Lack of prosecutors threatens to worsen England and Wales’ Crown Court backlogs, Criminal Bar Association warns January 5, 2023 A shortage of prosecutors in the UK’s criminal justice system threatens to worsen the backlogs in the country’s Crown Courts, the head of the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) has warned. A record number of criminal cases are now being halted due to a lack of prosecutors willing and able to work, CBA chair Kirsty Brimelow [...]
Cost of living crisis: UK lawyers braced for talent war and surge in fraud cases January 5, 2023 Lawyers working in top British companies are anticipating a hike in fraud, disputes, and debt recovery cases over 2023 as the UK’s economy takes a turn for the worse, a new survey shows. In-house lawyers expect they will be forced to deal with the fallout of the UK’s cost-of-living crisis as the economic downturn sets [...]
Dentons poaches top SFO lawyer in push to bolster investigations team January 5, 2023 Dentons has poached one of the Serious Fraud Office’s (SFO’s) top lawyers, as it pushes forwards with efforts to bolster its ranks with public sector hires. SFO deputy general counsel Rebecca Dix will take on a new position at Dentons’ London office, switching from the public sector crime agency to the fourth largest law firm [...]
Hogan Lovells and Shearman & Sterling in ‘merger’ rumours that would create world’s fifth largest law firm January 4, 2023 Law giants Hogan Lovells and Shearman & Sterling have hinted a potential merger could be on the table, after stating they are open to opportunities including “discussions with different firms”. The two law firms both acknowledged market rumours they are engaged in early stage talks for a merger that could see them create the fifth [...]
Mishcon de Reya bolsters legal tech offering with Taylor Vinters merger January 3, 2023 Mishcon de Reya has completed its merger with Taylor Vinters, after first striking a deal with the tech and innovation specialist in September 2021. The ‘Silver Circle’ London law firm’s merger with Taylor Vinters will see more than 200 of the law firm’s staff join Mishcon de Reya’s 1,200 strong team – including 145 lawyers [...]
BP, Unilever, and HSBC have failed to properly exit Russia after Ukraine war, new report warns January 2, 2023 Three FTSE 100 companies – HSBC Holdings, Unilever, and BP – have been named as members of a “dirty dozen” of high-profile multinationals still heavily involved in Russia. The three UK headquartered companies have failed to properly exit Russia in the wake of Putin’s invasion, according to a new report by the Moral Rating Agency [...]
Scottish Widows: Unmarried couples missing out on life insurance payouts December 30, 2022 Many unmarried couples with life insurance could be at risk of not receiving a payout if one of the partners dies, a survey suggests. Just over half (52 per cent) of unmarried people know if their partner has a life insurance policy, while 43 per cent said their other half has no plans to ensure [...]
ExxonMobil sues EU over plans for bloc-wide windfall tax December 28, 2022 ExxonMobil has filed a lawsuit against the EU in a bid to overturn the trading bloc’s plans to impose a windfall tax on energy companies. The US oil major is seeking to challenge the EU’s authority to impose a 33 per cent levy on energy companies’ profits during the fiscal year 2022. Two of [...]
Wind farm developer threatens to sue UK government over plans for ‘windfall tax’ December 28, 2022 A Cheshire wind farm developer has threatened to sue the UK government over its plans to impose a ‘windfall tax’ on renewables companies. Community Windpower – which owns 1.5 GW of UK wind generation capacity – has said it will take legal action to block the UK’s Electricity Generator Levy. The temporary tax imposes a [...]
Labour calls for new sanctions on Iran over ‘repression’ of Amini protests December 28, 2022 Britain’s Labour Party has called for new sanctions to be imposed on those engaged in suppressing protests in Iran. The UK’s shadow foreign secretary, David Lammy, called for new “sanctions against individuals and organisations involved in the suppression” of the protests that have swept Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini in September. Amini, a [...]