header-logo header-logo

05 June 2019
Issue: 7843 / Categories: Legal News , Profession , Legal services
printer mail-detail

Big Four v Big Law

Law firms are under ‘sustained attack’ from accountancy firms, a report claims

It cites research showing the Big Four accountancy firms―Deloitte, PwC, KPMG and EY―could draw annual revenue of £23.5bn from legal services, and that PwC currently has 3,600 lawyers.

Prism, a managed IT service provider, which published the report, ‘Enhanced productivity for the legal sector’, this week, found that two-thirds of law firms are ‘concerned’ about the threat posed by accounting firms and others, and 45% consider them to be a ‘major threat’. It notes that commoditisation of legal work and pressure from clients for better deals has ramped up cost pressures on law firms.

Millennial clients, in particular, it says, ‘put a high value on customer experience and are only willing to hire for a fixed fee’, and they want seamless remote contact.

Prism also cites research showing 2.3 hours per week are lost searching for but not finding past emails and documents. This may cost some law firms more than £50,000 per lawyer per year.

 

Issue: 7843 / Categories: Legal News , Profession , Legal services
printer mail-details

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Kennedys—Milan Devani

Kennedys—Milan Devani

Chief information officer appointment strengthens technology leadership

Maguire Family Law—Hannah Barlow & Sophie Hughes

Maguire Family Law—Hannah Barlow & Sophie Hughes

Firm strengthens Wilmslow team with two solicitor appointments

DWF—Ian Plumley

DWF—Ian Plumley

Londoninsurance and reinsurance practice announces partner appointment

NEWS
The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
back-to-top-scroll