By: Maria Ward-Brennan

Professional Services Editor Maria Ward-Brennan is the Professional Services Editor at City AM, focused on law, Big Four, and other management and accounting consulting firms. She edits the Beyond The Billable newsletter and column. She was previously a litigation reporter at The Lawyer. Contact her via email at maria.ward-brennan@cityam.com or on X @MariaW_B.

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KPMG seeks financial support from parent group in wake of audit scandal

August 24, 2026

KPMG Australia has asked its parent company for financial support and laid off hundreds of staff after an audit scandal rocked the Big Four firm’s business down under. In its annual results on Monday, the Australian arm of the accounting group said it will cut its workforce by five per cent and partner pay by [...]
Incoming FRC chair sits on board of construction group facing criminal probe

August 19, 2026

The woman in line to become chair of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) sits on the board of a company currently under criminal investigation, City AM can reveal. Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by the government last month as the next chair of the accounting watchdog and is set to take over in September when [...]
Law firm at centre of BHP mammoth lawsuit sued by its own funder

August 18, 2026

City law firm Pogust Goodhead is facing an £84m lawsuit from its own funder over a dispute related to its high-profile case: the record-breaking group action against mining giant BHP. The firm, formerly known as PGMBM, recently secured a major victory in one of the largest legal actions ever heard in the English courts. Last [...]
City law firm sues prominent Emirati business family

August 18, 2026

London-headquartered law firm Charles Russell Speechlys has initiated legal action against investment entities controlled by the prominent Emirati business family Al-Sari, City AM can reveal, marking the latest development in an ongoing multi-jurisdictional dispute with its former client. The case stems from overlapping legal challenges involving entities in the Al-Sari family’s portfolio. The law firm, [...]
AIM-Listed Pulsar Group hit with High Court petition by HMRC

August 18, 2026

Pulsar Group, a UK-based technology company listed on AIM, and its media matchmaking subsidiary, ResponseSource, face a winding-up petition from HMRC. The group, formerly known as Access Intelligence, provides SaaS solutions for the global marketing, public relations and journalism sectors. A petition filed with the London High Court on Friday named it. Additionally, ResponseSource, the [...]
Brompton Bicycle sues former adviser for ‘professional negligence’

August 13, 2026

Folding bike firm Brompton Bicycle is set to sue its former accounting and tax advisor AAB Group for professional negligence, City AM can reveal. London-based Brompton has launched legal action in the High Court against the Scottish-headquartered business advisory firm, according to court records. The defendants are listed as AAB Business & Tax Advisory LLP, [...]
Meta glasses court ban sparks privacy warning for City businesses

August 13, 2026

Meta’s controversial smart glasses have been banned from courthouses across England, prompting lawyers to sound the alarm for businesses about growing legal risks surrounding the wearable tech. Earlier this week, it was revealed that His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) had confirmed that camera glasses were banned from its sites across England and Wales. [...]
AI gold rush leaves accountancy firms exposed to costly cyberattacks

August 12, 2026

Accountancy firms are pouring millions of pounds into AI, but the industry forgot to modernise security systems and is leaving itself exposed to costly cyberattacks. According to a report by software company Fastly, shared with City AM, more than 75 per cent of businesses that identified as AI-first, meaning they had integrated AI into core [...]
Top court ‘opens the floodgates’ for part-time workers’ claims

August 12, 2026

The Supreme Court “may have opened the floodgates to a large number of potential claims against employers” after ruling that part-time workers claiming discrimination do not need to prove their part-time status was the “sole reason” for less favourable treatment. The case was brought by Warren Augustine, a part-time private hire driver for Data Cars, [...]
Admiral profit slides as boss eyes push into EV insurance

August 6, 2026

Admiral suffered a drop in profit as the insurance giant was weighed down by lower earned premiums in its UK car business. The group’s profit before tax fell by 18 per cent to £429.2m in the first half of the year, while turnover remained flat at £3.11bn. Milena Mondini, group chief executive, told City AM [...]

Nandy flags downsides of closer EU relations

Women’s football doesn’t need to become men’s football to succeed

The Capitalist: City AM reporter gets royal trashing by AI slop

By: Maria Ward-Brennan

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