The Lord Chancellor has backed the Big Four’s foray into legal services, telling an audience of business bigwigs that the collective move benefits consumers, drives innovation and helps maintains the UK’s reputation within the global legal market. Speaking at the launch of TheCityUK legal report in London yesterday evening, David Gauke cited Deloitte’s newly-acquired alternative business structure (ABS) licence and how PwC‘s UK legal arm had reached a headcount of 320 and generated revenues of £60 million. Noting that this put PwC just outside the UK’s top 50 law firms in its own right, Gauke said:
The Lord Chancellor’s comments come just a week after KPMG revealed an ambitious growth strategy which could see it become one of the largest law firms in the world. The accountancy giant — which was granted ABS status in 2014, is aiming to double its lawyer headcount to over 3,000 within the next few years. In a further example of the Big Four’s assault on legal services, accountancy giant EY purchased legal innovation outfit Riverview earlier this year in a bid to underline its position “as a leading disruptor of legal services”. Meanwhile, Deloitte confirmed this week it was to launch a new law firm in Hong Kong. The 25-lawyer-practice will open in January. The post Big Four’s foray into legal services gets thumbs up from Lord Chancellor appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/big-fours-foray-into-legal-services-gets-thumbs-up-from-lord-chancellor/
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Rookie’s ‘name and other personal details’ included in report to regulator despite assurance of anonymity Reed Smith was sued by one of its own trainee solicitors after it submitted her “name and other personal details” to the regulator as part of a report into an allegation of sexual harassment. The global law firm’s well-intentioned act of self-reporting came despite it reportedly assuring the rookie that she would remain anonymous. Last week it emerged that Reed Smith dismissed a partner in its London office following a complaint of sexual harassment. While details were thin on the ground, it is understood the incident took place over a year ago and involved a female trainee. The partner, who hasn’t been named, left in late 2017 and is now working at another firm. RollOnFriday is now reporting that there was a second alleged victim who went on to take legal action against Reed Smith over its handling of the internal investigation. According to the weekly legal blog, a Reed Smith lawyer became aware of the investigation and informed the firm that another trainee had come to her claiming she had also been harassed by the same partner after a work function. The report, citing an unnamed source, goes on to claim the second alleged victim wished to remain anonymous and, as a result, “Reed Smith agreed with her in advance that her identity would be kept strictly confidential as a condition of her participation.” However, having interviewed the partner, who had now left the firm, Reed Smith filed a report to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) which contained the second alleged victim’s “name and other personal details”. The firm, however, did take the time to redact other sensitive information including the name of another partner accused of harassment, the blog reports. It is also said that the global firm “accidentally” scheduled meetings on the firm’s “freely-available” intranet system with the title “Meeting to discuss [partner’s name] and [another partner’s name] future”. Unhappy with being named, it is understood the young rookie sued the global firm for, among other things, breach of confidentiality, but was forced to back down due to a lack of funds. Tamara Box, Reed Smith’s managing partner for Europe & Middle East, said:
A spokesperson for the SRA said: “We can confirm we are investigating before deciding on next steps”. The post Trainee solicitor sued Reed Smith over mishandled harassment investigation appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/trainee-solicitor-sued-reed-smith-over-mishandled-harassment-investigation/ Judge orders disclosure of device’s recordings A judge in the US state of New Hampshire has ordered Amazon to “forthwith” produce recordings made by one of its Echo devices between 27 and 29 January 2017 on the basis that they are crucial to an alleged double murder trial. During the critical time period, two women died from multiple stab wounds in what is believed to be a drug dealing-related fatal incident, their bodies found on the porch of a house in New Hampshire. Amazon has previously stated that it would not hand over any data until ordered to do so. So far, the retail and tech goliath has not responded to judge Steven M Houran’s 5 November order. However, it is likely that now that the judicial decree has been made, Amazon will concede its position and will be liaising with prosecutors in the case to work out the finer detail of what needs to be disclosed. This is not the first time that Echo recordings have been cited in a murder case. In Arkansas, a year previously, US state police asked Amazon to hand over audio recordings which may have overheard a murder there. (The case was different because it was the defendant’s Echo and he agreed to the hand over of any recording; the case never went to trial as the judge dismissed the murder charge.) Nor is it likely to be the last. Professor Walden, director of Queen Mary’s Centre for Commercial Law Studies and an expert in cyber-crime and technology law, argues that it won’t be long before disclosing recordings of this sort will be “standard procedure” because “they are an incredibly valuable evidential source.” The need for such data raises important legal conundrums, however, particularly because the companies which obtained the data, or the servers where the data is stored, are often based in other jurisdictions with different laws. Some jurisdictions have better laws than others in enabling parties to get hold of data, as Walden explains to Legal Cheek:
The Echo murder case is yet another example of the value of our data and the increased tension between individuals and tech companies. Walden argues: “There are likely to be developments towards ensuring we have better control of our own data because of its new value.” The intrinsic importance of data held on our own smartphones (and our rights over that data) was discussed in the pivotal US Supreme Court case of Riley v California. The court concluded that our phones now store as much personal information and data as held in our own homes and should be protected as such: In the decision chief justice Roberts wrote:
The post ‘Alexa, who dunnit?’ Amazon Echo could be pivotal evidence in double murder trial in the US appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/alexa-who-dunnit-amazon-echo-could-be-pivotal-evidence-in-double-murder-trial-in-the-us/ Magic circle and the bar team up with Oxford University on 1.2 million AI research project11/30/2018 Education and training of future lawyers is a central aim A multi-disciplinary group of academics from the University of Oxford will join forces with magic circle law firms Allen & Overy and Slaughter and May, and top insolvency chambers South Square, to research the potential and limitations of artificial intelligence (AI). The project, which has just received £1.2 million of government funding via the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), also involves the Law Society, legal tech giant Thomson Reuters, access to justice lawtech start-up LexSnap and the Legal Education Foundation charity. Academics from Oxford University’s law, computer science, economics, education and social policy departments will work with the solicitors, barristers and other parties involved to consider a number of issues. These include investigating new business models deploying AI in law to help identify best practice in governance and strategy; understanding the potential for application of AI in dispute resolution; exploring the application of new AI methods to legal reasoning; and comparing skills training and technology transfer in the UK with competitor countries such as the US, Hong Kong and Singapore to draw policy implications. The overriding aim of the project will be research into training and educational needs for lawyers’ engagement with technology and computer programmers’ engagement with law. The team will develop education and training packages that respond to these needs for delivery by both universities and private-sector firms. Oxford University Law Faculty Professor John Armour, who is leading the team working on the project, said:
Multi-disciplinary skills will be one of the key themes of Legal Cheek’s Future of Legal Education and Training Conference 2019 at Kings Place London. Speakers from Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Manchester University and STEM Future Lawyers will discuss new lawtech training contracts and collaborations between law and computer science departments. Super Early Bird ticket sales close at midnight tonight. The post Magic circle and the bar team up with Oxford University on £1.2 million AI research project appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/magic-circle-and-the-bar-team-up-with-oxford-university-on-1-2-million-ai-research-project/ Weekly round-up of the top legal blogosphere posts A few thoughts on the “£23m extra” for legal aid [The Secret Barrister] Durham Law School dean Thom Brooks: Only a referendum on May’s Brexit deal can end deadlock in parliament [Huffington Post] What is ‘substantial injustice’ for the purposes of a criminal case review? [UK Human Rights Blog] Brexit deal: Martin Howe QC responds to No. 10’s ‘rebuttal’ (registration required) [The Spectator] A brief introduction to the concept of privacy under English law [Inforrm’s Blog] Assisted dying: Will the UK ever alter the law? [Legal Cheek Journal] Reality versus the robot lawyers [Legal Futures] How the ‘experts’ are damaging democracy [UnHerd] “The gist of the problem is that far too many students with poor English and poor oral presentation (irrespective of their command of English generally) are allowed onto BPTC courses. This makes the classes run badly…” [Legal Cheek comments] Event: How to make it as a barrister with 5 Essex Court, Hardwicke, Landmark Chambers and 4 New Square [i am going] Jobs jobs jobs! [Legal Cheek Hub] The post The best of the blogs appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/the-best-of-the-blogs-24-november/ Exclusive: Law school giant slashes cost of online courses by up to £3,000 for 2019 academic year, leaving some current students unhappy The University of Law (ULaw) has come under fire from a group of students after it told them they would have to defer their studies for 12 months if they wanted to take advantage of next year’s substantially cheaper fees. In what would usually have been a piece of good news, the law school giant announced it was slashing the price of several of its online courses by up to 18% for the academic year commencing September 2019. In an email seen by Legal Cheek, ULaw confirmed that from next year fees for its online Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) would be £9,350 (previously £11,270), fees for its online Legal Practice Couse (LPC) would now sit at £13,150 (previously £16,215) and fees for its online masters in law would now be £10,600 (previously £12,520). The law school said a review of its course portfolio had prompted the price drop. The email goes on to explain that students currently enrolled on one of the aforementioned courses and looking to “take advantage of the price reduction” would need to defer for a whole year. This despite many already being almost three months into their studies. ULaw’s email continues:
Legal Cheek understands that ULaw has declined several requests to reimburse the £3,000 difference to current students who want to continue with their courses. One student, who already has a training contract already lined up, told us:
Another pointed out that the law school could have saved itself a major headache if it had waited until the end the academic year to announce the new fee levels. Rounding off its email to students, ULaw accepted that there may be concerns about the drop in fees and deferrals, but stressed that “although not unknown, it is unusual for a course fee to be reduced year on year.” A spokesperson for ULaw told Legal Cheek:
The post ULaw students hit out after they’re told to defer to get cheaper GDL and LPC fees appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/ulaw-students-hit-out-after-theyre-told-to-defer-to-get-cheaper-gdl-and-lpc-fees/ ‘Unfortunate example’ The president of the Supreme Court has criticised the former Lord Chancellor Liz Truss for failing to adequately defend judges involved in the Article 50 legal challenge. In a speech delivered in the House of Lords earlier this month and published yesterday, Lady Hale stressed how it was vitally important to have a Lord Chancellor who is willing to “speak up” for judges “at the heart of government”. Appearing to take aim at Truss and her lacklustre response following the Daily Mail‘s highly-controversial “enemies of the people” headline, Hale continued:
The High Court ruled over two years ago that the lawful invocation of Article 50 was conditional on a free vote in parliament. The Daily Mail, a pro-Brexit newspaper at the time, went on to publish a story (front page pictured below) which claimed the court’s decision had deliberately blocked Brexit and that the judges who heard the case — Lord Thomas, Sir Terence Etherton, and Lord Justice Sales — were “enemies of the people”. At the time, the then Lord Chancellor Truss was heavily criticised for her inadequate defence of the judiciary. In one example of lawyer outrage, seventeen QCs at London’s 1 Crown Office Row described in an open letter to the Conservative MP how they had been left “dismayed” by her tame response. Hales comments came just a week after Paul Dacre, who was the Daily Mail’s editor until earlier this summer, defended the newspaper’s decision to run the headline. Speaking at the Society of Editors’ Conference in Manchester this month, Dacre said the newspaper “should have the freedom to write a headline about judges being the enemy of the people”. Read Lady Hale’s speech in full:The post Lady Hale takes aim at Liz Truss for failing to adequately defend Brexit judges in wake of Daily Mail ‘enemies of the people’ headline appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/lady-hale-takes-aim-at-liz-truss-for-failing-to-adequately-defend-brexit-judges-in-wake-of-daily-mail-enemies-of-the-people-headline/ ‘All but confirmed’, media report claims Human rights barrister Amal Clooney and her actor husband George are “set to become” royal godparents to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s first-born child, according to media reports. The rumour mill kicked into overdrive yesterday evening after a “family insider” reportedly told the Mail Online that George “has a strong hunch” that they’ll be among the couples asked to take on the important royal role. It’s “all but confirmed”, the report adds. Harry and Meghan revealed during a recent tour of Australia that they were expecting their first child in Spring next year. There’s no denying the Clooney’s have strong links to the royals. The Doughty Street Chambers barrister and her hubby of four years attended Harry and Meghan’s Windsor wedding earlier this summer. More recently, the Clooney’s (who have twins, Ella and Alexander) were present when Princess Eugenie, Harry’s first cousin, tied the knot with British wine merchant Jack Brooksbank in October. There’s a legal connection between the two couples, too (well, sort of). Amal spent three years as a lawyer in the (very real) New York office of Sullivan & Cromwell before settling in the UK and becoming a barrister, while Markle played fictional New York lawyer Rachel Zane in the US TV drama Suits. Continuing, the report, again citing an unnamed source, claims “Amal and Meghan have been close for years, and Harry and George have become buddies because of that. They’re much closer than the headlines let on.” The post Doughty Street barrister Amal Clooney and actor husband ‘set to become’ godparents to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s royal baby appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/doughty-street-barrister-amal-clooney-and-actor-husband-set-to-become-godparents-to-meghan-markle-and-prince-harrys-royal-baby/ Are there any specific types of legal experience which look more impressive than others? In the latest instalment in our Career Conundrums series, a high-flying marketing executive wants to pursue a career at the bar and needs readers’ advice.
If you have a career conundrum, email us with it to [email protected]. The post I am quitting my high-flying advertising role to chase my barrister dream appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/i-am-quitting-my-high-flying-advertising-role-to-chase-my-barrister-dream/ Long hours and billing targets among biggest contributors to poor mental health It will take changes in culture, leadership and operations to create more “mentally healthy” law firms and improve junior lawyer wellbeing, a legal profession taskforce has said. The cross-profession group, which is made up of solicitors, barristers and industry experts, gathered at the London office of magic circle law firm Freshfields on Tuesday evening to discuss the barriers to wellbeing in the legal sector. Stress-inducing facets of a lawyer’s life cited by the panel included the incredibly long hours (see Legal Cheek’s new average arrive and leave the office time survey) and dreaded billing targets. In order for positive changes to occur, the group agreed it was crucial that City law firm bigwigs take the mental health of junior lawyers seriously and that it becomes the responsibility of management to monitor and improve staff wellbeing. John Blain, a partner in Freshfields’ disputes, litigation and arbitration team, told the group: “If you look after people, they will perform better. The job will always be demanding so we must strive for better relationships, better procedures and better communication to ensure that we remain motivated and able to perform at our best.” Anna Robinson, a psychotherapist and senior solicitor, added:
The panel, set up in 2016 to promote and support good mental health across the legal community, also discussed holding lawyers to account for bullying or aggressive behaviour in the workplace, as well as the benefits of wellbeing workshops and open communication. The taskforce’s comments come just weeks after a junior solicitor, who earlier this year was suspended from practice for forging legal documents, was struck off after the regulator successfully appealed the decision to the High Court. The Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) appeal came despite an earlier tribunal case which heard how Sovani James’ employers had adopted a “sudden focus on financial return on employees” and an “aggressive implementation” of billing targets. Struggling with stress? You can contact LawCare. The post Improving junior lawyer wellbeing requires a cultural change, taskforce tells law firms appeared first on Legal Cheek. from https://www.legalcheek.com/2018/11/improving-junior-lawyer-wellbeing-requires-a-cultural-change-taskforce-tells-law-firms/ |
AuthorHi I am Alana Smith 35 years old living in New York. I am working as an assistant in local law office. I like to share legal news with people to educate them. Archives
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