All articles by John Hyde – Page 360
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News
Coalition to lobby Lords on referral fees
A coalition of insurers and lawyers is to lobby for tougher measures banning referral fees. The Civil Justice Group aims to promote a private member’s bill introduced by the former justice secretary, Jack Straw, which would make paying or receiving referral fees a criminal offence. A ...
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Ex-Minster Law chief unveils claims.com
A Leeds-based claims management company which paid a seven-figure sum for its web address opens for business this week, with a strategy that includes buying its own law firm and becoming an alternative business structure. Chief executive Matthew Briggs, who formerly led the Yorkshire personal injury ...
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Under starter’s orders - but they’re off already
There’s a wonderful moment of organised chaos at the start of every Grand National. No-one knows when the starting tape will lift, so the horses jostle and fidget, overcome by nervous tension and desperate to get started.
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City law firms must remain ‘open for business’ - Hudson
Law Society chief executive Desmond Hudson has urged the government not to consider any further cuts to business migration limits. This week a report commissioned by the City of London Corporation warned the UK was in danger of creating a perception it was not open for ...
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Solicitor faces £20,000 bill for not co-operating with regulator
The Legal Ombudsman has won a landmark court case against a solicitor who failed to co-operate with an investigation. Howard Robert Gillespie Young, a solicitor who practised in Bolton, Lancashire for CMG Law, did not provide documents requested by the ombudsman after a complaint was made ...
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Will consumers settle for 'legal advice lite'?
You remember that arcade game where you whacked crocodiles with a mallet? No matter what you did another would pop up - it was as frustrating as it was futile. I imagine running a small law firm must be similarly exasperating right now. The likes of ...
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Trainee redundancies ‘unlawful’
The Law Society is investigating claims that trainee solicitors whose contracts are terminated are being made redundant unlawfully. David Taylor, a partner at London firm Hanne & Co, said the number of redundant trainees seeking advice has risen this year for the first time since 2008. ...
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Memory lane
Law Society's Gazette, November 1981 Brian’s brief fails to convince Maybe it was the joyous announcement that the future Duke of Cambridge had been conceived, but the Gazette letters page had a light-hearted edge throughout the month. ...
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Welsh separation of legal powers ‘inevitable’
Further separation of legal powers between Wales and England is inevitable, leading Welsh academics have told the Gazette, as the Welsh Assembly prepares to launch a year-long consultation on creating a separate legal jurisdiction. They say the devolution process, accelerated by this year’s referendum vote in ...
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Four firms secure half of PII market, says SRA
Four insurance firms secured more than half the market share of professional indemnity insurance in 2011, according to figures released by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. More than 18% of law firms took out initial PII with XL Insurance, the leader in the market, for 2011/12. ...
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Whiplash compensation system 'open to fraud'
Three-quarters of healthcare professionals believe the current system of compensation for whiplash is open to fraud. A survey of more than 500 GPs, physiotherapists and consultants found widespread scepticism about the process of claiming after accidents. Almost 90% believe some whiplash ...
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In-Deed set to buy high street firms
A property legal company has revealed its intention to buy up high street firms. In-Deed, launched this year by Rightmove founder Harry Hill (pictured), will use the £4.5m secured through an Alternative Investment Market flotation in June to secure ownership of high street firms, build its ...
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Regulate all legal services says SRA
All legal services should come under a regulatory umbrella, the Solicitors Regulation Authority says today. In a response to the Legal Services Board’s consultation on reserved activities it calls for a fundamental review of regulation in England and Wales. The response says the LSB’s current approach ...
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Double-digit growth for A&O but tougher times ahead
Magic circle outfit Allen & Overy has been rewarded for rapid worldwide expansion with a jump in income - but has warned there are difficult times ahead. The firm, headquartered in London, today announced half-year turnover of £582m, up 11% on this time last year. ...
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Independent costs regulator opens for business
Costs lawyers now have an independent regulator to uphold professional standards. The Costs Lawyer Standards Board (CLSB) formally took up its duties on 31 October after the Association of Costs Lawyers (ACL) delegated its regulatory role. The association is the sixth and final approved regulator set ...
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‘Whole generation’ of lawyers could disappear post-LASPO
Government proposals to slash legal aid have passed through the Commons, amid suggestions the legislation will wipe out specialist lawyers. The bill will now move to the Lords, following a heated debate during which opposition MPs also rejected the suggestion that lawyers are only interested in self-preservation. ...
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Court workers opposed to extended opening hours
The union representing court workers has voiced opposition to justice secretary Kenneth Clarke’s wish to extend opening hours. Clarke told the House of Commons home affairs committee last week that the government is considering more evening sittings, following the extension of court hours to deal ...
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News
Straw’s bid to make referral fees a criminal offence fails
Conservative MPs have voted down Jack Straw’s attempt to make referral fees in personal injury cases a criminal offence. The former justice secretary tabled an amendment to the ban, included as part of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill, which was debated in ...
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PI lawyers hit back at media critics
Personal injury lawyers have criticised elements of the media for suggesting a multi-million pound compensation bill for councils is the fault of claimants. Press critics were quick to blame the so-called compensation culture after it was revealed that local authorities had paid out £75m to ...
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Referral fee ban will hit PI claimants - says MoJ assessment
Personal injury claimants could suffer from a ban on referral fees while insurers and lawyers would incur no extra costs, according to the government department proposing the ban. An impact assessment of the proposed ban, published today by the Ministry of Justice, admits that ‘overall claimants ...