Mining giant BHP fails in bid to throw record £5bn collapsed dam lawsuit out of court July 8, 2022 The UK’s Court of Appeals has said a £5bn claim against mining giant BHP over the 2015 collapse of the Fundao dam in Brazil should proceed in England’s courts. The claim, brought forward by more than 200,000 Brazilian citizens, hundreds of businesses, and 25 local municipalities, comes after the BHP and its joint-venture partner Vale’s [...]
Theranos president Sunny Balwani convicted on 12 counts for role at collapsed health tech firm July 8, 2022 The former president of Theranos has been convicted on all 12 counts brought against him over his role at the now discredited health technology firm. Sunny Balwani’s conviction marks the end of years of legal troubles for the exec after Theranos collapsed in 2016. Following a 13-week long trial, the 57-year year executive was convicted [...]
CMS hikes pay for newly qualified lawyers to £100,000 a year July 8, 2022 CMS has upped pay for its newly-qualified (NQ) lawyers for second time in a year, after raising their salaries to sums of £100,000 a year. The £5,000 pay rise for CMS’ freshly trained lawyers comes just a few months after the firm upped pay for its NQs to £95,000 a year in December 2021, according [...]
Lloyd’s to stay in iconic headquarters until at least 2031 July 8, 2022 Lloyd’s of London is set to stay in its iconic City of London headquarters until at least 2031, according to new reports that quell rumours the insurer had been planning to leave its purpose-built tower in 2026. There is now “zero chance” the insurer will trigger the lease break clause in its contract with its [...]
UK hiring boom slows as labour shortages and economic uncertainty scupper recruitment efforts July 8, 2022 The UK’s hiring boom is showing signs of coming to an end, according to new research from KPMG, which show the number new hires grew at its slowest rate in 16-months due to a lack of candidates and wider economic uncertainty. The fast-paced growth in the number of new hires has dropped off significantly [...]
Russian oligarch backed fund LetterOne files lawsuit against private equity firm that cut ties following war in Ukraine July 7, 2022 The Luxembourg headquartered investment fund founded by sanctioned Russian oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven has filed a lawsuit against the London private equity firm that manages $5bn (£4.2bn) of it’s money. Multi-billion-dollar investor LetterOne is taking legal action against Pamplona Capital Management, in calling on the private equity firm to open its books, after [...]
Black cab drivers file legal challenge against ride-hailing app over claims business model is illegal July 7, 2022 A black cab drivers trade body has filed a legal challenge against ride-hailing app Free Now, over claims the taxi firm’s business model is illegal. The hackney carriage driver’s trade body, United Trade Action Group (UTAG), is seeking to argue that ride-hailing apps that lets customers hail private hire taxis are acting illegally. The body [...]
PwC partners set to receive record payouts of more than £1m this year July 7, 2022 Partners at PwC are set to earn more than £1m each for the first time ever this year, after an “exceptional” trading period boosted the accountancy firm’s profits. The accounting firm has told partners that their £920,000 profit-per-partner pay packages will be bolstered by £100,000 windfalls from the sale of PwC’s global mobility services business, [...]
Striking barristers should accept government’s ‘generous offer,’ justice minister says July 6, 2022 Justice secretary James Cartlidge has called on striking barristers to “reconsider” their actions, after claiming the government’s current legal aid offer is “generous” enough. Speaking in the House of Commons, Cartlidge accused “those engaged in action” of “threatening to increase waiting times” as he doubled down on existing plans to hike legal aid fees by [...]
Whitehall spending on City law firm advice increases to more than £700,000 a week July 6, 2022 The UK government spent more than £700,000 a week on advice from City law firms last year, according to new figures which show Whitehall’s legal fee budget increased by a fifth compared to the previous year. The government spent more than £36.5m on advice from major law firms in 2021-22, in paying out weekly sums [...]