Out-of-court settlement in Malaysia: KPMG coughs up $80m to end global 1MDB scandal January 13, 2022 KPMG has paid $80m to the Malaysian government, in the form of an out-of-court settlement, after Malaysia sued the Big Four firm over the 1MDB scandal, which saw billions stolen from Malaysia’s state-backed 1MDB investment fund. The 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal saw at least $4.5 bn channelled out of Malaysia’s 1MDB investment fund, by [...]
Demand for staff swelling: Frantic recruitment efforts as vacancies climb but job candidates dry up January 13, 2022 Demand for staff is growing across the country amid a continued fall in the number of candidates for jobs, new research suggests. Recruiters warned this morning they are placing record numbers of permanent and temporary workers into jobs as demand for staff continues to grow across the country. Meanwhile, the number of available job candidates [...]
Recruitment titan PageGroup hiked profit guidance after hiring spree January 12, 2022 Recruitment firm PageGroup upgraded its profit guidance for the fourth time in seven months as a hiring frenzy continues. Labour shortages in key markets have helped the group, which posted a gross profit of £246.8m for the three months to December, rising from a £166m gross profit in the same period last year. The firm [...]
Exclusive: Professional services partnerships start to come forward to HMRC over wrongly claimed furlough cash January 12, 2022 Professional services partnerships have begun to come forward over wrongly claimed coronavirus support, according to new data shared exclusively with City A.M. today. Around 25 professional services partnerships have admitted to overclaiming furlough with the amount totalling £309,588, averaging £12,384 per firm, law firm Pinsent Masons found. The numbers are likely to increase further as [...]
Carillion hearing: KPMG partner says he was let down by junior colleagues January 12, 2022 A former KPMG partner, who signed off an audit giving debt-laden Carillion a clean bill of health, blamed junior staff at an FRC hearing.
Met Police sued over refusal to investigate Downing Street Christmas party allegations January 11, 2022 The Metropolitan Police has been sued by a legal charity over its failure to investigate Downing Street Christmas party allegations. The Good Law Project has issued formal legal proceedings against Britain’s largest police force after pleading with the Met to take action in December. The not-for-profit sent a letter to the Met before Christmas, asking [...]
Katten hikes London associate pay as competition for City law firms soar January 10, 2022 Law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman has raised its pay for London associates by some £10,000 for each experience level today, as the competition for applicants soars in London. The new salary pay-grades, which also accompany potentially lofty bonus’, will see junior lawyers on a £108,000 annual salary. Associates with one year post-qualified experience (PQE) will have [...]
Shipping services provider Clarksons forecasts profit above £69m January 7, 2022 Shipping services provider Clarksons has said underlying profit before tax for 2021 is now expected to hit at least £69m. The London-based firm, which provides integrated services and investment banking capabilities to shipping markets, said December trading was stronger than anticipated. Clarksons said areas to surpass expectations included its broking division, where the sale and [...]
Mischon de Reya hit with record fine after breaching money laundering rules January 6, 2022 Top City law firm Mishcon de Reya has been slapped with a record £232,500 fine, plus costs, after major breaches of money laundering rules. The prestigious firm has agreed to pay a £232,500 fine, in addition to £50,000 towards investigation costs, after a probe from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The regulator concluded that certain [...]
European courts dismiss human rights appeal over long-running ‘gay cake’ dispute January 6, 2022 The European Court of Human Rights dismissed a challenge against the long-running "gay cake" case this morning, stating that the claimant had "failed to exhaust domestic remedies" available to him in the UK legal system.