Former head of public prosecutions barred from dealing with CPS and SFO over conflict fears March 10, 2019 The UK’s former director of public prosecutions (DPP) has been barred from contact with agencies such as the Serious Fraud Offices for two years over conflict of interest fears. Alison Saunders, who stepped down as DPP last year to join law firm Linklaters, is not allowed to deal with the Crown Prosecution Services (CPS) or [...]
Magic Circle law firms launch gig economy-style offerings in uncertain legal market March 10, 2019 The UK’s leading law firms are betting on the gig economy to boost their growth with Linklaters and Clifford Chance joining Allen & Overy in setting up networks of self-employed lawyers to provide to clients on a flexible basis. Linklaters is understood to be developing a scheme to take advantage of its alumni network with [...]
HMRC launches first investigations using new corporate money laundering powers March 10, 2019 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has launched its first criminal investigations under a new money laundering offence, freedom of information requests reveal. The tax authority is investigating a handful of cases under the corporate criminal offence of failure to prevent the facilitation of UK tax evasion which was introduced in the Criminal Finances Act 2017 [...]
New Deloitte legal boss says the Big Four firm can become a ‘significant player’ in the £26bn UK market March 10, 2019 The new head of Deloitte’s legal arm says he wants the Big Four firm to become a “significant player” in the UK’s £26bn legal market. Michael Castle, who joined Deloitte last month from Allen & Overy to lead its new UK legal venture, told City A.M. that the firm is poised to “transform the legal landscape”. [...]
Diversity inside law firms is shifting from exceptional to expected March 8, 2019 Large corporate law firms are commonly perceived as conservative, exclusive clubs which only hire more of the same to maintain the monoculture. However, thankfully times change, and over the course of a generation the clubby institution of the large law firm is transforming to an extent which would have been unthinkable a few decades ago. [...]
A market cap is the quickest way to inject some competition into audit March 7, 2019 As you read this, the Kingman review, the Competition and Markets Authority review, the Brydon review, and the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee are all scrutinising the audit profession following a series of high-profile scandals. Failures such as Carillion, BHS, and Patisserie Valerie present very different problems, but each case rightly led to [...]
DEBATE: Are cuts to police numbers the main factor behind the rise in London knife crime? March 6, 2019 Are cuts to police numbers the main factor behind the rise in London knife crime? Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, says YES. There is most definitely a correlation between rising crime and falling police numbers – to say otherwise is absurd. In 2010, there were 143,734 police officers in England and Wales. There [...]
Corporate insolvencies boost puts Begbies Traynor on track to meet expectations March 5, 2019 Corporate insolvencies rose by ten per cent in 2018, consultancy firm Begbies Traynor said in a trading update this morning, as it reported it was on track to meet full-year expectations. The restructuring firm announced it had seen a “good flow” of insolvency appointments in the three months to the end of January this year, [...]
PwC back with a vengeance at top of audit client rankings March 3, 2019 Accountancy giant PwC has become the leading auditor of listed UK clients for the first time since 2013, retaking its FTSE 100 client crown in the process. PwC, Britain’s biggest professional services firm by revenues, leapfrogged fourth-placed KPMG to take pole position. The smaller firm lost 12 clients between November last year and February, while [...]
Accountant pleads guilty to stealing £280,000 from pension scheme he administered February 27, 2019 An accountant who acted as an administrator and a trustee to pension schemes has admitted to embezzling £280,000 from a pension fund he oversaw. Roger William Bessent, 66, took the money from Focusplay Retirement Benefit Scheme by converting the transfers into loans and making official minutes listing other trustees as present at meetings they did not attend. He [...]