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13 February 2019 / Jeffrey Catanzaro
Issue: 7828 / Categories: Features , Profession , Technology
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Blockchain: under lock & key?

It’s not a question of if but when this new technology will start to transform law firms, so the time to prepare is now, says Jeffrey Catanzaro

Blockchain has the power to revolutionise so many sectors in so many ways, and it is likely we will continue to read more and more about this technology and its practical applications in 2019.

For example, blockchain is being used to track the provenance of food, to ensure it is what it says on the label: the technology can prove an onion has been grown organically, or that a piece of fish used in your sushi is sustainable. In the financial world, blockchain has the potential to be a gamechanger by creating more secure transactions, and it also forms the basis for cryptocurrencies. The music industry is using blockchain to stamp out illegal downloads and ensure artists are properly compensated. The automotive sector is utilising the platform to manage supply chains and track vehicles. You get the picture: blockchain can transform most sectors

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

Commercial property and child law teams expand with senior hires

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Set expands London and Singapore offering with senior international disputes hires

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Firm strengthens real estate and litigation teams with partner promotions

NEWS
Behind the profession’s polished exterior, lawyers are ‘internally drained rather than physically tired’, according to a stark assessment of burnout in legal practice
Five years after the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 came into force, concerns remain that the family courts continue to minimise allegations of abuse in child contact disputes
Uber has built a formidable strategy for insulating itself from liability for drivers’ conduct, but the legal terrain differs sharply between the US and England and Wales
The Civil Justice Council’s review of Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974 could mark the end of what one commentator calls an ‘outdated’ and overly technical regime governing solicitor-client fee disputes
The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026 marks a constitutional watershed by severing the centuries-old link between hereditary titles and automatic membership of the upper chamber
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