Welcome to this year's third edition of the weekly 'Law Business' column brought to you by the SundayLawReview team. This week, while some of this team had been distracted by matters evolving at Pearson Hardman and Hunter Catastrophe's return to the Inner Temple, we have still found time to take a serious look at what happened in the business of law within UK as reported by online legal publications throughout last week.
The most interesting articles on developments, compliance, business and the study of law including articles cited within TheLawMap 'focus of the day':
- More legal aid cuts will lead to poor relying on 'second best' lawyers. Chair of Bar Council warns that further cuts to criminal legal aid risk undermining provision of justice. Full story - Guardian Law
- Supreme Court warns of 'uncertainty' if legal privilege extended to non-lawyers. Parliament, and not the courts, should decide on whether legal advice privilege (LAP) should be extended to non-lawyers, the Supreme Court has decided. Full story - Solicitors Journal
- The cab-rank rule is ineffective and should be removed from the barristers’ code of conduct – and instead applied as a principle to all providers of legal services, including alternative business structures (ABSs) – a new report has urged. Full story - Legal Futures
- Although they have made a quiet start, ABSs have the power to change the face of the legal sector. A year on from the first alternative business structure (ABS) licences and the legal sector is beginning to see the effects. Full story - The Lawyer
- A call by the competition watchdog for simpler complaints procedures in the legal profession has received the support of the Legal Services Board. Full story - Law Gazette
- "Chaotic" Jackson reforms will mean a "raft of litigation" | The Lawyer http://t.co/eAxIblo0
- Lawyers' salaries favour men | New Law Journal http://t.co/E3xviwiG
- ‘Marriage of same sex couples is lawful’ | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/Us7jcuMq
- In-house lawyers reject Law Society's new division | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/VDZic9hG
- COLP cover-up is unforgiveable – and that’s the truth | Law Gazette http://t.co/nRDjHTTm
- Legal challenge begins on RTA fixed fees | Law Gazette http://t.co/MiQLtaab
- Law Society hits out at barrister contracts for putting solicitors 'at disadvantage' | The Lawyer http://t.co/itqnt0r7
- Pull up your socks, Johnny Foreigner | Law Gazette http://t.co/YhUMHXmB
- Bailiff checks to be bolted on to Crime and Courts Bill | Law Gazette http://t.co/YoOiuu3D
- Society and Bar clash over new standard contract terms | Law Gazette http://t.co/VuZgpXJC
- Media law trends in 2013: what's on the horizon http://t.co/sbjcYPrV
- Law Society warns solicitors to protect themselves against "biased" barristers' terms | Legal Futures http://t.co/fmKIU2ZA
- Clash over whether Delhi rape case proves continuing need for cab-rank rule | Legal Futures http://t.co/CNUvM051
- ‘Lack of evidence’ for judicial review restrictions | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/J89qy9mN
- Female lawyers lose £50k in gender gap | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/96bs8jrH
- Mummery LJ blocks challenge to rule on periodic joint tenancies | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/H6lcQVAv
- How well did your firm or department cope with the snow? | Law Gazette http://t.co/8IvW6iKY
- Secret courts ‘unjust’ warns Law Society | Law Gazette http://t.co/iohsRfFn
- European Commission creates group to analyse whether EU legal anomalies constrain cross-border insurance trade http://t.co/BmojQRyE
- Government closes door on accountants' last hope to change privilege rules | Legal Futures http://t.co/JofYpDDa
- ‘Scope for argument’ over referral fee rules, SRA warns | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/0Cd7Ylvq
- Offshore firms announce alliance | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/j6gnjrhy
- Trainee lawyer retention rates slip | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/dp8xABoz
- London legal hiring boosts 2012 job figures | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/zpAtYuZu
- Accountants lose bid for extension of legal privilege | The Global Legal Post http://t.co/3gcZAKkl
- Ladbrokes cuts legal panel as move away from hourly billing edges closer | The Lawyer http://t.co/mE9uDahR
- Grayling takes aim at the bar | Law Gazette http://t.co/lCodFL8g
- COLP/COFA test failed by over 1,000 | Law Gazette http://t.co/RCQAvMcd
- Public sector lawyers hit by spending cuts in Newcastle, Bristol, Manchester | The Lawyer http://t.co/voCKExLn
- Supreme Court rejects bid to extend legal professional privilege to non-lawyers | Legal Futures http://t.co/sdNtN9y0
- SRA reveals scale of COLP/COFA failures as 1,200 nominees don't declare suitability issues | Legal Futures http://t.co/rwbp7aki
- Let parliament decide on privilege, Lord Neuberger says | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/rrpUfdy9
- Legal professional privilege only for lawyers, Supreme Court rules | Law Gazette http://t.co/zyms0Fnj
- SRA set to offer informed guidance but not safe harbour over referral fee ban | Legal Futures http://t.co/zi8o584b
- Costs specialist becomes ABS | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/EsSmxsbl
- Silence over Jackson ‘leading to rumours of delays’ | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/TBY3J2nL
- Sole practitioners: we won’t join Law Society | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/iZpY2PM4
- ‘Data mismatches’ hit COLP and COFA approvals | Solicitors Journal http://t.co/vmHrTWEa
- Judicial Review: proposals for reform | The Barrister http://t.co/R4wRMLk1
- Justice secretary questions hiring of QCs in criminal trials | Law Gazette http://t.co/or2mZq7p
- Barristers fear QASA boycott will lead to loss of right to practise | Legal Futures http://t.co/zLBsQVNu
- Solicitors' firm sees red in trade mark dispute with licensed conveyancers over their name | Legal Futures http://t.co/LGOtkKbz
- State Pension Changes - A Briefing for Family Lawyers | Family Law Week http://t.co/QQT0LQQV
- Big Cases from last year’s punishing economic conditions that pushed many companies into administration | The Lawyer http://t.co/VCR0W9Hy
- NHS negligence payouts can be good value but investment in the services would be a better outcome | The Lawyer http://t.co/btZWnT0C
- Although they have made a quiet start, ABSs have the power to change the face of the legal sector | The Lawyer http://t.co/Z9iMEOd3
- The Public Service Pensions Bill could lead to constitutional corruption if it is not amended | The Lawyer http://t.co/WrTc9tNV
- Family justice ‘wish list’ | Law Gazette http://t.co/xGkRBE5c
- Green in the dock with technology | Law Gazette http://t.co/F5nare4Z
- ‘Common sense’ fraud ruling lauded | Law Gazette http://t.co/RfMXzohZ
- A review of the 2012 changes to criminal law | Law Gazette http://t.co/JUtIMLPQ
- Unpaid court fines still add up to £600m | Law Gazette http://t.co/1uJacFbm
- Business leaders have grown ‘diversity weary’ | Law Gazette http://t.co/6ckfB7Ga
- Legal advice agencies hit by funding cut | Law Gazette http://t.co/QKhaTmZ0
- 5 rules of the insolvency game: As the high street suffers, lawyers pick up mandates from administrators | The Lawyer http://t.co/cLHQDCUk
- New marketing collective bids to move beyond PI as Accidents Direct plans big panel expansion | Legal Futures http://t.co/eFVjns4p
- The SRA's trust exercise | Legal Futures http://t.co/cSrdQ54N
- LSB and consumer panel back OFT call for simpler legal regulation | Legal Futures http://t.co/Er6tT2kh
- Supreme Court stars on YouTube | Law Gazette http://t.co/0MZwjlEM
- Taxi for the cab rank rule | Law Gazette http://t.co/1bjNVQ8d
- SRA spurns pleas to approve post-Jackson business models | Law Gazette http://t.co/U3TamXjn
Articles of the week:
The UK and international articles of the week are pieces selected by @TheLawMap tweeting team based on recommendations from friends and followers of LawNewsIndex.com daily law news blog.
- Leveson's chief inquisitor Robert Jay calls UK press 'most unruly and irreverent in world' | Josh Halliday - The Guardian
- Are Ethnic Minority Students Being Forced Into Medicine And Law Degrees? | Lucy Sherriff - Huffington Post
- What I think George Orwell would have written about today | Shami Chakrabarti - Guardian Books
- Judge brands property law unfair on married couples | Marilyn Stowe Blog
News from the Law Firms:
Friday 25th January
- A round-up of recent global deals and the lawyers who made them happen http://t.co/QO5nqZZA
- Hogan Lovells boosts Moscow office with four lawyer Linklaters hire http://t.co/yACd8QvD
- Magic circle duo post marginal dips in spring NQ intake http://t.co/nqISjupM
- Eversheds set to cut up to 166 jobs in latest redundancy round http://t.co/j59XiEvC
- DLA cuts 45 in Glasgow exit as firm agrees defendant insurance sell-off http://t.co/OVD3Qi8c
- A&O to lay off US and Euro support staff as 43 jobs move to Belfast http://t.co/Ebr6TIDj
- Luxembourg's Wildgen adds managing partner role http://t.co/IDWVef7x
- SJ Berwin's debt rose by over 300 per cent in last financial year, LLPs reveal http://t.co/Lxo3XHkI
- Akin Gump launches new Singapore office http://t.co/05pEWYu4
- Debevoise's Mary Jo White picked by Obama to head the SEC http://t.co/NPqWCB98
- Mishcon v Addleshaws as Berezovsky heads back to court http://t.co/N1KPDsuT
- Locke Lord to take on first London trainees after 2012 City launch http://t.co/ot0z1vgm
- DLA Piper to shut Glasgow & offload defendant insurance teams as redundancy talks continue http://t.co/hjHz8RHQ
- Allen & Overy prepares to shift US and European support roles to Belfast base http://t.co/2M1jrhb4
- Forster Dean CEO slams MoJ as firm makes 13 redundant http://t.co/h3xsQ8bP
- Eversheds CEO commenting on the recent redundancies: "Everything we've done has had culture at the heart" http://t.co/1ARENhgQ
- Bristows client Sony fined over hacking of PlayStation users' personal details http://t.co/xA3j01IV
- Selling cars helped Ashurst boost coffers by half a million pounds in 2011/12 http://t.co/x1QHZzuZ
- BLP promises to “bounce back” following retention rate fall http://t.co/KhPuQf62
- Top firms reduce debt, cut staff costs and increase capital in response to downturn http://t.co/R76rBIdg
- Links, A&O lead bank-side DCM rankings as year-on-year proceeds grow 11% http://t.co/dcMvxzEh
- Freshfields and Linklaters emerge as top financial services advisers http://t.co/1XamUVbj
- UK and Dubai courts draw up new guidelines to boost trade ties http://t.co/LuiLwb3K
- Freshfields sees Bank of England fees drop as financial crisis work subsides http://t.co/pDEP8fx2
- Herbert Smith and Eversheds carve up £70m in TfL billings over five years http://t.co/IDg0gxFJ
- Clydes names insurance expert Burns as successor to senior partner Payton http://t.co/OwTIO8Ad
- Osborne Clarke makes up first batch of partners since European mergers http://t.co/nZcR8b6O
- Reed Smith lands in Houston after calling off merger two years ago http://t.co/gSBZXW1Z
- FSCS adds former A&O and Aegon lawyers to board http://t.co/nCLbpZul
- BLP and Nabarro advise as Google acquires site for new UK HQ http://t.co/Rmao4i8B
- Eversheds hires Comet GC in wake of retailer's collapse http://t.co/ChimJdqh
- Eversheds pays off £20m in borrowings and boosts partner capital http://t.co/Eh947bgp
- Reed Smith enters coveted Houston market with local office launch http://t.co/wbqjHPkA
- Kirkland adds M&A partner in Hong Kong with Paul Weiss hire http://t.co/Mu5PPw1a
- Nabarro leads for new client Google on London HQ purchase http://t.co/pGkoX7KM
- Supreme Court rules against extending privilege to accountants http://t.co/fpMPmg8H
- Clydes names Burns as successor to long-serving senior partner Payton http://t.co/Gx2SUFEX
- Slaughters and Freshfields reveal retention rates http://t.co/SRIEZXuD
- Eversheds to cull 166 jobs across the UK and Asia as new strategy takes hold http://t.co/MylXhPbM
- Eversheds sheds up to 166 in strategic restructuring http://t.co/8GzNH7L8
- Magic circle duo lines up on £1bn Virgin Money credit card deal http://t.co/N2QEFrB0
- Bakers appoints Rawlinson to succeed Senior in London MP role http://t.co/x1iGRrBw
- A&O joins host of firms announcing trainee retention rates http://t.co/mExVERf1
- Eversheds pays off £20m in borrowings and boosts partner capital http://t.co/Eh947bgp
- Eversheds cuts debt on back of growth year, accounts reveal http://t.co/x0S3Uokx
- Addleshaws, Hogan Lovells, Links lead as Lloyds sells pub group to PE house http://t.co/NeHFriTc
- Carey Olsen links up with BVI firm in Caribbean push http://t.co/4Kmqj68p
- Blackstone's Pannick fails to persuade Supreme Court to extend privilege to accountants http://t.co/oeTUwbeu
- Balfour Beatty to sign deal with Pinsents as part of cost-cutting drive http://t.co/FfDT9fRB
- City solicitor wins key data roaming case against T-Mobile http://t.co/fN5mbMYG
- Quartet of clerks join 4-5 Grey's Inn Square exodus to rival http://t.co/hy6uDbRa
- Top firms aim to win full Hong Kong court rights as market liberalises http://t.co/son6v4u7
- CMS accounts reveal £7.7m capital contributions boost in 2011-12 http://t.co/sgyAvUKF
- Freshfields and Slaughters lead on £1.5bn Stansted sale http://t.co/hBCwTcYJ
- Ashurst joins local firms on Aviva's sale of Malaysian joint venture http://t.co/eAncuyRg
- AIG Asia in-house litigation head joins Thai firm Tilleke & Gibbins http://t.co/eeWfUFvj
- Tods Murray sees profit drop by 25 per cent in 'slow' 2011/12 http://t.co/QWsQCvOh
- Bakers names former IP head as successor to London chief Senior http://t.co/WSrS4H6K
- Salans advises as Hilco buys struggling HMV's debt http://t.co/znqGznS0
- Linklaters picks up banking partner from A&O in Spain http://t.co/b1U8JlV6
- White & Case and WilmerHale lead on Sberbank JV with search engine http://t.co/aZaCPyJU
- Slaughters and Davis Polk among advisers as Aviva sells last Delta stake http://t.co/BvcMuGHm
- Asian firms to spearhead Myanmar expansion http://t.co/HVqM9avb
- Team of 4-5 Gray's Inn clerks follows barristers to 39 Essex Street http://t.co/YupuGCwa
- Salans partners to double capital contributions when Dentons merger goes live http://t.co/2tkQwTdy
- Ashurst uses quick-fire questioning to gauge support for US merger deal http://t.co/F1Sb4cRF
- Irwin Mitchell Sheffield boss linked with luring DLA Piper defectors http://t.co/uP95Tmol
- Keystone Law - a feature | The Lawyer http://t.co/5GpUmgeB
- Slaughters and Davis Polk among advisers as Aviva sells last Delta stake http://t.co/28c4dMoN
- The down-to-earth visionary - Eversheds CEO Bryan Hughes’ finance-focused style http://t.co/qBsQmMHv
We would like to thank all the publications cited in this week's column. Please notify via @TheLawMap Twitter handle of any errors or omissions.
TheLawMap Publications at a glance:
LawNewsIndex.com - Daily Law News Archive
SundayLawReview.com - Weekly Law Business News Blog
Law Specials - A compendium of articles on Justice & Society
Wig - Daily Newspaper Focusing on Law & Society
MetaLawIndex - Informal Blog chronicling behind the scene events at LawNewsIndex & Twitter
