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 Law Society of England and Wales has embraced the UK’s adoption of the new Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer. This is a milestone in the legal world globally as it signifies the first international treaty with a focus on the safety of lawyers, which was adopted by the Council of Europe in response to increasing reports of attacks on the legal profession.

Stronger Together is a network designed to “promote racial diversity, inclusion and equality” in Leeds’ professional services sector, while identifying ways to create a more diverse and inclusive sector in the city.

The government’s promise of £15 million of new funding for the criminal justice system will boost the fees of high-earning QCs but fail to address the problems faced by struggling junior barristers, the Law Society has warned.

Research undertaken jointly by the Judicial Appointments Commission, the Law Society, the Bar Council and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives has found that members perceive nearly all aspects of judicial office as increasingly appealing.

In moves to offer greater flexibility to students, The University of Law will launch a four-year, part-time law degree from September, while The City law School has unveiled an online LLM In International Business Law for distance learners.

The SRA has released its Training for Tomorrow policy paper, which among other things promises "radical" reforms to the current education and training system and an end to the "one-size-fits-all" approach to solicitors' qualification.

UK top 20 firm DWF has launched a new legal apprenticeship scheme in partnership with BPP University Law School.

Chief executive of the Legal Services Board (LSB), Matthew Hill, talked about diversity during a plenary session at the Law Society’s Junior Solicitors Network summit, stating that diversity at partnership level at the biggest law firms “ought to be a national scandal”.

London-headquartered law firm Osborne Clarke LLP has spun out its AI-driven regulatory monitoring business, Justima, as a standalone company. 

Some 12 City firms have been named among this year’s top 100 LGBT-friendly employers by leading equality charity Stonewall. 

Criminal legal aid fees are set to increase by the end of September, as the government revealed plans to “lay a statutory instrument in parliament before 21 July, to begin the process of implementing increases to fees”. 

Long since labelled a ‘male-dominated industry’, the legal profession is having its gendered division challenged by women solicitors joining at three times the rate of men.

The Ministry of Justice has published new proposals to ensure that barristers and other advocates receive fair pay when they work on publicly funded criminal cases.

The Law Society has requested a two-week break for non-custody cases as concerns about the health and safety of court users emerge.