The vast majority of attorneys in the US are required to complete 10 to 15 hours of continuing legal education (“CLE”) every year, an experience well summarized by one attendee’s observation that “[k]nowledge is good, but coerced seat time is wasteful [and] insulting.” The primary rationale for mandatory CLE is to help ensure competent client…
Measuring Legal Service Value
This article proposes a theoretical foundation for measuring legal service value. It aims to support efforts to compare the value of offerings from different law firms, as well as alternative legal service providers. The value of any legal service depends on (i) its effectiveness, (ii) its affordability, (iii) the experience it creates for its clients,…
Results from the ICLR.net member survey
Thank you to the ICLR.net members who took the time to complete the online survey asking for feedback on the ICLR.net website. The key findings were as follows: The most valued features were: the newsletter, the directory of members and the research bank. 90% of respondents said they would like to engage more with ICLR.net…
Request for input: remuneration policy
Motlatsi Barnabas Molefe, Chief Executive Officer of the Attorneys Fidelity Fund South Africa has contacted ICLR.net to request the assistance of fellow ICLR members. They are in the process of reviewing their own remuneration policy and they have been requested by their Remuneration Committee to compare with international trends. They are not looking for salary figures,…
The FATF FinTech and RegTech initiative
At the end of February 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) launched the new FATF FinTech & RegTech initiative platform, to share information about national initiatives and developments relevant to FinTech and RegTech. The FATF policy is to strongly support responsible financial innovation in line with the FATF Standards to tackle money laundering and…
Understanding consumer experiences of conveyancing legal services
Conveyancing is one of the most common legal services people use in their lifetime, with more than one million homes bought and sold every year in the UK. However, there are some concerns about the conduct of some solicitors and the quality of service they are providing, with high proportions of insurance claims and complaints to the…
The legal needs of small businesses 2013-2017
The Legal Services Board (LSB) has published its third research report focusing on the legal needs of small businesses and looking at how their views have changed – and the legal services market has responded – since similar research was conducted in 2013 and in 2015. It is the largest ever survey of small firms’ interactions with the legal…
IBA Report: Women in Commercial Legal Practice
Executive summary The term ‘feminisation of the legal profession’ is often used to describe changes in the legal profession. This is both a misnomer and misleading. Although women generally outnumber men in law schools, and have done so for a decade or more, men still outnumber women in senior positions in law firms. Indeed, women’s…
SRA publishes the findings of its money laundering review
The SRA’s review of 50 firms has shown that although most law firms are doing what is needed to tackle money laundering, some need to do more. The review of firms – large and small – explored the profession’s compliance with the more stringent demands of the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, introduced last June. It also…
ABA issues formal guidance to lawyers on limits of blogging and representation
The American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility has issued Formal Opinion 480 explaining the limitations the Model Rules of Professional Conduct place on lawyers who blog or engage in other social commentary related to a representation. Under Model Rule 1.6(a) a lawyer has a duty of confidentiality. Supporting language to the model rule, known…