Barristers’ watchdog seeks to bolster staff following surge in social media-related misconduct December 7, 2022 The barristers’ regulator is seeking to bolster its enforcement teams to deal with a surge in misconduct cases involving social media. The Bar Standards Board (BSB) is aiming to recruit a “small number” of new staff to work on its 18 strong enforcement team following an uptick in complaints against barristers, a BSB spokesperson told [...]
Shares in RBG plummet following trading update December 6, 2022 Shares in RBG Holdings recovered slightly today after plummeting on Monday following news it has taken a £4m hit to its balance sheet. In a trading update, the London listed professional services firm told investors it’s litigation funding subsidiary LionFish has lost two legal cases over the previous year RBG said LionFish will take a [...]
Phoenix Group on track to meet financial goals after weathering economic storm December 6, 2022 London insurer Phoenix Group today said it is on track to generate £1.3bn- £1.4bn worth of cash this year due in part to it avoiding the UK’s LDI crisis. The insurer said its “comprehensive” hedging strategy had insulated it from the current downturn as Phoenix noted it does not participate in the Liability Driven Investment [...]
Clifford Chance elects new chief to replace incumbent after just one term December 6, 2022 Partners at Clifford Chance today elected capital markets chief Adrian Cartwright as the law firm’s new top-ranking partner, in overthrowing the firm’s current chief after just one term. Clifford Chance’s global head of capital markets, Adrian Cartwright, won a three-way election to take over leadership of the Magic Circle firm. Cartwright will succeed ESG [...]
Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal chief steps down following office lease fiasco December 5, 2022 The head of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) has stepped down from her position following news the tribunal is being forced to exit its offices. SDT chief executive Geraldine Newbold’s exit follows news solicitors will be forced to pay an extra £1.2m towards the tribunal’s new premises after its landlord decided to sell the building [...]
UK’s new flexible working laws still give employers right to reject requests, employment lawyers say December 5, 2022 New rules aimed at boosting uptake of flexible working arrangements still give employers’ significant discretion to reject those requests, lawyers have told City A.M. New laws aimed at increasing flexibility in the workplace, by giving low paid workers the legal right to ask for a more flexible arrangement and letting all staff ask for flexible [...]
Glencore to pay £147m over Democratic Republic of Congo corruption claims December 5, 2022 Glencore has agreed to pay $180m (£147m) to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to settle “all present and future” lawsuits arising from the large-scale international bribery scandal currently facing the firm. In a statement, Glencore said the $180m deal acts to settle any existing or future claims relating to the corruption allegations surrounding [...]
Legal sector talent war drives boom in London office market December 5, 2022 Britain’s top law firms are driving a surge in demand for City office buildings in their efforts to win over talent and meet their ESG goals. Law firms have taken up a record 1.5m square foot of office space in 2022, following a series of big deals involving Britain’s top firms, data from Knight Frank [...]
Tax Tribunal backlog soars following HMRC crackdown on fraudulent umbrella companies December 4, 2022 The backlog of cases waiting to be heard in the UK’s tax tribunal has surged following an HMRC crackdown on fraudulent “umbrella companies”. The number of cases waiting to be heard in the First-Tier Tax Tribunal has increased 84 per cent over the previous year to heights of 46,000, according to UK government figures. The [...]
PwC seeks to bolster top ranks by poaching partners from Big Four rivals December 4, 2022 PwC is seeking to bolster its top ranks by poaching partners from its Big Four rivals. The accounting firm is hoping to hire up to 500 new partners with expertise in tax, cloud services, financial crime, and ESG advice, the Financial Times first reported. In doing so, PwC is seeking to take advantage of discontent [...]