FORMER London solicitor Geoffrey Beccle has been arrested in connection with a series of alleged property frauds involving former clients and four leading mortgage lenders and worth at least u1 million. No charges have been brought but the police and the Solicitors Complaints Bureau (SCB) are investigating his activities, which are also the subject of […]
Those who practice in the Commercial Court are usually litigating on behalf of one of the top one thousand companies over vast sums of money. By comparison, the legal costs may represent just a small percentage of the sum in dispute. But how cost-effective are some practitioners in doing the best job for their clients? […]
THE JAPANESE criminal justice system needs a complete overhaul, according to the leader of the international barristers’ group. Professor Ross Harper, president of the International Bar Association (IBA), is putting pressure on Japan to reform custody procedures which he says contravene the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The professor has recently returned from […]
DIBB Lupton Broomhead faces possible legal action or a complaint to the Solicitors Complaints Bureau (SCB) from a client. The complaint centres on the Leeds-based firm’s decision to terminate a lawyer’s involvement in a case weeks before a major High Court trial involving millions of pounds. The action is against a company, Milton Medes, over […]
SOUTH Holland Council’s legal section merges with its finance department at the end of the month as the authority divides up into business units. The Lincolnshire council is undertaking a wholesale re-organisation in the run up to the tendering of white collar services, although legal work will not be contracted out. Conveyancing and litigation was […]
A consultation document on privity of contract has been published by the Lord Chancellor’s Department (LCD). The paper seeks views on whether additional changes should be made when Law Commission reforms on landlord tenant law are introduced. Copies of the paper are available from the LCD, 4th Floor, Southside, 105 Victoria St, London, SW1E 6QT.
NORTON Rose has recruited a leading in-house lawyer from France to head its new international securities group. Gilles Thieffry has joined the firm from BNP Capital Markets where he headed the legal department. Thieffry, who has extensive experience in the eurobond markets will spearhead the development of the firm’s business in international capital markets and […]
City banking lawyers were working around the clock to advise worried institutions after the collapse of Barings, London’s oldest merchant banking group, which crashed after losing more than u700 million on derivatives contracts. Literally hundreds of City clients were clamouring for legal advice at every top law firm following the failure by the Bank of […]
* City firm Ince & Co has ordered Elite’s legal billing, nominal and purchase ledger, conflict of interest and marketing systems. They will run on a central Hewlett Packard Unix server integrated with the firm’s front office PC LAN. Andrew Jennings, Ince’s director of finance and IT says: “The only way our requirement for a […]
Robert Lindsay reports Details of deals should be sent to the City editor, Robert Lindsay. Please include all other law firms acting on deals and the value, where possible. Freshfields acted for Nestle SA on its £715m acquisition of Spillers Petfoods from Dalgety, advised by Slaughter and May. Addleshaw Booth & Co acted for the […]
THE LAW Society has welcomed the end of the legal battle which it claims has been conducted “against a background of constant adverse and at times unpleasant publicity”. Head of communications Walter Merricks says the coverage of the case, spanning three decades, has portrayed Peggy Wood as the poor pensioner taking on authority. But Merricks […]
LIVERPOOL firm Bermans has acknowledged the failure of its London venture with the sale of its City office to the team it hired to set it up four years ago. Bermans senior partner Alan Middleton says the firm may not have recouped all its investment with the sale to the London management team headed by […]