All News articles – Page 1321
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News
Qualified success
This profession has been squeezed to bursting point through government and consumer pressure. The new legal brands promise the world for half the price of ‘conventional’ firms, but how realistic is that? Efficiency through IT and management processes may allow legal services to be provided more cheaply, but the biggest ...
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String theory
Could you tell the difference between a world-famous nightclub mogul and a West Kensington criminal defence solicitor? It seems that, for some, this is a challenge. Obiter had the pleasure of meeting Peter Stringfellow, principal at Stringfellow & Co, to discuss the likely impact of the government’s plans for price-competitive ...
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Cyber threat warning to UK’s top 100
The security services have advised the UK’s largest law firms to take urgent action against cyber attacks, the Gazette can reveal. Partners from 40 top firms attended a private briefing last month with officials from the government’s Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure and ...
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No ABSs in Scotland until ‘end of 2013’
Alternative business structures will not be introduced in Scotland until the end of the year at the earliest. The Scottish government wants more time to review the Law Society of Scotland’s application to be an approved regulator. The Society – the only ...
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Law firm ABS ventures for insurer Admiral
Insurance giant Admiral Group has confirmed two joint ventures with law firms. The UK motor insurance giant has joined with national firm Lyons Davidson and Cardiff firm Cordner Lewis to create Admiral Law and BDE Law. The insurer confirmed in a ...
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Ealing process begins after cuts
A not-for-profit law centre in London opened last week, the day after wide-ranging civil legal aid cuts came into force. Ealing Law Centre will provide specialist housing and immigration support. A small group of volunteers (pictured) has built up the centre since October 2011 with ...
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Lord Sugar’s court victory cue for campaign against employment laws
Business leader Lord Sugar has vowed to fight in the House of Lords against a ‘new wave of claim culture’ after seeing off a claim from a former winner of The Apprentice. Stella English lost her claim for constructive dismissal after a tribunal rejected her argument ...
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Age diversity
I was very interested to see the report on the roundtable discussion on diversity (see 18 March), and disappointed in equal measure – although not particularly surprised – to see no mention of age diversity. When I was at law school, there was a student social ...
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Legal aid: exceptional circumstances
The legal framework From 1 April, the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) overhauled the statutory framework for legal aid in England and Wales. The areas of law that remain ...
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Legal aid ‘deserts’ warning
There could be job losses for close to a third of legal aid lawyers and advisers as firms close or cut services, creating ‘advice deserts’ across the country in the wake of the legal aid cuts, according to a report published today. According to an online ...
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Criminal legal aid: what now?
The government’s latest consultation paper on legal aid makes grim reading for any solicitor who undertakes criminal defence work and, indeed, for many providers of other legally aided work. The headlines have majored on the Daily Mail-pleasing stories of taking much prison work out ...
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Family law scheme aims to limit conflict
Family lawyers have set up a scheme to help separating parents who do not qualify for legal aid to work together to minimise conflict and put their children first after the breakdown of their relationship. Resolution has been given more than £650,000 by the Department for ...
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Army law: uniform instructions
Some press reports estimate that up to one in four of the army’s lawyers face being cut. And the overall picture for the army is one of drastically reduced headcount – the Ministry of Defence’s Future Force 2020 plans will see the army cut 20,000 regular soldiers by 2020, with ...
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Solicitor gets Met Police damages over assault
A criminal solicitor has received ‘substantial damages’ from the Metropolitan Police after settling a claim that she was assaulted in an East London police station as she sought to represent her 13-year-old client. Catriona Sheehan, a solicitor with 20 years’ experience, started a civil action ...
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CoA backs Law Society on disbursement liability
Solicitors who help their clients by funding the cost of disbursements should not be liable for costs if a case fails, the Court of Appeal has ruled. The ruling came after an intervention by the Law Society in the case of Flatman v Germany published today ...
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Barrister loses DIY tax scheme case
A former London tax barrister who designed his own tax avoidance scheme has lost his tribunal appeal against HM Revenue & Customs. He was attempting to avoid paying £190,000 in tax. Rex Bretten QC designed a complex scheme which entailed setting up trusts and investing £500,000 ...
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Expert witness ruling a blow to children, Society warns
Children involved in family law cases will face extra uncertainty following a High Court ruling on the funding of expert witnesses, the Law Society has warned. The Society reacted with disappointment to the ruling that the Legal Aid Agency, formerly the Legal Services Commission (LSC), is ...
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Osborne Clarke ups law school rivalry with BPP switch
South-west firm Osborne Clarke has taken the unusual step of announcing that it is moving the training of its future lawyers from the University of Law (formerly the College of Law) to BPP from autumn 2013. The announcement will add to the considerable rivalry between the ...
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Wales broaches support plan
The Welsh government is in talks with the Law Society about providing taxpayers’ money to support new and existing law firms in the country, the Gazette can reveal. Meetings were held last week with a view to the government offering help to domestic firms in ...
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Take on the Winslow case
In Terence Rattigan’s play The Winslow Boy, the most famous barrister of the day is engaged to clear the name of 14-year old Ronnie Winslow, accused of the theft of a five-shilling postal order. The stain on young Winslow’s character is lifted – but at some cost to his family. ...