Mediation should be first port of call for small claims disputes, CJC says February 1, 2022 Small claims disputes worth less than £500 should be kept out of court and dealt with through mediation, the UK government’s Civil Justice Council (CJC) has said. In a report, the CJC said claimants should be forced to go to a mediation appointment if their claims are for less than £500. County courts are currently [...]
Pupil barrister numbers rebound to pre-pandemic levels February 1, 2022 The number of people training to be barristers has bounced back to pre-lockdown levels, following a lull last year due to the pandemic. New figures from the Bar Standards Board (BSB) show that there are 511 people currently undertaking pupillages, compared the 354 people last year. The 44 per cent increase has seen the number [...]
Managers who see themselves as professionals may in fact be more corruptible, study says February 1, 2022 Managers who see themselves as embodying professional values may in fact be more susceptible to corruption and more likely to partake in unethical behaviour, according to a new study, which says that those who view themselves as professionals may be less likely to critically scrutinize their own decisions. The study, from Professor Sunita Sah of [...]
Diversity at the Bar is ‘gradually improving but more progress is needed’ February 1, 2022 The Bar Standards Board has said that the criminal bar has become more diverse but said that more progress is needed, after new figures showed that the bar is not representative of the wider UK population. Over the past year, the bar has gotten more diverse, according to the BSB figures, which show there are [...]
KPMG dishes out record pay to partners and £100m bonuses to staff February 1, 2022 Partners at KPMG have voted to invest £300m into a “once-in-a-generation” transformation of KPMG’s business, after handing out £100m in bonuses on the back of a “resilient” performance last year. The professional services firm said it would be handing out £100m in bonuses to its 14,700 staff, as it said KPMG partners were handed their [...]
Rishi Sunak urged to allow National Crime Agency to probe ‘astronomical levels’ of Covid loan fraud February 1, 2022 Chancellor Rishi Sunak should allow the National Crime Agency (NCA) to investigate “astronomical levels of fraud” that was allegedly committed during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Labour party. The party will use an opposition day debate in the Commons later today to attempt to get Government backing for an investigation after it was revealed [...]
Judge seeks Prince Andrew ex-assistant’s testimony in US case February 1, 2022 Prince Andrew’s former assistant may reportedly give a sworn statement about his relationship with late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein in his upcoming sexual assault case in the US. Judge Lewis A Kaplan for the New York trial has asked London’s High Court to assist with the request for former aide Robert Olney’s testimony regarding the Duke [...]
Rio Tinto: Workplace review reveals bullying, sexual harassment and racism February 1, 2022 Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto has published a damning external review of its workplace culture suggesting widespread issues at the company.
Millions moved via shell companies: Laundered fortune linked to chair of UK-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Committee forfeited January 31, 2022 Millions of pounds derived from the Azerbaijan laundromat – a sophisticated international money laundering scheme – have been seized following a National Crime Agency investigation into money held in bank accounts linked to an Azeri politician, the NCA said this morning. Financial investigators secured a Forfeiture Order for £5.6m in UK bank accounts belonging to [...]
US law firms return to the office blocked by Omicron variant January 31, 2022 Law firms’ plans to return to offices have been scuppered by the spread of the omicron variant in the US. Several US law firms have postponed plans to return to offices until February, having originally planned for a January return. The delays come as the highly-infectious omicron variant continues to spread through the US, despite [...]