A Cardiff personal injury firm has been told not to repeat a radio advertisement that encouraged people to make it ‘the second person’ they call after an accident. The Advertising Standards Authority said Secure Law’s advertisement was irresponsible and carried the implicit message that listeners should make a claim irrespective of injury.

Court to resist secret sessions

The Supreme Court said it will resist any future government pressure for it to hold secret sessions. A judgment overturned Treasury sanctions against an Iranian bank, Bank Mellat, in a case involving the court’s first and only secret hearing.

‘Appellate courts should be robust about acceding to applications to go into closed session or even to look at closed material,’ Lord Neuberger, the court’s president, said.

Make CMCs unlawful, says Hudson

The activities of claims management companies should be made unlawful, the chief executive of the Law Society, Desmond Hudson, told the House of Commons Transport Committee. The committee is investigating whiplash injuries and the cost of motor insurance.

QS appoints chief executive

QualitySolicitors has appointed management consultant Ian Wheeler as chief executive, as the law firm network’s franchise deal with WHSmith comes to an end. Founder and former chief executive Craig Holt has become president.

Malaysia lifts ‘fly in’ prohibition

The Malaysian Bar Council has confirmed that the prohibition on foreign lawyers flying in and out of Malaysia to provide legal services will be lifted. At a meeting with Law Society officials and representatives of international law firms in Kuala Lumpur on 10 June, the council confirmed that the Legal Profession Amendment Act 2012 will be amended to remove the ban from next January.

Complaints counsel

The Legal Ombudsman is running a CPD course on complaints handling to help firms understand how it investigates complaints and looking at best practice for internal complaint handling procedures.

Tips on new cost regime

Insight for litigators into how to make the controversial new costs regime work will be offered by experts at a London Solicitors Litigation Association panel discussion on Wednesday (26 June). Five leading experts including David Mackie QC will discuss ‘Putting a price on costs: budgeting under the new regime’.

Tickets (£30 for members, £35 for non-members) are available from leeanne.price@russell-cooke.co.uk. 

Support for overseas rules

The Law Society has backed SRA proposals for new rules for overseas practice, saying the current regime ‘can yield illogical results in terms of who is captured by regulation’. The new rules, described as ‘sensible and proportionate’, will appear in the October update of the SRA Handbook.

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