The disagreement over the exact meaning of the solicitors’ professional indemnity aggregation clause has received further comment by the Supreme Court. The ruling provides greater clarity for solicitors about when similar professional indemnity insurance claims can be aggregated together into…read more
Solicitor fails to force insurer to indemnify £4.65m mortgage fraud
A Solicitor has failed in her attempt to force an insurer to pay out a £4.65m professional indemnity insurance claim, following a mortgage fraud. The court found that the solicitor had acted dishonestly which prevented her from pursuing a claim…read more
Appeal court overturns £2m negligence claim against City firm
City law firm, Lewis Silkin has escaped a £2 million negligence award after the Court of Appeal ruled that the client’s loss was outside the solicitor’s scope of duty. Lewis Silkin’s former client, Timothy Wright, claimed that he had missed…read more
Claimant could not call witnesses after solicitor missed deadline
A claimant was unable to call any witnesses in a negligence case against an insurance broker after its solicitor failed to serve witness statements on time. The Court of Appeal has decided that a judge’s ruling preventing the witnesses evidence…read more
Northern Rock brings £100m claim against Eversheds
Northern Rock Asset Management (NRAM) is suing international law firm, Eversheds, in a claim worth £100m. NRAM says it became liable to refund all the charges and interest it had charged to borrowers on loans following negligent advice from Eversheds….read more
SRA data signals new attempt to reform solicitors’ professional indemnity insurance
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has published new claims data as part of its attempt to reform the minimum terms for solicitors’ professional indemnity insurance (PII). It shows that ninety eight per cent of solicitors’ PII claims are settled for…read more
Lawyers blunders should be made public says SRA
Information about solicitors past mistakes may be made available to comparison websites, says the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The regulator is looking at long-term strategic solutions to help consumers choose their solicitors. “The sort of information we’re looking at publishing…read more
Tell clients how to complain warns Legal Ombudsman
Most law firms are failing in their duty to tell their clients about their right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman new research has found. Only two out of ten people who complained to the Ombudsman were told about the…read more
Clearly defined client instructions protect firm against negligence claims
Clearly defining and recording clients’ instructions can protect lawyers against litigious clients. Law firm Wright Hassall recently had a negligence claim against them thrown out by the Court after they proved that their client’s instructions had been clearly set out…read more
Solicitor rapped over negligent will
Failure to check a client’s intentions about her will left a solicitor in hot water. The beneficiaries were left £62,500 short of the inheritance they expected and accused the lawyer of negligence. The solicitor settled out of court but was…read more
