Suffolk Law Centre, launched last year to fill the gap of legal advice services in the county, has helped 2,300 people in its first year.

CILEx president Nick Hanning has urged Justice Secretary Chris Grayling to make further concessions to his controversial plans to change legal aid, following a partial U-turn on the government’s proposal to deny legal aid recipients the right to choose a lawyer.

The national firm formerly known as Bond Dickinson has become Womble Bond Dickinson after a high-profile merger – not with the venerable family-run operation of the Wimbledon-based eco rodents, but with US firm Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice. 

The lack of access to many key legal services during the coronavirus pandemic has created a build-up of demand that the legal sector is poorly equipped to handle, leading legal figures have warned.

Clifford Chance and A&O Shearman become the latest magic circle law firms to increase pay for newly qualified (NQ) solicitors to £150,000, after their counterparts announced similar moves in recent weeks. 

A recent European Court of Justice ruling means that insurers will no longer be able to use gender as a basis for determining the cost of insurance premiums, with car insurance, life insurance and pension annuities all to be affected.

Mid-tier law firms Simmons & Simmons LLP, RPC and Shoosmiths have launched new policies to reward lawyers for billing higher hours, with bonuses of up to 40% of base salary on offer. 

QualitySolicitors has signed a deal with high street favourite WHSmith that will see legal representatives in 150 of the stationers’ branches this summer, with a view to eventually rolling it out to 500 stores.

Barristers’ chambers across the UK have implemented pay increases as they battle to attract the top aspiring barristers.

The Bar Standards Board has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Inns of Court to recognise the “vital” role played by the Inns for aspiring barristers.

Summer is here! Not that you’d know it to look outside. Console yourself in the face of gloomy weather with this selection of interesting business-related news from the past week.

Employment in London's legal services sector is growing faster than any other financial or professional services industry, according to figures released by lobby group TheCityUK.

Commercial awareness; you can’t have too much of it and the more you work at it, the deeper and more nuanced yours will become.

An app that aims to be 'the Uber of legal and accountancy services' has been launched by solicitor and former managing partner of Harvey Ingram, Simon Astill.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has pledged to emphasise the good work of law firms which handle asylum cases following a highly positive review of the sector. 

Lincoln’s Inn brings to life the stories of six practising barristers from unconventional backgrounds in its new outreach film Becoming a Barrister.  

Tooks Chambers - the set of Michael Mansfield QC - has decided to begin the process of dissolution as the "direct result of the government's legal aid policies".

On 22 July Beachcroft LLP and Davies Arnold Cooper LLP announced their merger plans, which will take effect on 1 November 2011, with the firm to be renamed DAC Beachcroft LLP.

City firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain LLP has retained an impressive 100% of its trainees this year. All 13 will qualify at the firm in September.