DWF has been named one of The Times Top 50 Employers For Women for the second consecutive year.

With just four weeks to go, the levels of furious electioneering continue to rocket upwards. While the big political story today may be Labour’s leaked manifesto, it is the prospect of Brexit and all that means in terms of business and consumer confidence that most concerns UK businesses. Read on for this past week’s related stories and more.

City firm HFW has announced a new gender equality strategy, vowing that at least 40% of senior lateral hires over the next three years will go to women, after missing its 2020 gender targets.

A partner vote looks set to be the next stage in a potential merger between Clyde & Co LLP and BLM, following the completion of detailed discussions and due diligence last week. 

The Ministry of Justice has revealed plans to fast-track legislation that will see barristers receive increased legal aid fees at a faster rate. The announcement follows the start of a series of strikes at the Bar that started on Monday and are set to continue for four weeks. 

The College of Legal Practice has announced the cost of its Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) preparation courses, which are designed to be more affordable, flexible and accessible than the old route to qualification.   

Operation Early Dawn has been reintroduced to ease prison overcrowding in the north of England, following the sentencing of rioters who engaged in violent unrest across parts of the UK earlier this month. 

BAME candidates are still much less likely to secure pupillage than white students, while those who attended fee-paying schools remain disproportionately represented, according to the latest annual report from the Bar Standards Board.

Despite pressure from students, the Bar Standards Board (BSB) will not reinstate spring Bar Professional Training Course exams. The regulator said it would be impossible to create a “suitable, secure alternative” to in-person assessments by April.

The pandemic didn’t impact the Legal Practice Course (LPC) pass rates, according to new statistics from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).

As details of the laborious and confusing Brexit negotiations continue to seep out – today’s highlights alone include the possibility that UK will remain under EU judicial remit and warnings that an absence of EU workers will seriously damage the economy – there is much to consider about where we will be from an economic point of view when the split becomes final. For news on this, and more, read on.

The four-day weekend looms and while it’s hard to imagine doing anything much other than gorging on chocolate and hot cross buns, it’s also an opportunity to catch up on some light reading. 

CILEx Regulation is “delighted” to have launched its first-ever equality, diversity and inclusion strategy earlier this week, which aims to promote fair access for all in the legal services market and implement measurable targets for the next two years. 

The Bar Standards Board is set to introduce an aptitude test which wannabe barristers must pass to gain admission to the BPTC.

Addleshaw Goddard saw double-digit growth for the financial year ending April 2024, with turnover growing by 12% on the previous year to £495.6 million.

Students aged 15-18 competed in the final of the 23rd annual Bar National Mock Trial Competition on Saturday 22 March at Cardiff Crown Court.

Partners and staff at Osborne Clarke will take an 11-month pay cut as the firm continues to weather the impact of covid-19.

Spring may have sprung, but that is no reason to neglect your commitment to self-improvement and progressing your legal career. This week’s selection is a real mixed-bag of commercial stories that should serve to pique your interest in the business world.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has announced that its newly qualified solicitor pay will rise to £150,000, as the battle for legal talent in London continues.