All News articles – Page 1250
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News
Guess the bank: a fun game for all the family
Obiter had been worried that litigators and expert witnesses weren’t having enough fun these days. Reassuring, then, to find that inventive playfulness is alive and kicking for those involved in the financial services litigation over allegedly mis-sold interest-rate hedging products. One attendee at last week’s Gazette roundtable confessed: ‘We have ...
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News
Law Society alternative legal aid proposals
The Law Society last week published alternative proposals to the government’s Transforming Legal Aid plan, saying they would retain client choice, provide certainty and facilitate greater market efficiency. On contracting, the Society proposes: Rolling three-year contracts, awarded subject to an increasingly rigorous quality and capacity framework (QCF). Contracts will ...
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News
Criminal bar chair backs Law Society’s stance on legal aid
The chairman of the Criminal Bar Association has called for unity in the profession and attempted to quell ‘disquiet’ over the Law Society’s decision to share with the Ministry of Justice its proposals for an alternative to price-competitive tendering (PCT). In his weekly online comment, Michael Turner QC said that ...
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Accountants challenged by Society over ‘flawed’ application
The Law Society has condemned the ‘seriously flawed’ application by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England & Wales (ICAEW) to become an approved licensing body for the grant of probate, it emerged last week. In a letter to Legal Services Board (LSB) chief executive Chris Kenny, the Society accuses ...
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News
Clifford Chance partners take 9% hit in ‘disappointing’ year
Profit per equity partner (PEP) dropped by 9% to £1m at Clifford Chance in 'disappointing' 2012-13 financial results for the magic circle firm. Profits fell 6% to £404m, on a turnover drop of 2% to £1.271bn, figures released today show. Managing partner at Clifford Chance David Childs said the results ...
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News
Modest profit increases at Linklaters and Freshfields
Linklaters and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer are the latest magic circle firms to post a modest increase in profits for 2012-13. Freshfields recorded an increase in profits of 2.4% to £548m. Turnover grew by 7.2% to £1.221bn. Profit per equity partner climbed 7.6% to £1.39m. ...
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Society calls for hold on fixed-fee extension
The Law Society today urged the government to delay the extension of the RTA Portal to new civil litigation areas – which will mean fixed fees for all claims worth up to £25,000 – warning that law firms may not be ready for the change. The ...
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News
Judges call for urgent overhaul to cope with surge of LIPs
The government and judicial office must overhaul training, advice to litigants and the nature of the court process itself to deal with thousands more litigants in person (LIPs), a judicial working group has concluded. In a report published today, the working group, made up of senior ...
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News
Quality mark to boost solicitor brand in wills market
The Law Society today announced the creation of an accreditation scheme for firms providing will-drafting, probate and estate administration services to enable solicitors to ‘stand head and shoulders’ above competing providers. Desmond Hudson, chief executive, told the Society’s private client conference that the Wills and ...
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News
Ashurst, Norton Rose Fulbright and Eversheds post results
Ashurst, Eversheds and Norton Rose Fulbright were the latest top-100 firms to post financial results for 2012-13 today. Profits at City firm Ashurst fell 6% to £105m, as market conditions in Europe and the weakening euro had a ‘marked impact’. Turnover at the firm was flat ...
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News
Criminal legal aid: united we stand
A week is a long time in politics. As regards legal aid, the last week has borne that out. In fact, every week since the Ministry of Justice published its Transforming Legal Aid consultation in April has been something of a roller-coaster ride. The campaign against ...
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News
Private equity firm hires planning team as ABS total hits 160
A law firm backed by James Caan’s private equity investment company has announced the appointment of a team of six town planners. Knights Solicitors, which secured an alternative business structure licence in January, will incorporate the new additions into its real estate team. ...
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News
Lord Young shuns meeting with profession’s regulator
Lord Young of Graffham turned down an offer to meet with the solicitors’ regulator in advance of his report on health and safety and the ‘compensation culture’, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has said. The SRA said it had ‘offered to engage’ with Young during the research ...
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News
LETR – jobs for the boys
Maybe I’m just a cynical old hack, but does anyone else think that the long-awaited, much-delayed final report of the Legal Education and Training Review (LETR) is focused more on safeguarding long-term jobs for the regulators than on improving the education and training of lawyers? Everywhere ...
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News
Society condemns ‘plain wrong’ criticism of legal aid stance
Amid growing anger among some criminal solicitors and a call for a special general meeting of the Law Society to vote on its proposed alternatives to the government’s legal aid reforms, the Law Society today hit back against claims that it has ‘sold out’ to the Ministry of Justice. ...
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News
Allen & Overy opens results season with 2.2% profit growth
Profits at Allen & Overy rose 2.2% to £496.7m on flat turnover last year, the firm revealed today in the first announcement of 2012-13 results from the magic circle. Revenue grew just 0.6% to £1.19bn, with profit per equity partner remaining £1.1m for the year ...
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Solicitors warned over RTA Portal registration
Solicitors have been warned they risk running out of time if they delay registering for the extended online claims portal. From 31 July employers’ and public liability claims will be brought into the RTA Portal with fixed fees for practitioners in those areas. ...
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News
City firm Rohrer closed by SRA
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has closed City firm Rohrer & Co following an intervention, citing ‘reason to suspect dishonesty’. The SRA said today that Rohrer, based in Finsbury Square, London, had failed to comply with the SRA Principles and Code of Conduct under the Administration of ...
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Public still sees lawyers as ‘arrogant’
Regulation of legal services is not working to promote public trust in the profession as lawyers continue to be perceived as accountable only to themselves, new research has suggested. Surveys carried out by the Legal Services Board found a perception that legal professionals are not answerable ...