Several firms have been shortlisted for honours at the National Council for Work Experience Awards 2013, now in their 10th year.

The newly qualified (NQ) solicitor ‘pay war’ continues as Linklaters LLP and Allen & Overy LLP each increase NQ lawyer salaries to £125,000 to match magic circle counterparts Clifford Chance and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.

The Law Society has been criticised for a lack of “ethical leadership” on lawyers’ use of non-disclosure agreements (NDA) by leading legal academic and policy adviser Richard Moorhead, who has called for greater regulation of the controversial practice because the legal profession is not willing to change on its own.

The University of Law is preparing to open a new centre in Leeds in September 2014, relocating its existing York centre there.

Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has contradicted suggestions from the top levels of the government that judges are politically biased and not truly independent.

Today, legal technology provider Litera announced that it’s working with Microsoft to develop a Microsoft Copilot integration to streamline workflows for lawyers, improving efficiency and accuracy.

Herbert Smith Freehills and The Times are running their annual student advocacy competition, with submissions due by 22 July 2013.

International law firm Berwin Leighton Paisner has announced 10 trainee vacancies for its March 2013 intake.

Leading national firm Penningtons Manches and shipping specialist Thomas Cooper have agreed to merge, the firms have announced.

The Labour party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, has asked his shadow justice team to “immediately” review the government’s cuts to legal aid.

Magic circle firm Clifford Chance has attacked proposals by the Labour Party to create a broad financial transaction tax (FTT) by extending stamp duty – a policy also known as the ‘Robin Hood tax’. 

The Law Society, Bar Council and Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) have all marked this year's National Pro Bono Week with a series of events.

Pro bono charity LawWorks has celebrated the outstanding contributions of students and law school staff to pro bono work at its annual awards ceremony.

The role of librarian ranked as the second most common ‘dream job’ among 14,000 people polled by YouGov, to the delight of the British and Irish Association of Law Librarians.

Manchester law firm Croftons has created an iPhone app designed to help claimants gather accurate evidence and information at the scene of an accident at work or on the road which could result in a personal injury claim.

Career-changers interested in a career in the legal profession will be interested to know that The College of Law in Birmingham is holding a series of events, called Switch to Law, aimed at people without a law degree who want to become lawyers.

The SRA has launched a second consultation, running until 9 January 2017, on its proposed Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), the single assessment for would-be solicitors. 

The disparity between law conversion and Legal Practice Course and law pass rates at different law schools has become even more extreme, according to a report by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.