Regulation
Public does not “fully understand” role of SRA
Members of the public still do not “fully understand” the role of the Solicitors Regulation Authority and leads to complaints about its service, the organisation’s independent reviewer has found.
Womble Bond partners fined over client account failures
A former partner at Womble Bond Dickinson has been fined for using the firm’s client account as a banking facility, as has a current partner who unwittingly took over after he left.
Barrister gave court wrong address to “fraudulently” obtain divorce
A barrister who deliberately gave the court a wrong address “with the intention of obtaining a divorce fraudulently” has been disbarred.
Unregulated firms “will force traditional practices to get better”
The change last year allowing solicitors to practise from unregulated businesses will force traditional law firms to improve their service offering, the Competition and Markets Authority has been told.
Solicitor used ‘rubber’ cheques to hide client money misuse
A solicitor who moved client funds around different accounts to hide the money he was taking for himself – and caused pay-outs from the SRA Compensation Fund – has been struck off.
SRA “may not allow” firms to recharge cost of negative interest rates
The Solicitors Regulation Authority may not allow solicitors to pass on to clients the cost of holding their money if negative interest rates become a reality, an official has suggested.
Homeworking now a “reasonable adjustment” for disabled lawyers
Employment tribunals may in future need to recognise that homeworking has become an established ‘reasonable adjustment’ to working practices for disabled people, including lawyers.
Research lays bare Bar’s gender and ethnicity pay gap
Female barristers and those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds are likely to earn less than male and White counterparts by every measure, new research has found.
Solicitor handed suspended sentence over indecent images
A solicitor who downloaded thousands of indecent images of children and shared some of the material online has been handed a suspended prison sentence.
“Genius” solicitor struck off after threatening to “end the SRA”
A solicitor has been struck off after trying to intimidate an officer from the Solicitors Regulation Authority by saying he was “genius level talent” who would sue the officer and “end the SRA”.
Blog
Five key issues to consider when adopting an AI-based legal tech
As generative AI starts to play a bigger role in our working lives, there are some key issues that your law firm needs to consider when adopting an AI-based legal tech.
Bulk litigation – not always working in consumers interests
For consumers to get the benefit, bulk litigation needs to be done well, and we are increasingly concerned that there are significant problems in some areas of this market.
ABSs, cost and audits – fixing regulation after Axiom Ince
A feature of law firm collapses and frauds has sometimes been the over-concentration of power in outdated and overburdened systems of control.
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