All News articles – Page 1718
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News
‘PC fee increase not attributable to Chancery Lane’
by Des Hudson, chief executive of the Law Society Last week Council reluctantly recommended an increase to the practising certificate fee for 2009/10 to £1,180 to fund the work of the SRA, LCS, Law Society, SDT, Legal Services Board and Office for Legal Complaints.
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Sentencing policy attacked by MPs for being incoherent and inconsistent
MPs have branded current sentencing policy incoherent and inconsistent, and warned that it risks being driven by a misguided view of what the public want. In a report on parliamentary scrutiny of sentencing guidelines published today, the justice committee says the five aims of sentencing set ...
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Criminal law: self-defence, diminished responsibility, et alia
The law on self-defence has been ‘clarified’ (section 76(9)) but not amended or consolidated by section 76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, which came into force in July last year.
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Linklaters pushes ahead with revenues increase
Magic circle firm Linklaters today reported a slight increase in revenues to £1.30bn, placing it ahead of fellow magic circle firms Clifford Chance and Freshfields. Linklaters profits per equity partner (PEP) stood at £1.30m for the year to 30 April 2009, a fall of 9.6% on ...
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Prejudice against solicitor-advocates is a ‘fact of life’, says solicitor QC
Prejudice from the bar and bench against solicitor higher court advocates (HCAs) is ‘a fact of life’, the first female solicitor QC has alleged. June Venters, who was made a QC in 2007, told the Gazette that as a solicitor HCA she has experienced hostility and ...
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Offshore firms stay afloat while governments target tax havens
In the normal course of events, law firms would be falling over themselves to have their headquarters name-checked by the leader of the free world. But not offshore giant Maples and Calder. Its offices at Ugland House on the Cayman Islands were singled out by Barack Obama on his campaign ...
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Solicitors take advantage of LDP rules while the bar still lags behind
Three months after Legal Services Act 2007 reforms took effect, solicitors have gained the ‘upper hand’ over the bar, with 61 firms becoming legal disciplinary practices (LDPs). While the number of solicitors’ firms becoming approved LDPs has doubled in the past month, barristers remain unable to ...
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The LSC must address the scandal of experts pocketing exorbitant fees
It was interesting to read Carolyn Regan on the subject of achieving the best value for taxpayers’ money as far as the Legal Services Commission is concerned (see [2009] Gazette, 18 June, 13). It is depressing that this argument only ever seems to apply to the fees of high-street solicitors ...
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Diversity seminar backs joint action on judicial appointments
New measures to increase diversity in the judiciary have been jointly agreed by the Law Society, Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) and Bar Council. Key new initiatives include a Law Society mentoring programme to support solicitors applying for judicial office, and an extension of the Bar Council’s ...
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Taylor Wessing hit by 14% profits fall
City firm Taylor Wessing today reported global profits down by almost 14% despite a small rise in turnover, with its UK business hit hard by the economic downturn. The firm estimated that profitability in the UK was down 30% on 2007/08, with UK turnover falling by ...
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News
Crown Prosecution Service saves £11.5m by using in-house advocates
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) saved £11.5m last year by using in-house advocates in the Crown court instead of instructing external counsel, its chief said last week. Keir Starmer QC, director of public prosecutions, also announced that Crown prosecutors across England and Wales are to undergo ...
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News
Ashurst partner pay falls below £1m
Partner pay at City firm Ashurst has plunged below the £1m mark, after the firm today reported a 35% fall in profits. Profits per equity partner fell from £1.04m in 2007/08 to £673,000 in the year to 30 April 2009. Revenues fell 7%, from £323m to ...
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News
SRA takes on new powers to issue £2,000 fine for low-level misconduct
Solicitors could face a fine of up to £2,000 and a published rebuke for low-level professional misconduct under new rules which will come into force in August. The Solicitors Regulation Authority has adopted powers to issue written rebukes and impose a fine where it considers there ...
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Are lawyers more like opticians or pharmacists?
We have read that Chris Kenny, chief executive of the Legal Services Board, thinks that the £20m it will take to set up the LSB is not a ‘real issue’ – presumably just small change. Well, I hope that he keeps a penny or two out of it to pay ...
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Are you getting a good reception?
Musing on Rupert White’s recent blog about the legal lunch hour, I couldn’t help wondering about the number of examples of poor reception (on the phone or in person) that I have come across among law firms. Or is it simply that no one really manages the reception experience?
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News
Society proposes conveyancing shake-up
A chain matrix-style online portal and an updated conveyancing protocol are among measures outlined in a Law Society consultation published today to improve the home-buying and selling process. The electronic conveyancing portal will enable parties to track the progress of their transaction. Unlike the scheme trialled ...
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MoJ to crack down on contingency fees
The government is seeking a new power to regulate contingency fees – which is likely to include a percentage cap - in a bill tabled today. A new clause in the Coroners and Justice Bill introduced into the House of Lords today will provide the statutory ...
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Clifford Chance posts sharp drop in profits
Magic circle firm Clifford Chance today reported a sharp fall in profit per equity partner (PEP) on top of declining revenues. PEP for the year to 30 April 2009 was down 37% on 2007/08, falling from £1.15m to £733,000. Revenues fell 5%, from £1.33bn in 2008 ...
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Society backs FSA move on high deposits
The Law Society has welcomed the Financial Services Authority’s proposal to provide extra protection for holders of temporary high deposit balances in the event of a failure of a UK bank. The current maximum deposit protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme is £50,000 per individual, ...