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Professional misconduct and major mergers: What’s hot in law this week (11–15 Nov)
In law this week, a lawyer fessed up to professional misconduct, and one of Australia’s biggest firms merged with a US firm. Here is your weekly round-up of the biggest stories for the legal profession.
Naomi Neilson
For the week from 11 to 15 November, these were the 10 most-read stories on Lawyers Weekly (in case you missed them):
A West Australian lawyer was hit with a professional misconduct finding for lying to his clients and a court.
2. Judge’s ‘copy-and-paste job’ gives Sydney firm a second chance
A Sydney law firm will have another chance to defend itself against alleged breaches of the Fair Work Act because of the “significant” copy-and-pasting in the original judgment.
3. Colleagues of restrained lawyer hit with costs order
Two of the three people involved in the controversial Erudite Legal debacle have been hit with costs orders for conduct that the Legal Services Board described as “frivolous and haphazard”.
4. Supreme Court puts end to lawyer, notorious law firm
A Victorian lawyer has claimed a “conspiracy” against himself, his colleagues, and their controversial law firm was behind the Legal Services Board’s decision not to renew his practising certificate.
5. Herbert Smith Freehills to merge with Kramer Levin
Global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, which has five offices Down Under, is set to merge with US-based firm Kramer Levin, creating a firm with more than 2,700 lawyers and over US$2 billion in revenue, and making it “the largest global law firm in Australia”.
6. EY partner loses legal privilege over termination documents
A sacked Ernst & Young partner accused of promoting three tax exploitation schemes was only partly successful in his bid to prevent the ATO from accessing his emails with colleagues.
7. How this first-year law student landed a job in a law firm
Breaking into the legal profession can be a challenging endeavour, particularly for a law student. Here, Cassidy Pole shares her story of defining these odds and securing a position at a law firm while still in her first year of study.
8. ‘Eye-watering’ legal costs in NT stolen wages class action
The multimillion-dollar legal bill from Shine Lawyers in the Northern Territory stolen wages class action has been criticised by the Federal Court’s Chief Justice for being an “eye-watering sum”.
9. DLA Piper names new Aussie managing partner
Global law firm DLA Piper has appointed a new country managing partner for Australia, who will assume the role in March 2025.
10. Nearly 1 in 10 lawyers plan to leave the profession within the year
New academic research shows there is a concerning number of Australian lawyers planning to leave their current employers, with some even contemplating leaving the legal profession altogether.
Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
You can email Naomi at:
