12 August 1996

Manches & Co advised a consortium led by London & International Projects on its investment in Greenwich Metal Company which was formed to acquire scrap metal business in Greenwich.

DJ Freeman acted for Ralph Lauren in acquiring the lease of 1-5 New Bond Street, London, from a subsidiary of Chesterfield. The building will house the new UK and European retail headquarters of Ralph Lauren.

Law Society president Tony Girling and senior Chancery Lane staff have called for measures to allow law firms to raise cash by selling shares on the stock market in a bid to compete with accountancy firms. Girling promoted the idea at the American Bar Association’s Orlando conference. But many of the international Bar leaders reacted […]

US LAWYERS have agreed to a New York pilot project to make it easier for English lawyers to practice in the US. The agreement was forged between the American Bar Association (ABA) and the Law Society at a pre-arranged private meeting at Orlando, Florida, during the convention. At the meeting, ABA executive director Robert Stein […]

Helen Sage reports South Herefordshire District Council is embroiled in a row with the district auditor’s office over an unpaid solicitor’s bill of about £90,000. The sum, which is owed by the council to sole practitioner David Barry, includes solicitor fees, counsel fees and agent fees for representing members of a Ross-on-Wye Sports Centre Association […]

From every point of view, the recent proposals unveiled by Aclec would, if adopted unamended, completely change the process of preparation for a career in both branches of the legal profession. However, these proposals could prove to be of value to law firms. Undergraduate education Currently, every law student looking to enter the profession must […]

Law firms which refuse to consider alternatives to hourly billing will end up ‘dodos’, billing guru Richard Reed told a seminar of US lawyers. Speaking at the ABA convention Reed revealed that 78 per cent of US firms surveyed last year were looking at introducing alternative billing methods. He said: “Firms that are following the […]

Racial discrimination is still widespread in the criminal justice system, according to a joint study by the National Association of Probation Officers and the Association of Black Probation Officers. The report reveals that black people are markedly under-represented as employees in all agencies, except the CPS and the probation services. There are no black High […]

A solicitors disciplinary tribunal has criticised the Solicitors Complaints Bureau for allowing a clerk to take the public blame for his firm’s breach of Law Society rules. In its recent judgment of the conduct of Peter Elvidge, former clerk at Plymouth-based Howard & Over, the tribunal asked why the firm’s partners had not also been […]

Advocacy training for English pupil barristers has recently been revolutionised by a method of training introduced by the Australian judiciary. It has been adapted and developed by the Inns of Court and now forms the basis of continuing education for pupils. The philosophy of the method is simple. It acknowledges that the best way to […]

John Bryan, former financial adviser to the Duchess of York, has been declared bankrupt, and owes £9,487 to City law firm Penningtons. A bankruptcy order issued at the High Court in London gave Bryan 21 days to detail bank accounts and other financial affairs to meet debts totalling £60,000.

THE LAW Society faces calls from over 150 solicitors’ practices to follow the success of Scottish solicitors in reclaiming the housing market by setting up joint property groups. But the prospect of any English scheme could be threatened by a Monopolies and Mergers Commission investigation into the Scottish groups after complaints from estate agents of […]