Acting for both sides “may become the norm” in divorce work – Legal Futures

‘A future where lawyers act for both sides of divorces as a matter of course and others exit regulation to offer a new kind of service has been sketched out by Resolution.’

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Legal Futures, 23rd November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Law firm ordered to pay £1,000 for employee’s “racist” comment – Legal Futures

‘A law firm employee has been awarded damages of £1,000 after a colleague targeted him with a discriminatory comment based on his Pakistani heritage.

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Legal Futures, 22nd November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Consultant solicitor was not an employee, rules employment tribunal – Law Society’s Gazette

‘A former consultant with a Midlands firm has failed to convince a tribunal that he was an employee for the purposes of making a claim.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 18th November 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Inability to find criminal lawyers ‘chickens coming home to roost’ – LCJ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 19th, 2021 in barristers, coronavirus, courts, criminal justice, law firms, legal aid, news, solicitors by sally

‘The inability to find barristers to represent criminal defendants is an example of “chickens coming home to roost”, the lord chief justice has said.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 18th November 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

CA: Lawyers can be cross-examined in wasted costs applications – Legal Futures

Posted November 12th, 2021 in appeals, costs, cross-examination, law firms, news, solicitors, wasted costs orders by sally

‘Judges have the power to direct cross-examination of a lawyer against whom a wasted costs order is sought, but it should be “very much the exception”, the Court of Appeal said yesterday.’

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Legal Futures, 12th November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Solicitor sacked over order to move offices wins tribunal claim – Legal Futures

‘A solicitor has won her claim for wrongful dismissal after being sacked by a law firm for pushing back against a direction to relocate with immediate effect to another office.’

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Legal Futures, 9th November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Solicitor struck off for misleading client about settlement – Legal Futures

“An experienced solicitor who worked at Slater & Gordon has been struck off after telling a personal injury client that her case was ongoing when it had actually settled and using some of the money to pay other clients damages they were not entitled to.”

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Legal Futures, 4th November 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

The (Rebuttable) Presumption of Honesty – Hailsham Chambers

Posted November 2nd, 2021 in causation, fiduciary duty, loss of chance, negligence, news, set-off, solicitors by sally

‘The claim related to an opportunity to develop a Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) dealership in Wolverhampton (the Wolverhampton Opportunity), which the claimants alleged was lost due to the negligence of the defendant solicitors.’

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Hailsham Chambers, 8th October 2021

Source: www.hailshamchambers.com

Lawyers the only winners in “nihilistic” divorce dispute, says judge – Legal Futures

Posted October 29th, 2021 in costs, divorce, families, fees, judges, news, solicitors by sally

‘The lawyers are the only beneficiaries of a “nihilistic” divorce dispute that has cost £2.3m in legal fees, with the couple’s children the main losers, a High Court judge has ruled.’

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Legal Futures, 29th October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

HMP Leeds death could have been prevented by information sharing – BBC News

‘A prisoner may not have died if information was passed on about his suicidal thoughts, a coroner has said.’

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BBC News, 24th October 2021

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

SRA needs “radical rethink” to change disproportionate focus on BAME solicitors – Legal Futures

‘The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) needs to rethink its approach radically to tackle the “grimly entrenched” problem of ethnic minority solicitors being over-represented in its enforcement work, it is argued today.’

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Legal Futures, 21st October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Legal regulators slammed for “lacking expertise” on comparison data – Legal Futures

‘Lawyer data already in the public domain cannot easily be adapted to help consumers choose a lawyer, mainly due to failings by legal regulators, according to research.’

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Legal Futures, 18th October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

High Court rejects appeal from sham marriages solicitor – Legal Futures

Posted October 12th, 2021 in appeals, disciplinary procedures, marriage, news, sham transactions, solicitors by sally

‘The High Court has rejected an appeal from a solicitor struck off twice by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) after being recorded by an undercover TV reporter giving advice on what he knew was a sham marriage.’

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Legal Futures, 12th October 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Court lets late solicitors off hook – but don’t expect more ‘indulgence’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 8th, 2021 in civil procedure rules, documents, news, service, solicitors, time limits by sally

‘ The High Court has shown a rare act of mercy to lawyers who filed documents late without checking to see if their opponents would accept email service. In Citysprint UK Ltd v Barts Health NHS Trust Mr Justice Fraser stressed that the particular circumstances were unusual and that his ruling should not be interpreted as the court being “indulgent” to failures of compliance.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 7th October 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

New Guidelines for Lawyers Practising within the Coroners’ Court – Inquests and Inquiries Law Blog

‘New guidelines for legal professionals practising within the Coroners’ Courts have been published by the Bar Standards Board, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and CILEx Regulation. The new guidelines were introduced in response to concerns, particularly about the adversarial approach adopted by some lawyers. The key takeaways are summarised below.’

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Inquests and Inquiries Law Blog, 20th September 2021

Source: inquestsandinquirieslawblog.com

Tribunal fines solicitor convicted of dangerous driving – Legal Futures

‘A solicitor who received a suspended prison sentence for dangerous driving after hitting a telegraph pole as well as multiple parked cars has been fined by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT).’

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Legal Futures, 21st September 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

NDAs “cannot be controlled by professional regulators” – Legal Futures

‘The use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) cannot be effectively controlled by professional regulators like the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and legislation is needed, a law professor and campaigner for tougher restrictions has said.’

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Legal Futures, 15th September 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

‘Scandalous’ SRA delays in investigation of disciplinary cases – Law Society’s Gazette

‘A renowned authority on regulating solicitors has today condemned “scandalous” delays in the investigation of disciplinary cases by the SRA. Greg Treverton-Jones QC, long-time co-author of The Solicitor’s Handbook, says solicitors can wait years for their cases to conclude, even where they are exonerated or only suffer a rebuke. In the meantime, they face the “appalling ordeal” of placing their professional lives on hold and in some cases can find themselves unemployable.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 13th September 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Post Office scandal inquiry urged to put more focus on the lawyers – Legal Futures

‘The inquiry into the Post Office Horizon scandal has been urged to put more focus on the role of lawyers in perpetuating the organisation’s intransigence over the IT system’s problems.’

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Legal Futures, 10th September 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

First Tier Tribunal wrongly struck out landlord penalty appeal after solicitor failed to pay hearing fee, Upper Tribunal rules – Local Government Lawyer

‘A private landlord will have her appeal of a £7,000 penalty for failure to license a house in multiple occupation (HMO) decided by a different judge after it was initially refused by the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) because her solicitor failed to pay the hearing fee on time, the Upper Tribunal has ruled.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 7th September 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk