News in focus – Page 13
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NewsNews focus: SIF, sanctions and SLAPPs - a busy week for the SRA
Changes to fining powers, new indemnity arrangements and another warning on SLAPPs – the SRA has rubber-stamped reforms that will have far-reaching implications for solicitors.
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NewsNews focus: Are lawyers still breaching judgment embargoes?
Despite the master of the rolls’ clarion call for lawyers to respect judgment embargoes and a warning about possible contempt proceedings, high-profile breaches continue to happen.
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NewsNews focus: Dr Bitcoin raises the stakes on cryptoassets
As Australian billionaire Dr Craig Wright’s court cases over the bitcoin digital currency continue, growing judicial expertise on cryptoassets may help to make England a forum of choice.
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NewsNews focus: Treasury coughs up for prosecutors - but solicitors still 'short-changed'
The Treasury has coughed up to address the disparity between prosecution and defence fees. But to the Law Society’s dismay, criminal legal aid solicitors continue to be ‘short-changed’.
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NewsNews focus: SRA gets tough on competence
The SRA is taking a more proactive approach to the assessment of continuing competence. Firms can expect a more onerous and intrusive process, and a knock at the door should they fall short.
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NewsNews focus: Solicitors ramp up campaign for cohabitation law reform
Despite a succession of governments being reluctant to act, family lawyers are resetting their campaign to secure reform of the rights of cohabitants when relationships break down.
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NewsNews focus: Novitas - merchant bank takes huge hit on bad litigation loan
Close Brothers shares tanked after the merchant bank announced a huge write-off on the legacy business of ill-starred litigation lender Novitas. The deal has opened a regulatory Pandora’s box too
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NewsNews focus: 'Wagner mercenary' row highlights role of lawyers in SLAPPs
Campaigners against ‘SLAPP’ legal actions have seized on the Wagner revelations to pile the pressure on legislators to tackle abusive litigation. Will this mean more powers for the SRA?
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NewsNews focus: It's time for law officers to stand up to ministers, say peers
A Lords report has berated the government for undermining the rule of law. But peers balked at changing how lord chancellors are appointed. They also stressed the special duties of law officers.
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NewsNews focus: Claims hurdles remain after landmark Covid case
In a landmark inquest ruling on the deaths of two nurses, a coroner cited for the first time the link between Covid and industrial disease. But lawyers are ruling out a flood of civil claims.
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NewsNews focus: Artificial intelligence debuts at the Old Bailey
First use of AI-based technology in Old Bailey murder trial is rightly regarded as a watershed moment, but after many false starts veterans of past ‘hype cycles’ are tempering their expectations.
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NewsNews focus: Bar's watchdog comes under heavy fire
Annual report card marks down bar’s regulator on leadership and enforcement – but barrister representatives counter that the Legal Services Board has fallen victim to mission creep.
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NewsNews focus: Metamorph - anatomy of a collapse
Metamorph Group said it was ‘revolutionising legal services’. So what went wrong?
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NewsIn focus: Meet the solicitor who relishes appearing before the SDT
A lawyer who specialises in defending solicitors before the tribunal explains why the SRA’s new fining powers could upset the delicate balance between regulation and discipline.
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NewsNews focus: 19 things for solicitors to look out for in 2023
Legal's role in the Post Office inquiry, controversial costs, a potential 'talent war' ceasefire and a new face at the top of the judiciary.
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NewsNews focus: What now for the bar?
‘Future-proofing the bar’ was the theme of this year’s Bar Conference, but how financially sustainable are chambers? Accurate fee estimates and a commitment to equality and diversity are critical.
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NewsNews focus: SLAPPS 'could turn UK into pariah state'
The government insists it will ‘get around to’ legislating on strategic litigation against public participation, but lawyers warn that action is needed quickly or the UK risks becoming a ‘pariah state’.
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NewsNews focus: Clock is ticking for legal clarity on digital securities
Sir Geoffrey Vos envisages England and Wales as a magnet for the global crypto-economy. But the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce’s drive to set out the legal position on digital securities must address statutory rules.
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NewsNews focus: Legal aid pay rises would stoke inflation - Raab
With the government set to unveil its full response to the Bellamy legal aid review, lord chancellor Dominic Raab says extra cash for solicitors is unlikely. The prospect of industrial action still looms,
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NewsNews focus: Legal perspectives on the draft Mental Health Bill
There are concerns that ‘once in a generation’ Mental Health Act reforms do not go far enough in protecting patient rights. To what extent should tribunals and the courts be handed more powers?