The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) has launched a three month consultation on creating a new arbitration scheme to settle defamation, privacy and other civil legal disputes with the press.
Continue reading “Press watchdog looks at new arbitration body to handle media claims”
The Bar is set to avoid further reductions in advocacy fees as the Ministry of Justice confirmed that it would make further cuts to criminal legal aid but for solicitors only – a move condemned by The Law Society which said it was ‘deeply concerned not only for the immediate future of the justice system but for its continued survival.’
An interesting battle is raging in Scotland on levels large and small. In early May, the Scottish National Party (SNP) swept to victory in 56 of the 59 seats available to it in the General Election and party leader Nicola Sturgeon pressed prime minister David Cameron to revisit the draft legislation on devolving more powers to Holyrood.
Continue reading “Comment: Be wary of vaulting ambition as competition ramps up in Scotland”
Devolution, nationalism and the dramatic shake-up in its political landscape – it’s been another turbulent period for Scots law firms.
In the early hours of 8 May, Alex Salmond, the former leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), delivered his victory speech after being returned to Westminster as MP for the constituency of Gordon, Aberdeenshire, ousting the Liberal Democrats from the seat.
‘There’s going to be a lion roaring tonight, a Scottish lion, and it’s going to roar with a voice that no government of whatever political complexion is going to be able to ignore,’ he declared.
An interesting battle is raging in Scotland on levels large and small. In early May, the Scottish National Party (SNP) swept to victory in 56 of the 59 seats available to it in the General Election and party leader Nicola Sturgeon pressed prime minister David Cameron to revisit the draft legislation on devolving more powers to Holyrood. Bolstered by a suddenly soaring national profile, the SNP leader claimed the proposed reforms were not in the spirit of the Smith Commission’s recommendations following the referendum on independence last year. Entente cordiale persists, but there’s an undercurrent of tension on both sides as the 300-year-old union has never looked under more pressure.
This tussle will continue for some time yet as, although the SNP hasn’t pushed for a second independence referendum, that threat will never be far from the table. The UK government might take a more phlegmatic approach and give the SNP exactly what it is asking for… and more. Cameron has been reportedly pressed by some senior Tories to call Sturgeon’s bluff and put full fiscal autonomy on the table, believing the SNP may baulk as that would leave the Scots on the hook for budget collection and cuts as well as spending, potentially leaving the Scots government with an £8bn hole in its budget.
Continue reading “Be wary of vaulting ambition as competition ramps up in Scotland”
It is reported that the government’s EU Referendum Bill will be published the day after the Queen’s Speech – see, for example, The Guardian 19 May. This Bill will not be the first Bill to seek a referendum but, this time, it is a government commitment and was a clear manifesto commitment.
Continue reading “Guest post: An EU referendum Bill – what would it entail?”
Associates are set to gain whoever wins
Law firm partners at major City firms are facing the prospect of a substantive hike in tax if the Labour Party forms a government in this month’s general election with current manifesto pledges expected to see many partners at Legal Business 100 firms with a five-figure increase in their annual tax bill.
Under Labour’s policy, the 45p rate of income tax will be raised to 50p for people earning over £150,000. According to numbers produced by Baker Tilly, this means that a partner earning £1m will pay £500,590 in income tax and national insurance – £42,060 more than the 2015/16 tax rate that currently stands at £458,530.
Continue reading “Partners at top firms to pay £42k more under Labour tax plans”
As the UK heads to the polls for the general election, senior legal figures provide their views on the current mood in the City.
TAXING ISSUE
‘There is an undercurrent of disenchantment. People have gone through a period when living standards have been static or have even fallen in real terms. They are upset and worried about the future. They are worried about the future of the economy, the health service and what’s going to happen with education, and why their children can’t afford a house. But saying we will introduce a mansion tax is not the answer.’
David Ereira, finance partner, Linklaters
Two weeks ago, Labour pledged to tax as income the performance fees (known as the ‘carried interest’) paid to certain investment managers. This rather than the much lower capital gains tax rate enjoyed hitherto. The pledge followed Labour’s promise, earlier in the week, to remove the centuries old non-dom tax break and, last month, to restrict pension tax relief for high earners.
The Law Society today (27 April 2015) published its Annual Statistics Report 2014, showing that while the number of solicitors rose, returning to growth in 2014 after dipping in 2013, and those graduating with a law degree reached record highs, the number of training contracts continued to fall.
