Headlines – Page 1498
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LPA error
The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) has confirmed that on 1 October their website contained an error in the Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), where there was an incorrect additional part C (for the attorney to sign) included in the downloaded document.
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Access is the number one priority
The Gazette reported that the Legal Services Commission was capping the number of firms’ new matter starts (see [2009] href="http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/moj-review-separate-budgets-criminal-and-civil-legal-aid" target="_blank"Gazette, 15 October, >]. The LSC wants to make it clear to all legal aid providers that there is no new rule which says ‘no additional new matter starts’.
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A touch of Frostrup
A sprinkle of stardust descended on last Thursday’s boisterous and extremely well-attended (recession, what recession?) Law Society Excellence Awards at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London. No, not in the person of the BBC broadcaster Mishal Husain, who conducted proceedings with consummate aplomb. An even brighter star was present, the ...
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Gag ladies
David Mosey is not the only solicitor to be involved in a shameless publicity stunt this week (see Mott on the landscape). Jeanette Miller, co-founder of Manchester firm Geoffrey Miller, gave staff a surprise earlier this month when she asked them to put on gags and go out into the ...
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Mott on the landscape
Can anyone spot the lawyer amid these aging rockers? Yes, construction lawyer David Mosey of Trowers & Hamlins is third on the right, pictured with Mott the Hoople members (left to right) Ian Hunter, ‘Overend’ Watts and Verden Allen. Mosey met the not-quite-so-young dudes during their reunion tour, and like ...
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Art of law
The Law Society art group has thrown down an interesting challenge to solicitors. The group has been going since 1958 (see Memory Lane) and next January, to celebrate its 50th anniversary (okay, perhaps they are better at painting than maths) the group’s annual exhibition will take the theme of ‘legal ...
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Publishing SRA charges ‘discriminates against those with unusual surnames’
by Gregory Treverton-Jones QC, a barrister at 39 Essex Street chambers, London, and co-author of The Solicitor’s HandbookI recently represented an Iranian-born solicitor – let us call him Mr Zadini – in disciplinary proceedings at the SDT. Some of the allegations against Mr Zadini were very serious, but he ...
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Rising material inequality is hindering access to the legal profession
Rising university costs are a hindrance to aspiring black lawyers, the Law Society announced at the conclusion of Black History Month. A timely observation, though Chancery Lane might have gone further. With annual tuition fees predicted to rise to £7,000, an issue that this week is viewed through the prism ...
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Airport sale, media refinancing and fashion moves
Taking off: Freshfields, alongside City firm Herbert Smith, advised airport operator BAA on its £1.5bn sale of Gatwick Airport to infrastructure asset investment fund Global Infrastructure Partners. Magic circle firm Slaughter and May advised Global Infrastructure Partners, while magic circle firm Allen & ...
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Transport secretary grilled over Freshields fees in Metronet collapse
Legal and professional advisory fees were cast into the spotlight as MPs picked over the bones of Metronet, the collapsed London Underground upgrade consortium whose failure cost the taxpayer up to £410m, at a public accounts committee hearing last week. Magic circle firm Freshfields was the ...
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Recession litigation boom fails to arrive
City litigators have been ‘surprised’ that an expected wave of post-credit crunch disputes has not yet materialised, according to two groups monitoring financial services litigation and dispute resolution.
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Fixed fees rate cuts will drive profession away, say family lawyers
Family law groups have warned that new fixed fees which will slash legal aid rates for some private law cases by up to 50% will drive lawyers away from legal aid and undermine access to justice. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) published the new fee structures ...
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APIL rejoins talks on extending fixed fees regime
The Association of Personal Injury lawyers has rejoined talks on extending the fixed fees regime in personal injury cases.APIL had walked out of the talks last month in an unprecedented move for the organisation. The Civil Justice Council is conducting a mediation process to produce industry-agreed ...
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Court case results recording review shows error rate of 25%
HM Courts Service needs to improve the accuracy of its recording of case results ‘as a matter of urgency’, a report by HM Inspectorate of Court Administration (HMICA) found last week. The inspectorate said the Courts Service was not recording case results on the courts register ...
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Conveyancers must enact 'radical' change to survive, says Chancery Lane
The Law Society has warned conveyancing solicitors that they will need to consider ‘radical’ change – such as increasing their liability – to ensure they retain a ‘sustainable commercial role’ in the property market. Pledging Chancery Lane’s support for conveyancing solicitors, chief executive Des Hudson questioned ...
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Top solicitor jailed for cash theft
A former deputy coroner and high-profile probate solicitor has been jailed for stealing more than £43,000 from a charitable trust. Alan Benstock, 51, a former deputy coroner for West Yorkshire and former vice-chairman of the Law Society’s probate section, was sentenced to 22 months for thefts ...
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Human rights record
Jason McCue of H20 Law became the third human rights lawyer in three years to be named practising Solicitor of the Year in the annual Law Society Excellence Awards. McCue followed in the footsteps of Phil Shiner, who won the accolade in the inaugural year ...
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Recession to blame for rise in law firm investigations
Regulatory investigations into law firms have increased steadily over the lifetime of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, parliamentary statistics show. SRA figures requested by justice minister Bridget Prentice in answer to a parliamentary question show that the SRA handled an average of 574 cases per month in ...
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Aspiring will-writing regulator's colourful past revealed
A new will-writing organisation is lobbying the Legal Services Board for will writing to become a regulated activity and, if successful, will apply to become a will-writing regulator. The company behind the Fellowship of Professional Willwriters and Probate Practitioners (FPWPP), which launched this week, has previously ...
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Solicitors join with bar to fight plans to cut advocacy rates
The government could face legal action by the Law Society and Bar Council as the professions unite over plans to cut criminal defence advocacy rates by 23%. The two representative bodies are taking advice on a potential judicial review action based on the lack of clarity ...