisitions to boost their Court of Protection and personal injury practices respectively.

A solicitor accused of misleading her client and her firm about delays in registering lasting powers of attorney has been cleared, with her firm placing too much on her shoulders.

A private client lawyer who billed clients for work he had not done has been struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

The High Court has imposed a suspended prison sentence on a former executor who failed to comply with court orders by not providing information to a law firm.

A wealth management and tax advice firm is to launch an alternative business structure later this year to create a “fully joined-up advisory platform” for its globally mobile clients.

Private client law firms could see client numbers fall as the court digitisation programme is helping more people submit probate applications themselves.

A law firm that limits its solicitors to 25 billable hours a week has seen annual growth of 40% over the last two years.

A solicitor who signed a deed as a witness to a signature when she had not actually been present has escaped being struck off.

An investor-backed search fund has acquired a conveyancing and private client law firm as the start of a ‘buy and build’ strategy aimed particularly at SME practices with succession issues.

A junior solicitor who told clients, colleagues and others that she had submitted applications for grants of probate when she had not, has been struck off.