Latest news – Page 832
-
News
State school skills
I write in response to the letter headed ‘Tools of the trade’ from 18 February. I disagree entirely with the sweeping assumption that state-educated students do not gain the skills to obtain a professional qualification.
-
News
North-south divide in conveyancing?
With regard to the letter from Mr Gafford in the Gazette of 4 March, I am quite frankly amazed that a firm might believe a quote of £600 plus VAT would secure a conveyancing matter at a price of £167,000.
-
News
Recruitment freezes in local government
Local government legal departments are instigating recruitment freezes ahead of public sector budget cuts, while there has been a surge in demand for legal aid lawyers in immigration, family and criminal work and an upturn in corporate law hires. Colin Loth, manager of the legal teams ...
-
News
Libel success fees limited to 10%
The success fees charged by lawyers in defamation cases will be cut by 90% after justice secretary Jack Straw laid an order to amend the laws on ‘no win, no fee’ agreements. From April the maximum uplift charged by lawyers for winning defamation cases taken on ...
-
News
Easing the burden for immigration lawyers
I would like to clarify some important points in relation to last week’s story about immigration lawyers being unhappy over the new accreditation process (see [2010] Gazette, 25 February, 4).
-
News
Conveyancing fee embarrassingly low
I have been asked to give an existing client a quotation for conveyancing costs. On a modest terraced property valued at £167,000, I quoted £600 plus VAT and disbursements.
-
News
Time to resume training scheme
Social mobility for legal aid lawyers has relied on the availability of sponsored legal aid training contracts in recent years.
-
News
Referral fees referendum
How ironic that the Office of Fair Trading appears from recent report on homebuying to be concerned about the effect of referral fees on the conveyancing market.
-
News
ILEX consultation on CPS associate prosecutors
The Institute of Legal Executives is running a consultation exercise upon its application to become an approved regulator for Crown Prosecution Service associate prosecutors to undertake advocacy and litigation. So far, so good. The proposal is that unqualified CPS associate prosecutors assume the same powers as ...
-
News
Referral fees ban will ‘drive business underground’, says CSC chair
Banning referral fees will harm the legal profession and have no effect on reducing law firms’ marketing costs, according to Darren Werth, the Claims Standards Council’s chair. Werth, managing director at Accident Advice Helpline, told delegates that it is ‘shocking’ that the Law Society and ...
-
News
Claims management companies and law firms certain to merge
Claims management companies and law firms are certain to merge once they can form alternative business structures, conference delegates agreed. All 180 delegates who responded to a poll said that such mergers will happen after ABSs are allowed from October 2011. Delegates were mainly from CMCs, ...
-
News
‘Big Brother’ to monitor RTA web portal
The government and insurance companies will act as ‘Big Brother’ over law firms and claims management companies, by monitoring data flowing through the new road traffic accident claims web portal and weeding out those abusing the system, it was alleged last week.
-
News
Scots to vote on ‘Tesco law’
A last-ditch effort is under way to halt the Clementi-style liberalisation of Scotland’s legal services market. The 10,000-strong Law Society of Scotland is to vote on whether to reverse its policy of supporting external ownership of law firms and alternative business structures. ...
-
News
Chancery Lane in China human rights protest
Lawyers in China are being detained on spurious charges and denied their right to legal representation, the Law Society’s international action team has warned. The volunteer team of human rights lawyers helped Law Society president Robert Heslett write four times to China’s prime minister Wen Jiabao ...
-
News
Withers ‘in contempt’ of parliament over legal action threat
City firm Withers was ‘in contempt’ of parliament when it threatened an MP with legal action if he criticised one of its clients in the House of Commons, a parliamentary investigation found last week. But the report of the standards and privileges committee says no further ...
-
News
Third-party funders to form association to oversee code of conduct
Third-party litigation funders are to form an industry association to oversee a new voluntary code of conduct, the Gazette can reveal. The moves – which have been under discussion for two years – were given impetus by the Jackson report’s recommendation that all funders sign up ...
-
News
APIL slams government stance on asbestos claims
Personal injury lawyers have expressed disappointment over the government’s decision not to allow asbestos-related pleural plaques to be compensated. The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers called the decision a ‘disappointing end to a long, drawn-out, consultation process’. The Ministry of Justice cited ...
-
News
Appointment of just one solicitor QC concerns Law Society
The Law Society has claimed that the appointment of only one of the 10 solicitors who applied for silk is evidence of a ‘worrying trend’. Following last week’s announcement of 129 new QCs, Chancery Lane said it was a ‘matter of great concern’ that the ...
-
News
Poverty campaign protest outside ‘vulture fund’ firm
City firms that represent so-called ‘vulture funds’ while claiming to be socially responsible have been accused of hypocrisy by a campaign group on global poverty. The Jubilee Debt Campaign last week staged a protest outside the London office of US firm Dechert, two days before ...
-
News
Legal Complaints Service a ‘success story’ says commissioner
The body that handles complaints against solicitors is a ‘success story’ that has met all its performance targets, the legal services complaints commissioner declared last week. Releasing her sixth and final annual report before the new Office for Legal Complaints replaces the Law Society’s Legal Complaints ...