All News articles – Page 1634
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News
Barristers could have right to sue solicitors for unpaid fees
Barristers would be able to sue solicitors for unpaid fees under proposals published by the Bar Council last week to put the relationship between the two professions on a more commercial footing. The consultation proposes the introduction of new legally binding contractual terms to govern the ...
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(Bad) dream team
Sick as a parrot Des. We was robbed! So wailed tearful money laundering supremo (sic) Omar ‘pimp my manager’ Choudhury (below right) coach of the Law Society Academicals, following Chancery Lane’s (close) season-opener against City slickers White & Case.
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Ass you like it
‘Quite frankly, I don’t have all that many clients who call me sweetie.’ That was solicitor Frank Presland’s explanation of why he accepted the job as Sir Elton John’s business manager. It’s a sentiment with which Obiter can sympathise. But then there is much in Ronald Irving’s anthology of legal ...
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Quinn Group considers selling insurance arm
Quinn Insurance, the Irish insurer currently in administration, looks destined to be sold following a statement from its parent company Quinn Group issued last week. Quinn Group said it had concluded that it ‘should consider selling Quinn Insurance’ in the interests of Quinn Insurance employees and ...
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Employment Appeal Tribunal: ‘Job applications must be genuine’
A litigant who brought age discrimination claims against 20 recruitment agencies has lost an appeal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) on the grounds that she had no genuine interest in the vacancies for which she had applied. The EAT said the judgment could serve as ...
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‘Gold-plating’ of anti-bribery legislation threatens competitiveness of UK business
by Jason Mansella barrister at 7 Bedford Row Chambers, London, specialising in white-collar crime and Financial Services Authority litigation No one would argue that before 2010 the UK’s anti-corruption legislation was not archaic and inadequate. Piecemeal attempts to make the old law fit for purpose through ...
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The bar has ambitious plans for capitalising on changes
The bar has been criticised for being slow to respond to the opportunities presented by the Legal Services Act. Indeed, some solicitors may have been lulled into a false sense of security by its apparent inertia. Barristers have never been greatly renowned for their managerial or ...
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APIL urges government to increase access to compensation
The next government must provide injured workers with enhanced access to compensation, the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) said as a government consultation, Accessing Compensation, closed today. APIL urged the incoming government to ensure that plans laid down by the Department for Work and Pensions ...
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Spike in mergers predicted in 2010
The year ahead is likely to see a spike in mergers and team hires among the top 100 law firms, with 20% looking to expand overseas, according to research published this week. Sweet & Maxwell’s annual survey of law firm finance directors reveals that 40% of ...
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FTSE-100 group attacks ECJ ruling on Akzo Nobel appeal
The group that represents in-house counsel at FTSE 100 companies has attacked a preliminary ruling of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on legal privilege rights for in-house lawyers as illogical and ‘flawed’. The GC100 said it was ‘very disappointed’ by advocate general Juliane Kokott’s opinion ...
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Why are councils and unions cross with a certain lawyer?
There is a long tradition of lawyers being unpopular. Take the jokes: What’s the difference between a catfish and a lawyer? One is a slimy, bottom-feeding, slippery creature and the other is just a fish. Or what’s the difference between a dead rat on the road and a dead lawyer? ...
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News
Spike in mergers predicted in 2010
The year ahead is likely to see a spike in mergers and team hires among the top 100 law firms, with 20% looking to expand overseas, according to research published this week. Sweet & Maxwell’s annual survey of law firm finance directors reveals that 40% of ...
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News
Reinstate income threshold for PC fee
I read with interest your Opinion column about whether there should be discounts on the PC fee for part-time workers and your request for readers' views (see [2010] Gazette, 29 April, 10).
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Solicitors to launch scheme to drive down PI referral costs
National law firm network QualitySolicitors is to launch a new personal injury scheme designed to target claimants from higher socio-economic groups and drive down the cost of referrals, the Gazette can reveal. QualitySolicitors Personal Injury (QSPI) is a members-only claims management-style company which will be launched ...
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Child care lawyers are qualified
I do not recognise the picture presented in your article entitled ‘Fears over child care lawyer shortage’ (see [2010] Gazette,15 April, 1).
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Law Society calls for greater protection of client money
Client money deposited in a bank account by a solicitor must receive better protection under European law in the event that the bank collapses, the Law Society has warned the European Commission. In a letter to the European commissioner for the internal market and services, Law ...
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Firms ‘bucking recessionary trend’, says survey
Law firms are ‘bucking the recessionary trend’ and proving particularly resilient to the current economic climate, research has suggested. Two in five law firms increased their turnover last year, according to a survey of 69 firms conducted by accountants BDO Stoy Hayward. ...
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Give a little whistle!
I am playing Jiminy Cricket this week, trying to keep you on the straight and narrow – in relation to views about the European Union: 'If you start to slide, give a little whistle! Give a little whistle!'
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Research shows fall in in-house salaries
In-house lawyers in the north-east have seen a drop in salaries over the past year, research has shown. A survey of 100 in-house lawyers by legal recruiters BCL Legal found that senior lawyers in Yorkshire and the north-east have seen salaries drop an average of £10,000 ...
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Children ‘at risk’ over expert witness fee cuts
Vulnerable children will pay the price if social workers are excluded from being expert family court witnesses, family practitioners have warned the government. Child care professionals met government representatives last week to educate them on the work done by independent social work experts (ISWs) and warn ...