Practice Management
Pioneering apprentices qualify as solicitors at leading law firm
Seven apprentices at the first large law firm to run the training scheme – which takes six years and includes a law degree – have qualified as solicitors.
“Win-win” as Sussex firm embraces employee ownership
A law firm in Sussex has become the latest employee-owned law firm, with its former owner saying he expected more to follow suit. Staff at a firm that did it last month are to receive £500 each already.
Law firm wins VAT battle with HMRC over office leases
A law firm LLP that used a shell company to enter into leases for its offices has won an appeal against an HM Revenue & Customs decision that it could not recover the VAT incurred.
Law firms looking to be bought “do not have the value they think”
Many law firms looking to be bought do not have the value they like to think they have, while multiples used to set the price are beginning to fall, leading advisers have warned.
Lawyers write “user manuals” so colleagues can understand them
The founder of a law firm at the forefront of the wellbeing movement has described how lawyers write “user manuals” about themselves, which colleagues read to help understand the way they work.
Big firms could cut lawyer numbers as profitability “continues to fall”
The profitability of global law firms has continued to decline against a background of “falling demand and surging expenses”, with jobs and equity partner payouts at risk if the trend continues.
Mid-sized commercial firms “need to shout” about their tech offering
Mid-sized commercial law firms need to shout more about how they use technology to help clients, according to a survey that found most say “nothing at all publicly” about it.
Workload-sharing app seeks to boost lawyers’ job satisfaction
An app designed to lift pressure on lawyers burdened by heavy workloads, improving wellbeing and reducing expensive recruitment, has arrived in the UK from Scandinavia.
Mothers in law still struggle to juggle despite more supportive employers
The vast majority of mothers (84%) working in the law still find it difficult to balance working life with the demands of being a mother, despite some signs of progress.
Pay returns to top of list for attracting new recruits
Pay has returned to the top of the list for job-hunting lawyers, overtaking flexibility, but most fee-earners are happy where they are, a survey has found.