An appeal by former Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer partner Ryan Beckwith against the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal’s (SDT) decision in his misconduct case is set to be heard in October.
Beckwith filed the High Court appeal against the SDT’s decision on liability and the costs award in February, with the hearing now listed for Wednesday 21 October. Continue reading “Beckwith appeal date set as ex-Freshfields partner challenges liability and costs in #MeToo case”
Ask senior figures in the profession what has materially changed in the legal industry over the last decade and answers will likely include musings on technology, innovation and, for more pragmatic souls, the growth of American law firms in Europe.
Such woolly answers speak to the reality that the law looks much like it did ten years ago. What will not be mentioned, however, is what is rapidly emerging as a force with the potential to profoundly reshape the industry: the dawn of proactive regulation of major law firms. Continue reading “Comment: #MeToo is law’s Libor-rigging moment – Unheralded comes regulation of City law”
Ask senior figures in the profession what has materially changed in the legal industry over the last decade and answers will likely include musings on technology, innovation and, for more pragmatic souls, the growth of American law firms in Europe.
Such woolly answers speak to the reality that the law looks much like it did ten years ago. What will not be mentioned, however, is what is rapidly emerging as a force with the potential to profoundly reshape the industry: the dawn of proactive regulation of major law firms. Continue reading “Unheralded comes regulation of City law”
A profession having to get used to increasingly robust regulatory oversight will have more on its plate from this week with the launch of the new rulebook from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The new Standards and Regulations (STaRs) came into force on Monday (25 September), ushering in new reporting obligations on solicitors and much-trailed rules designed to make it easier for lawyers to practise individually.
The new code of conduct, which also cuts the core principles from ten to seven, is seen as a further step towards more robust regulation, with the shifting of the SRA’s remit to ‘promote a culture where ethical values and behaviours are embedded,’ according to its enforcement strategy. Continue reading “New solicitor code ushers in tougher duties on profession and moves to boost freelance lawyers”
‘If your boss demands loyalty, give him integrity. But if he demands integrity, then give him loyalty.’
USAF Colonel John Boyd, quoted in Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War by Robert Coram
‘Our objectives are… to achieve the highest order of excellence in the practice of the art, the science and the profession of the law; through such practice to earn a living and to derive the stimulation and pleasure of worthwhile adventure.’
Judge Simon Rifkind, Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, 1963 Continue reading “Our corporate soul – Defining the values of a law firm”
Following a consultation launched in January this year, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has decided to exclude the head of legal of all of the banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions that it supervises from senior manager accountability under the Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SMR). You can access the FCA’s policy statement here.
A group of us at UCL Laws submitted a detailed response to the consultation. In that response we objected to the proposal to exclude general counsel from SMR. Our response paper drew on both our own research and learnings from other scholarship; we argued that inclusion would strengthen the position of in-house lawyers within regulated financial firms and deliver benefits both for the firms themselves and for the economy and society. We found the arguments made against inclusion during the consultation misunderstood the broad-ranging and significant role that most in-house legal departments play in those firms. The FCA’s grounds for exclusion were not in our view compelling, not least the argument that legal professional privilege should be given super-priority over the public interest arguments in favour of inclusion. You can read our detailed response here. Continue reading “Guest post: Conferring with poachers – Bank GCs excluded from Senior Managers Regime after entirely predictable lobbying”
Last year’s risk management and professional indemnity report with broker Marsh told a story of progress; firms felt risk culture had significantly improved in the ten years since Lehman Brothers’ collapse. However, risk remains a moving target and there is a feeling recent unpleasant episodes at a number of City law firms means much-touted improvements in culture have yet to include progress in professional ethics.
‘I’m a great believer in the risk team playing a key part in defining a firm’s culture,’ says Walkers’ chief compliance officer Angela Robertson. ‘Fundamentally, risk teams enforce types of appropriate behaviour, whether dealing with clients or third parties. So it being involved in defining culture is no different really. Currently risk teams don’t have a specific remit to do so though.’ Continue reading “The risk report – Reputations tarnished as #MeToo fallout hits the legal profession”
In a busy week for the legal watchdog, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has announced it is postponing the implementation of its new centralised assessment, dubbed the ‘super-exam’, until September 2021.
The new Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) was originally slated for a 2020 launch, but the SRA has postponed plans after law firms and education providers indicated a ‘strong preference’ for a delay. Continue reading “SRA defers super exam until 2021 as costs of new assessment revealed”
The Law Society has called for uniformity in law firms’ gender pay gap reporting in a bid to ‘get ahead of the curve’ of what has proven a sluggish pace in tackling gender pay disparities.
The Law Society’s recommendations for a common set of standards were published as part of a guidance document today (6 November), with the standout focus being on how partner remuneration is included in gender pay gap reporting. Continue reading “Law Society pushes firms for increased transparency on partner pay gaps”
Once, not long ago, considerations of ethics were simple for law firms, if they bothered thinking about them at all. If what they were advising on was legal, however morally questionable, it was all good. Professional ethics? You didn’t need to worry – they were lawyers.
Those halcyon days are passing. Consider the convulsions in the profession regarding non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and their rampant use covering up harassment, a debate that has simmered for a year now. This topic skewers the profession on two fronts – NDAs have not only been used by law firms as a means of concealing poor behaviour by partners towards staff but they drew up the gagging agreements used by business at large. Continue reading “Comment: NDA mess shows age of just-about-OK legal ethics has passed”
