Latest news – Page 683
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News
Law Society wary on shared parenting possibility
The Law Society’s family law committee has cautioned against introducing a legal presumption of shared parenting after divorce, following indications that the government may seek to change the law. Children’s minister Tim Loughton has said that the government is ‘looking closely at all the options ...
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Bar chair counsels cooperation
An independent referral bar is in the public interest and has an ‘assured future’, despite increasing competition and changing working practices, according to its new chair. In an interview with Gazette Online, Michael Todd QC said solicitors see value in the continuation of the independent bar. ‘The bar doesn’t want ...
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No ‘hidden agenda’ in Irish legal reforms
Ireland’s government has denied the existence of any ‘hidden agenda’ behind sweeping reforms to the legal system imposed following the country’s bailout by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The minister for justice, equality and defence, Alan Shatter (pictured), was responding to growing international concerns, first ...
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NewLaw makes ABS move
Cardiff-based firm NewLaw has confirmed it is among 44 organisations that have so far applied for alternative business structure status through the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The personal injury firm, established in 2004, submitted its application last week when the SRA became a licensing authority. ...
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Co-op Legal has ‘ambitious’ growth plan
Co-operative Legal Services (CLS) has launched a recruitment drive as part of ‘ambitious plans’ to expand in the consumer legal services market. The move follows CLS’s submission, at the start of the year, of its application to become an alternative business structure. It is seeking ...
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SRA to consider dropping minimum wage for trainees
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is to consult on whether to continue to set minimum pay rates for trainees. Current minimum salary levels for solicitors are £18,590 in central London and £16,650 outside, and have been frozen for the past two years. However the SRA board decided ...
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LSC blamed by Jewels for closure
A West Midlands family legal aid firm has blamed delays in payment by the Legal Services Commission for forcing it into administration. Jewels, founded in 1980 by sole director Mark Jewels (pictured), ceased trading on 28 December. The Lexcel-accredited firm, ...
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Immigration service users unaware of its closure
Clients of the Immigration Advisory Service (IAS) remain unaware that the not-for-profit provider went into administration six months ago and are still trying to gain access to its premises, the Gazette has learned. There is no guidance information on the locked doors of the central London ...
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Asbestos fund still on agenda, says government
The government has assured people suffering from asbestos-related disease that a ‘fund of last resort’ is still on the agenda, nearly two years after a report called for its creation. Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) minister Lord Freud is understood to be in ...
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Referral fees in spotlight as MPs slam cost of whiplash claims
MPs today call for the bar to be raised if claimants are to receive compensation for whiplash injuries following motor accidents. A report by the Commons Transport Committee into the cost of motor insurance concludes that the rise in personal injury claims is the ‘main reason ...
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Solicitor jailed for money laundering
A solicitor has been jailed for 12 months for money laundering, perverting the course of justice and prejudicing a money laundering investigation. Nicholas Heywood, 45, of High Bank Lane, Bolton, was sentenced at Chester Crown Court (pictured) on 11 January for facilitating the laundering of money ...
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McNally brushes off LASPO criticism as ‘report fatigue’
Justice minister Lord McNally (pictured) has dismissed a wave of criticism of the impact of legal aid cuts by saying the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill is starting to suffer from ‘report fatigue’.
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Firms in ARP given April deadline
Firms remaining in the insurance Assigned Risks Pool have been given until April to secure cover or to shut down. The Solicitors Regulation Authority has contacted each of the 31 firms which, of 3 January, were still open and covered by the ARP, and will make ...
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Court statistics ‘support case for reform’, government says
Care proceedings take on average more than a year to resolve, statistics released for the first time by the Ministry of Justice have revealed. New data on the average length of civil and criminal cases published this week from the third quarter of 2011 showed that care proceedings took an ...
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Merger expectations grow among small firms
A third of small and medium sized firms expect to merge in the coming year as the trend to join forces continues, according to research by the Law Consultancy Network. The fourth set of six-monthly statistics complied by consultant Andrew Otterburn showed that 21 of the ...
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'Gang of Five' in late bid to halt civil litigation reforms
An alliance of lawyer pressure groups will this week make a last-ditch bid to halt the government’s civil litigation reforms.
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LeO should handle all complaints, says watchdog
The Legal Ombudsman should be given powers to handle complaints about all providers of legal services, the profession’s consumer watchdog said today. In the meantime, the scheme should be extended on a voluntary, 'stop-gap’ basis, to cover activities such as will-writing - an avenue that the ...
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Satellite jobs to go as Pannone aims south
National firm Pannone has announced that 12 jobs will be lost through the shutting of two satellite offices. The cuts will be a mixture of secretarial and fee-earning roles at offices in the Cheshire villages of Hale and Alderley Edge. Managing partner ...
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Londoners will fare worst from legal aid cuts - survey
Londoners will be hit hardest by the government’s planned legal aid cuts, a survey published by the Legal Action Group (LAG) has found. It has calculated that the capital will lose £9.33m under the proposed reforms in funding for housing, employment, debt, welfare benefits and immigration ...
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US giant sets up English law practice
Major US firm Davis Polk & Wardwell is to set up an English law practice in a bid to break new markets from London. The move marks a new stage in the rivalry between New York and London jurisdictions. The firm, which opened in London ...