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NLJ this week: The rise of sham authorisation & illegal moneylenders

11 October 2024
Issue: 8089 / Categories: Legal News , Procedure & practice , Financial services litigation , Property
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Ne’er a borrower nor a lender be, as the old saying goes. In this week’s NLJ, Fred Philpott, Gough Square Chambers, explores the world of illegal lending, which ruthlessly preys on the desperate & vulnerable

Philpott writes about the recent flourishing of ‘a financial industry whereby some businesses lend money secured on people’s homes without authorisation’. He analyses a Court of Appeal case that illustrates ‘some of the subterfuges that can be used’.

He writes: ‘A recurring theme in these (often tragic) cases is that desperate people will sign anything, no matter how unfair. Thus, misfortune in many cases results in the misery of repossession.’

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Freeths—Ruth Clare

Freeths—Ruth Clare

National real estate team bolstered by partner hire in Manchester

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Farrer & Co—Claire Gordon

Partner appointed head of family team

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

mfg Solicitors—Neil Harrison

Firm strengthens agriculture and rural affairs team with partner return

NEWS
Conveyancing lawyers have enjoyed a rapid win after campaigning against UK Finance’s decision to charge for access to the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has launched a recruitment drive for talented early career and more senior barristers and solicitors
Regulators differed in the clarity and consistency of their post-Mazur advice and guidance, according to an interim report by the Legal Services Board (LSB)
The dangers of uncritical artificial intelligence (AI) use in legal practice are no longer hypothetical. In this week's NLJ, Dr Charanjit Singh of Holborn Chambers examines cases where lawyers relied on ‘hallucinated’ citations — entirely fictitious authorities generated by AI tools
The Solicitors Act 1974 may still underpin legal regulation, but its age is increasingly showing. Writing in NLJ this week, Victoria Morrison-Hughes of the Association of Costs Lawyers argues that the Act is ‘out of step with modern consumer law’ and actively deters fairness
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