UK launches innovative ‘problem-solving courts’ to tackle drug and alcohol related crime July 18, 2022 The UK’s Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has opened three “innovative” new courts specifically for those with substance abuse problems, as part of its £900m plan to tackle drug and alcohol related crime. The new “problem-solving courts” – in Liverpool, Teesside, and Birmingham – will provide services including rehabilitation services and housing support, in a bid [...]
PwC set for record revenues as global chief rejects plans for split July 18, 2022 The global head of PwC has said the accounting firm is set to post record revenues of around $50bn this year, after speaking out against plans to follow in the footsteps of EY by separating out PwC’s audit and advisory businesses. In an interview with the Financial Times, PwC global chairman Bob Moritz said the [...]
Exclusive: UK becomes Europe’s leading jurisdiction for class-action lawsuits July 12, 2022 The introduction of “opt-out” claims has seen the UK become the leading jurisdiction for European class action lawsuits, according to new figures from law firm CMS, which show that more than half (54 per cent) of all class action lawsuits filed in Europe over the past five years were filed in the UK. The UK [...]
First judges to new patent court appointed: How will Europe’s new one-stop shop for IP impact the UK? July 12, 2022 Europe’s new one-stop shop for IP enforcement – the Unified Patent Court – has taken a major step forward as 90 new judges began to be informed that their applications to sit on the court have been successful. The Administrative Committee of the Unified Patent Court received over 1,000 applications from judges across Europe. Of [...]
Lawyers should stop telling clients to pay ransoms to hackers, UK watchdogs say July 12, 2022 Lawyers should not advise their clients to pay out ransoms to hackers, the UK’s data protection watchdog and cybersecurity agency have warned. In a joint letter to the Law Society, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) called on lawyers to discourage their clients from paying ransomware requests, as they argued [...]
Baker McKenzie ups pay for new lawyers to £110,000 a year July 12, 2022 Baker McKenzie has given newly qualified (NQ) lawyers in its London offices £5,000 pay rises after upping their salaries to £110,000 a year. The Chicago headquartered law firm said its freshly trained lawyers will see their base pay surge to heights of £110,000 plus bonuses. The pay hikes mean Baker McKenzie’s trainees will now see [...]
Victims’ charity calls for ‘urgent’ investment to cut court backlog as barristers’ strike continues into third week July 11, 2022 A leading victims’ support charity has called on the government to take “urgent action” to cut the court backlog by upping investment in the criminal justice system – as criminal barristers prepared for their third week of strikes. Diana Fawcett, chief executive of Victim Support chief said “court delays and cancelled hearings” are having [...]
Weak British pound sees salaries paid out to Akin Gump’s new lawyers surge to £179,000 a year July 11, 2022 Newly qualified (NQ) lawyers at US law firm Akin Gump are set to see their salaries surge to new highs of £179,000 a year, after the firm amended the exchange rate it uses to calculate its London lawyers pay packages to reflect Britain’s weaker pound. The exchange rate switch up will effectively mean NQ lawyers [...]
Professional services network Xeinadin buys up Doncaster accounting firm Smith Craven July 11, 2022 London headquartered professional services firm Xeinadin has acquired Doncaster based accountancy firm Smith Craven. Xeinadin, which was formed through coming together of more than 100 independent accountancy firms throughout the UK and Ireland in 2019, has absorbed Smith Craven into its network, after first investing in the firm earlier this year. First established in 1928, [...]
Lawyers gearing up for ‘wave of litigation’ due to crypto crash: Furious Brits expected to claim losses back July 10, 2022 The collapse in the value of crypto is likely to lead to a raft of claims from UK investors who believe they have lost considerable sums of money after being mis-sold cryptocurrencies, lawyers have told City A.M. today. Mis-selling claims may arise in cases where cryptocurrencies were marketed as a low-risk investment, yet subsequently dropped [...]