Headlines – Page 1534
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Switzerland moves to protect in-house privilege
Switzerland could become the most attractive location for corporate general counsel in Europe if the country’s parliament accepts a government proposal to grant professional privilege to in-house lawyers. The Swiss Federal Council has published draft legislation that would grant in-house lawyers ‘professional secrecy’ concerning the ‘products ...
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Cut-price HIPS boost interest
Solicitors could oust estate agents as the first port of call for home sellers if a trend started in Merseyside catches on nationally, a conveyancer claims. Liverpool firm MSB says that after launching a cost-price home information pack (HIP) it has had a 500% surge ...
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Law Society research shows women’s share of the profession growing
The number of women admitted to the profession grew five times faster than the rate for men in the 10 years to July 2008, new Law Society research reveals. The latest Trends in the Solicitors’ Profession study, carried out by Chancery Lane’s research unit, paints ...
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LCS puts coal-compensation claims on hold
The Legal Complaints Service has gone against the advice of its watchdog by refusing to re-open around 160 complaints against Yorkshire law firm Raleys concerning compensation payments to miners. The LCS, which suspended investigations in March, said it will not reopen the cases until the ...
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Global Managing Partners Summit - exclusive report
When times are tough, it’s good to talk – no matter how big or how tough you think you are. But the annual Global Managing Partners Summit in London, chaired by Law Society vice-president Robert Heslett and Gazette editor Paul Rogerson, kicked off with an observation that this year’s financial ...
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All-party group boosts legal aid
Michael Mansfield QC (pictured standing) criticised the government’s ‘short-sighted and completely erroneous’ approach to the provision of legal aid services at last week’s launch of an all-party parliamentary group on legal aid. The group, chaired by Labour MP Karen Buck, aims to promote parliamentary and public understanding of the role ...
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Lord chief justice calls for profession to work together
The lord chief justice has called on lawyers to take the initiative in shaping their future and not wait for events to shape it for them. Lord Judge said he would be ‘delighted’ if barristers, solicitors and legal executives ‘would together and separately address the ...
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SRA immigration ‘loophole’ exposed
Loopholes that allowed a solicitor to practise for two years in England despite being an illegal immigrant are still in place, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has revealed. Jitendra Kumar Sharma, 44, of Southall, London, was last week jailed for seven years for a multi-million-pound visa scam.
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Solicitors encouraged to apply for judicial posts
Solicitors have never been in a better position to apply for judicial office, the Law Society has said in response to research suggesting that many still perceive the judiciary as ‘a career for others’. A study sponsored by the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) says that solicitors ...
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Wragge & Co to axe 85 after income falls
Birmingham firm Wragge & Co has announced that it will cut up to 85 staff, after its revenues fell by nearly a fifth last year. The firm’s turnover for the 12 months to 30 April was £104.3m, down by 17.5% on last year’s ...
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Chancery Lane hits out at means testing proposals
Government proposals for Crown court means testing could deny vulnerable people access to justice and are being ‘rushed in’ too quickly, the Law Society said today. Chancery Lane said the Ministry of Justice has failed to consider the economic climate, which has seen many people ...
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Bad form, whichever way you look at it
Even if your firm does not undertake legal aid work, please don’t switch off. Although I want to query just what the Legal Services Commission’s intentions are with regard to electronic working, there are implications in what I have to say for the Courts Service, the Tribunals Service and other ...
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MoJ publishes report on local legal advice
A government-commissioned report on local legal advice provision has recommended that the Legal Services Commission work with service providers to reduce the bureaucratic burdens heaped upon them.
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Counselling the counsel
At the Association of Corporate Counsel Europe’s annual meeting in Geneva this week, one theme resonated the loudest – and surprisingly, it had nothing to do with slashing panel law firms and cutting external legal spend. Still, external counsel shouldn’t breathe a sigh of relief just yet.
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Top 100 hit by downturn, says Deloitte survey
Fee income at the UK’s top 100 law firms decreased by 4.3% in the quarter ending 30 April 2009) compared with the same period last year, according to business advisory firm Deloitte’s Quarterly Legal Sector Survey. The report, published today, predicts that the quarter’s fall ...
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Lawyers on honours list
Michael Smyth, a partner at Clifford Chance, has been awarded a CBE for services to pro bono legal work in the Queen’s birthday honours list. A partner since 1990, Smyth is an author of Business and Human Rights Act (2000) and chairman of Public Concern at Work, the whistleblowing charity.
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LSB’s £20m is a drop in the ocean, says Kenny
The £20m set-up costs of the Legal Services Board and Office for Legal Complaints to be paid for by the sector ‘is a not a real issue’, according to LSB chief executive Chris Kenny. Speaking to the Gazette, Kenny (pictured) said that, against the ...
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Guardian raps decision to keep judicial disciplinary proceedings private
The Guardian newspaper has reacted angrily to losing its freedom of information (FoI) bid to force the Ministry of Justice to name more than 100 judges who have been disciplined over the last 10 years and disclose why they were disciplined.
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SRA proposes recovering costs of investigations
Solicitors found guilty of breaking rules could be further hit in the pocket with the cost of investigations doubling under plans put forward by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Changes could be implemented in two phases as the Solicitors Regulation Authority moves towards full cost ...
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Intellectual property
Brand names – Electronic commerce – Infringement – Trademarks (1) L’Oréal SA (2) Lancôme Parfums Et Beauté & Cie (3) Laboratoire Garnier & Cie (4) L’Oréal (UK) Ltd v Ebay International AG & nine ors: (Ch) Ch D ...