Pulse UK

  • May 15, 2026

    SRA Records 58% Jump In Misconduct Reports In 2 Years

    The Solicitors Regulation Authority said Friday that it has recorded a 58% increase in misconduct reports over the last two years as it seeks higher fees to strengthen its capacity to regulate the profession and improve protection for consumers.

  • May 15, 2026

    Retailer Hit With Cost Penalty Over Contempt Of Court Threat

    A London court has ordered a discount retailer to pay indemnity costs to a Chinese electronic-cigarette business for falsely accusing the Chinese company of contempt of court in an attempt to gain leverage in a trademark dispute.

  • May 15, 2026

    Ex-Chair Of Law Firm Group Fights £1.1M Guarantee Claim

    The former executive chair of the collapsed Metamorph Group of law firms has said he does not owe approximately £1.1 million ($1.5 million) to two insurers under personal guarantees, arguing that money he authorized for release to them discharged his obligations.

  • May 15, 2026

    Law Firm Keystone To Return £1.5M To Shareholders

    Keystone Law kicked off a £1.5 million ($2 million) program to repurchase shares from investors on Friday after reporting higher revenue and amid growth in the number of lawyers at the firm.

  • May 14, 2026

    Barrister Loses Bid To Overturn £15K Fine Tied To Tax Row

    A London court has maintained a £15,000 ($20,100) fine imposed on a barrister after he sent a barrage of emails accusing HMRC and a caseworker of colluding to sabotage his tax appeal, backing a disciplinary panel's findings of misconduct.

  • May 14, 2026

    Spurs Hires Lawyer From Sports Boutique Northridge

    Tottenham Hotspur FC has hired a new in-house lawyer from sports boutique Northridge who worked on the sale of Chelsea FC and the partnership between Spotify and FC Barcelona.

  • May 14, 2026

    Reed Smith Adds Ex-Pinsent Masons IP Pro In Munich

    Reed Smith LLP has recruited a former partner at Pinsent Masons LLP in Germany to add to its intellectual property and life sciences offering in Europe.

  • May 14, 2026

    BP Deputy General Counsel To Join Rio Tinto As CLO

    Mining business Rio Tinto said Thursday it has appointed BP's deputy general counsel as its new chief legal officer for governance and corporate affairs.

  • May 14, 2026

    Pogust Goodhead's Brazil Shipwreck Case Struck Out

    A judge struck out on Thursday a claim brought by Pogust Goodhead on behalf of approximately 18,000 Brazilians over pollution caused by a shipwreck, after the law firm's authority to bring the action was thrown into doubt.

  • May 14, 2026

    Freshfields Taps Private Capital Co-Head For New UK Chief

    Freshfields LLP appointed a new managing partner for the U.K. on Thursday, naming private capital partner Victoria Sigeti as successor to Mark Sansom.

  • May 14, 2026

    Legal Sector Revenue Hits Record £5.6B High In March

    The U.K. legal industry posted revenue of approximately £5.6 billion ($7.6 billion) in March, according to official statistics released Thursday, making it the highest-ever monthly figure the sector has recorded.

  • May 14, 2026

    Burness Paull Posts Record £100M Turnover On Growth Push

    Burness Paull said Thursday that it has posted record turnover of more than £100 million ($135 million) and that profit and partner profits have also hit new highs in the first 12 months of the Scottish law firm's three-year strategy for growth.

  • May 14, 2026

    Freeths Settles £5M Claim Over Advice On Soured Quarry Deal

    Freeths has reached a settlement in its £5 million ($6.8 million) negligence dispute with a litigation-funder at a London court, swerving claims that its advice caused the owner of a quarrying business to lose his company.

  • May 13, 2026

    Dentons Hires Europe Head Of Legal Tech Enablement

    Ana Burbano, a legal operations and technology expert, announced on Wednesday that she has been hired as head of legal tech enablement for the European region at global law firm Dentons.

  • May 13, 2026

    Akin Adds 4 PE Attys From Sidley, Gains New Practice Head

    Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP announced Wednesday that it has welcomed four private equity attorneys to its New York and London offices, with three returning to the firm, including one who will lead the private equity practice.

  • May 13, 2026

    Carta Buys AI-Native Law Firm Avantia To Target PE Market

    U.S.-based private markets fintech company Carta said Wednesday that it has acquired U.K. law firm Avantia Law Ltd. in a move that enables it to offer artificial intelligence-powered legal and compliance services to private equity and venture capital firms.

  • May 13, 2026

    Ex-BDB Pitmans Client Challenges Denial Of Fee Protections

    A former client of BDB Pitmans urged a London appellate court on Wednesday to overturn rulings that their agreement for contentious work with the firm did not meet the requirements for statutory protections.

  • May 13, 2026

    Gov't Draws Funders' Ire After Avoiding PACCAR Again

    Litigation-funding companies said Wednesday that they were "deeply disappointed" by the absence in the King's Speech of legislation to reverse the effects of a landmark ruling that upended their business model.

  • May 13, 2026

    Stephenson Harwood Sues Bulgari Jewelry Heiress Over Debt

    Stephenson Harwood has sued a member of the Bulgari family, upping the stakes in her fight against another jewelry heiress over a $130 million family trust. 

  • May 13, 2026

    Fletchers Group Hires 42 From Freeths In Practice Expansion

    Fletchers Group said Wednesday that it has acquired the clinical negligence and Court of Protection teams of another English law firm as it continues to expand its coverage across the country.

  • May 13, 2026

    Eversheds Sutherland Hires 2 Partners In Dublin, Belfast

    Eversheds Sutherland has hired two new partners in Dublin and Belfast, continuing its expansion after the firm integrated its Irish operations into its international business in 2025.

  • May 13, 2026

    Sweden's AGRD Taps Icelandic Firm As It Eyes Expansion

    Swedish legal services group AGRD Partners said on Wednesday that it has acquired a leading Icelandic law firm, marking the group's first move outside Sweden as part of a plan for expansion that could reach the U.K.

  • May 13, 2026

    Ex-TLT Employee Barred Over 'Sexually Motivated' Conduct

    A former facilities assistant at TLT LLP has been barred from working for another law firm after making unwanted advances toward junior female staff, which the Solicitors Regulation Authority has described as "a clear and calculated pattern of behavior."

  • May 12, 2026

    Law Society Says AI Court Guidance Lags Behind Rising Use

    The Law Society said Tuesday that it broadly supports greater transparency around court documents that have been prepared using artificial intelligence, but warned that new disclosure rules alone are insufficient without proper guidance, training and governance.

  • May 12, 2026

    Morgan Lewis Hires Covington Partner To Lead Europe M&A

    Morgan Lewis said Tuesday that it has recruited a partner from Covington & Burling LLP in London to lead the firm's European M&A practice.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Macfarlanes' Andrew Barton

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    Andrew Barton, head of the insurance team at Macfarlanes, discusses the challenges of conducting a transaction under Indian foreign direct investment rules, why the Draft Insurable Interest Bill should be followed through, and how the defined benefit pensions risk transfer space has become the fastest growing insurance market in the world.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From CRS' Sarah Wigington

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    Sarah Wigington, head of CRS' U.K. corporate team, discusses the challenges of conducting a joint venture with numerous moving parts that had to land at precisely the same moment, how simplification of corporate reporting and disclosure obligations would help midmarket businesses, and why ESG factors are now a threshold issue.

  • PE's Path In UK Legal Market Offers Playbook For US Firms

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    The U.K. offers 14 years' worth of data on private equity's involvement in the legal market, demonstrating for U.S. firms what worked, what didn’t and why, and illustrating several lessons about operational readiness, cultural fit and timing, says Tom Lenfestey at The Law Practice Exchange.

  • Lack Of Associate Pay Progression May Leave Firms Exposed

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    Willkie’s recent salary increases for newly qualified lawyers in London made headline news, but the more important issue is how firms pay midlevel associates, since allowing pay progression to lag materially risks undermining the cohort firms rely on to sustain client relationships and train the next generation, says Adam Stocker at Major Lindsey.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Wedlake Bell's Adam Grant

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    Adam Grant, head of employment at Wedlake Bell, discusses the challenges of persuading a business to offer employees greater support when it makes large-scale redundancies, the need for new guidance on returning data subject access requests to their intended purpose, and how economic uncertainty with less job security may lead to more office presence.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Willkie's Gavin Gordon

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    Willkie's chair of European private equity, Gavin Gordon, discusses the challenges of conducting a merger across differing time zones and in a complex regulatory environment, how clients are frustrated by the growing impact of antitrust filings, and why there is a mismatch on valuation expectation between buyers and sellers.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From CRS' Dewdney Drew

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    Dewdney Drew, head of brand protection at Charles Russell Speechlys, discusses the challenges of working on a firm's rebrand under time pressure, how the process to simplify U.K. design protection is under way, and why lawyers need to harness the power of artificial intelligence.

  • What UK, EU Law Firms Can Do To Rectify Gender Inequality

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    The latest figures show that elite international law firms remain among the weakest performers on gender equality in the legal industry, demonstrating that equity is no longer external to the practice of law, and sits within the core responsibilities of those who steward trust in courts and governments, says Govindi Deerasinghe at Global 50/50.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Jones Day's Vica Irani

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    Vica Irani, co-leader of Jones Day's corporate practice, discusses the challenges of assisting a multinational client with divesting its Russian operations at the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war, why greater harmonization across borders would be beneficial, and the increase in regulatory scrutiny for deals in terms of antitrust and foreign direct investment screening.

  • Why SRA Is Cracking Down On 'No Win, No Fee' Law Firms

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    Harriet Gamper at the Solicitors Regulation Authority discusses the regulator’s recent warning notice concerning "no win, no fee" arrangements in high-volume consumer claims, aimed at offering lawyers clarity in understanding their obligations following findings that many law firms were failing in their duty to protect clients' best interests.

  • Why UK Criminal Court Changes Need To Be Systemic

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    The proposals in the second part of Brian Leveson's long-anticipated independent review of criminal courts, aimed at easing pressure on the criminal justice system and restoring public confidence, are broadly welcomed, but without structural change and sustained funding, they risk becoming little more than temporary fixes, says Vicky Lankester at Brett Wilson.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Stewarts' Aaron Le Marquer

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    Aaron Le Marquer, Stewarts' head of insurance, discusses the challenges of conducting defamation proceedings in Thailand, why the minimal impact of the Insurance Act 2015 is disappointing, and how working in diverse environments provides a more holistic understanding of the way insurance works.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Skadden's Deborah Kirk

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    Deborah Kirk, Skadden's head of intellectual property and technology, discusses the challenges of cross-disciplinary collaboration on a transaction, how the proliferation of artificial intelligence is forcing clients to rethink their IP and data strategies, and why flexibility, curiosity and dynamism are key as a lawyer.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Stewarts' Joseph Lappin

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    Joseph Lappin, head of employment at Stewarts, discusses the challenges of representing barristers with very high IQs, how the employment tribunal system is crying out for proper investment, and the Financial Conduct Authority's inconsistent approach to nonfinancial misconduct.

  • Series

    Practice Leader Insights From Jones Day's Anna Cartwright

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    Anna Cartwright, co-head of Jones Day's real estate practice, discusses the challenges of working on a transaction requiring regulatory expertise from multiple regions, why new regulatory complexities in the real assets sector can introduce risks for clients, and how the convergence of real estate and infrastructure is playing out in asset managers' investment decisions.

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