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Health assessment

18 March 2011 / Josh Bottomley
Issue: 7457 / Categories: Opinion
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The last few years have seen significant changes to the legal market. Increased competition from high street names such as the Co-operative and Halifax...

The last few years have seen significant changes to the legal market. Increased competition from high street names such as the Co-operative and Halifax, as well as the economic consequences of the credit crunch have led clients to look hard at the cost of pursuing legal remedies. In addition the Legal Services Act, changes to legal aid, and the government’s review of the cost of civil litigation, will all equate to the equivalent of the City’s “Big Bang” in the 1980s in the next 12–18 months.

High street lawyers working for small businesses and individuals have faced the greatest challenge. They are the firms that offer services on conveyancing, wills and probate, personal injury, family law, and standard employment and commercial contracts. They have tight margins and tend to be reliant on one or two areas of business. These firms face a stark choice: evolve or continue down a path that could lead

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Muckle LLP—Rachael Chapman

Muckle LLP—Rachael Chapman

Sports, education and charities practice welcomes senior associate

Ellisons—Carla Jones

Ellisons—Carla Jones

Partner and head of commercial litigation joins in Chelmsford

Freeths—Louise Mahon

Freeths—Louise Mahon

Firm strengthens Glasgow corporate practice with partner hire

NEWS
One in five in-house lawyers suffer ‘high’ or ‘severe’ work-related stress, according to a report by global legal body, the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC)
The Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO’s) plea for a budget increase has been rejected by the Law Society and accepted only ‘with reluctance’ by conveyancers
Overcrowded prisons, mental health hospitals and immigration centres are failing to meet international and domestic human rights standards, the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) has warned
Two speedier and more streamlined qualification routes have been launched for probate and conveyancing professionals
Workplace stress was a contributing factor in almost one in eight cases before the employment tribunal last year, indicating its endemic grip on the UK workplace
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