Law Society President predicts solicitor...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 26th, 2012 | Comments Off
26 January 2012 Law Society President John Wotton has predicted that barristers and solicitors will, in the future, increasingly work together in the same practices. In a speech entitled “Fission or Fusion; Independence or Constraint?” which he delivered yesterday at Said Business School,...
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Law firms could face claims for overpaid...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 23rd, 2012 | Comments Off
23 January 2012 Following the recent decision in three cases brought by the Legal Services Commission (LSC) for the recovery of over payments, it looks as if more legal aid solicitors will find themselves on the receiving end of an application for recovery. The three cases – LSC v Loomba, LSC v...
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The risks of outsourcing...
Posted by admin in Outsourcing on 01 18th, 2012 | Comments Off
Managing the regulatory risks of outsourcing They, whoever they are, are constantly telling us that as a profession, lawyers must all start to embrace new business models and practices if we are to survive the ABS revolution. They, whoever they are, are probably right. However, and it is an important...
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Cloud computing guidance...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 18th, 2012 | Comments Off
18 January 2012 Guidance on the use of cloud computing has been issued this week by the Law Society of Scotland. Whilst the availability of such technology has proved to be very popular with businesses including law firms, allowing them to reduce costs and increase flexibility, nevertheless there are...
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Bar Council and Bar Standards Board Publ...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 18th, 2012 | Comments Off
18 January 2012 The Bar Council and the Bar Standards Board (BSB) have today published the first full edition of “Bar Barometer”, an annual report produced by the Research Department setting out statistical trends within the Bar. Intended to help the Bar Council and BSB to develop and implement...
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SRA issues PPI responsibilities reminder...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 18th, 2012 | Comments Off
18 January 2012 The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is reminding solicitors of their responsibilities when canvassing for clients that want help with claiming for mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI). The High Court has ordered all those banks guilty of mis-selling PPI to pay back up to...
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SRA to consult on minumum salary for tra...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 12th, 2012 | Comments Off
12 January 2012 After 30 years of operating a minimum salary for trainees, the SRA has decided that there is no longer any clear evidence that setting a minimum salary fulfills any of the regulatory objectives within the Legal Services Act or encourages freedom of access to the profession. With this...
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SRA Accepts First ABS Applications...
Posted by admin in Blog on 01 12th, 2012 | No Comments
The Solicitors Regulation Authority started accepting applications for authorisation from Alternative Business Structures on 3 January – the first working day of the new year. It was reported in the a Solicitors Journal interview with Ann Morgan, head of the ABS Team at the SRA, that within days of...
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Ministry of Justice launches triennial r...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 11th, 2012 | Comments Off
11 January 2012 Part of the Government’s response to the Public Administration Select Committee report ‘Smaller Government: Shrinking the Quango state’ was a commitment to a triennial review of non-departmental public bodies (NDPB). As part of this process the Ministry of Justice has decided to...
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Otterburn survey – continuing merg...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 11th, 2012 | Comments Off
11 January 2012 A survey undertaken by Andrew Otterburn, in association with the Law Society Gazette, has revealed that there continues to be strong merger activity within the legal sector. The survey revealed that 86% of those firms surveyed had considered the possibility of a merger in the last six...
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Law Society urges social networking caut...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 9th, 2012 | Comments Off
09 January 2012 The Law Society is warning solicitors to be cautious about adding a client on sites such as Facebook for fear of merging professional and personal lives leading to a breach of client confidentiality. To assist practitioners and practices in using social media, the Law Society has issued...
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Law Society and SRA move to Birmingham...
Posted by admin in News Items on 01 4th, 2012 | Comments Off
4 January 2012 The Solicitors Regulation Authority has today confirmed that it will be moving to the Cube building in Birmingham city centre in summer of this year. 700 SRA and Law Society staff who currently work in three offices based across two sites in Redditch and Leamington Spa will move to the...
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