Crispin Passmore
As seen in:
The Guardian,
Educational Studies,
The Times,
Law.com,
Law360,
Legal Cheek,
Mondaq,
The Law Society Gazette,
Legal Futures,
Axiom Insights on Legal Services
Covers:
Legal market, legal education, legal regulation, UK, US and beyond. Use of NDAs, diversity in legal market, consumer and public experience of legal services.
Doesn't Cover:
Beyond legal market issues
legal market geek. consultant to start ups, investors, law firms & global businesses. nothing I say here is my real view, nor anyone else’s probably
Articles by Crispin Passmore
5 Forces Reshaping The Legal World Gradually, Then Suddenly
Daniel Hayter’s articles from Axiom are most popular: with Inhouse Counsel in United States with readers working within the Insurance, Media & Information and Law Firm industries To paraphrase Ernest Hemingway in The Sun Also Rises, transformational change happens in two ways: gradually, then suddenly. The first phase is incremental, prolonged, and often induces complacency.
5 Forces Reshaping the Legal World Gradually, Then Suddenly
To paraphrase Ernest Hemingway in The Sun Also Rises, transformational change happens in two ways: gradually, then suddenly. The first phase is incremental, prolonged, and often induces complacency. The second phase can feel cataclysmic and unexpected to those experiencing it—though, of course, the cracks have been forming for some time.
America’s Private Equity Legal Experiment is Coming for London Law Firms—And Their Clients
Crispin Passmore; Courtesy Photo Two powerful forces reshaping American law firms—external capital and an intensifying war for talent—are crossing the pond, with profound implications for the U.K.’s legal establishment, and more importantly their clients. The first force is the quiet but accelerating entry of private equity into U.S. law.
Three Salient Steps to Attract Private Equity Investors
Who Got The Work J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Competition authority review of unregulated legal advice
Lawyers: don't hold your breath waiting for more regulation Many solicitors will rejoice as the competition watchdog begins an investigation into unregulated will-writers, online divorce and prepaid probate services. They will relish the prospect of the government reserving those activities to regulated lawyers and driving unregulated competition out of the market. But that is not going to happen. The scope of the Competition and Markets Authority investigation is limited.
Axiom Advice & Counsel comes to market
Integration of alternative providers and regulated law The integration of alternative legal services and law firms took another step forward this week with Axiom’s launch of its ABS, Axiom Advice & Counsel, in Arizona and news that it has been given an ABS licence to operate in England & Wales too.
Axiom gains ABS licence in Arizona
Vertical integration and convergence The global legal market continues to evolve with Axiom having acquired an ABS licence in Arizona. This means that they will be able to offer legal services to small and medium sized businesses that do not have a General Counsel. Currently they have a vast array of lawyer talent that is provided as a flexible resource to GCs and law firms.
Litigating UPL in the US
Anyone that has read my blogs over recent years will know that I am not a fan of the overly restrictive regulatory regime in place across the US. The combination of the rules on unauthorised practice of law and the ban on fee sharing mean that lawyers have a monopoly on one of the most significant markets in a modern society and economy. It is a monopoly that has not served the public well. Vast number of ordinary Americans cannot afford basic legal services.
Florida follows Arizona and Utah and moves ahead of the rest
By Crispin Passmore & Zack DeMeola • 17 Feb, 2021 • This blog first appeared [paywall] in Law360 on February 16, 2020 Let's leave the alarmism throughout Austin Bersinger and Nicola Rossi's recent Law360 guest article, " UK Is Proof Non-lawyer Ownership Threatens Legal Profession, " behind and, instead, look to decades of facts, research and experience when discussing regulatory reform. Let us start with the basics.
US legal system can benefit from non-lawyer ownership
This blog first appeared [paywall] in Law360 on February 16, 2020 Let's leave the alarmism throughout Austin Bersinger and Nicola Rossi's recent Law360 guest article, "UK Is Proof Non-lawyer Ownership Threatens Legal Profession," behind and, instead, look to decades of facts, research and experience when discussing regulatory reform. Let us start with the basics. Contrary to the assumption in Bersinger and Rossi's article, there is no U.K. legal or regulatory jurisdiction.
US Legal System Can Benefit From Nonlawyer Ownership - Law360
Law360 (February 16, 2021, 5:35 PM EST) -- Let's leave the alarmism throughout Austin Bersinger and Nicola Rossi's recent Law360 guest article, "UK Is Proof Nonlawyer Ownership Threatens Legal Profession," behind and, instead, look to decades of facts, research and experience when discussing regulatory reform. Let us start with the basics. Contrary to the assumption in Bersinger and Rossi's article, there is no U.K. legal or regulatory jurisdiction.
Regulation, regulators and their role in fostering innovation
By Crispin Passmore • 21 Dec, 2021 • COVID, reform, optimism and brutalist architecture By Crispin Passmore • 16 Aug, 2021 • I have blogged several times on the introduction of Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). I have made the point that SQE shifts power towards trainees and candidates by removing law firm or solicitor control on the number of people that qualify as solicitors.
Nothing has changed and everything has changed
Ten years on what has been achieved? That was one of the themes at the LSB’s summit today where I was honoured to join a panel of illustrious speakers. This blog is a summary of what I covered with some additions for completeness and a nod towards my American friends. When I am talking to US State Bars and Supreme Courts I am often asked what has changed since 2007.
Arizona: leading regulatory reform in the US
By Crispin Passmore • 14 Aug, 2020 • In an historic vote, the Utah Supreme Court voted unanimously on Wednesday to authorise a pilot program to test pioneering changes to the practice of law and changes designed to address the access-to-justice crisis in America. Regulatory reforms pioneered in England & Wales by the Legal Services Board and the Solicitors Regulation Authority, such as fee sharing, non-lawyer ownership and tech led businesses will be allowed under the new regulatory ‘sandbox’.
Outsourcing your COLP
If we had surveyed COLPs across the 10,500 regulated law firms just a couple of months ago I guess that 10,000 would have said that the COLP needs to be in the office to do their job effectively. OK, they could work at home on a Friday, but that is a million miles from genuinely flexible lawyering and having a COLP that is predominantly available online and on the phone.
Flexible lawyering for in house lawyers
We are a few months on from new Standards and Regulations that the Solicitors Regulation Authority launched on 25 November. To recap, these replaced the old SRA Handbook with fewer principles; separate Codes of Conduct for individual solicitors and authorised firms; and shorter and more flexible rules. Perhaps the key aspects of change were that solicitors were enabled to deliver legal services to the public from within businesses that are not regulated by the SRA. What impact has there been?
Is the SRA regulating your private life?
The recent flurry of regulatory investigations and sanctions regarding sexual misconduct by individual solicitors and related poor culture or controls in law firms has led to some interesting and perhaps illuminating debates. Is the SRA extending its regulatory reach? Is it now regulating solicitors’ private lives? Is it regulating things that are criminal offences, and should therefore be left to the criminal justice system? I think these are odd questions to be asking.
Is The SRA Regulating Your Private Life?
Expert Opinion The UK regulator's former executive director, Crispin Passmore, asks whether the organisation is regulating things that are criminal offences and should therefore be left to the criminal justice system. In light of recent sexual misconduct debacles, the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s former executive director, Crispin Passmore, asks whether the regulator is extending beyond its reach?
Arizona calling
A year ago, I was amazed at what felt like sudden progress in California towards rethinking regulation of legal services. I had long watched the American Bar Association tie itself up in knots such as with its study into multi-disciplinary practices at the end of the last century and its later Ethics 20/20 work.
'Get on with it - uncertainty costs'
Last week I delivered the keynote address (and wore a tie) at a packed-out LegalEdCon North, held at The Lowry, Media City, Manchester. There I offered my thoughts and views on the North’s legal scene, new entrants to the market and, of course, the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). It was subsequently published by Legal Cheek. You can read my speech in full below. Its a bit long for a blog but please bear with it! 1. It is an honour to give the keynote address at this important conference.
‘Get on with it - uncertainty costs’, SQE co-creator tells regulators at LegalEdCon North
Crispin Passmore warns against super-exam delay Crispin Passmore delivering the keynote speech at LegalEdCon North at The Lowry Media City, Manchester, last Thursday Consultant and former executive director for policy at the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Crispin Passmore delivered the keynote address at a packed-out LegalEdCon North, held at The Lowry, Media City, Manchester, last Thursday.
How the SQE shifts power from law firms to students
‘No longer can a law firm dangle a training contract in front of paralegals or insist that getting a job in a firm’s onshore centre is not a route to qualifying’ While many incumbents have been trying to stop Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) happening, new entrants and innovators across the legal market have been thinking about how to educate, attract and develop talent in a changing world, writes Crispin Passmore ahead of his appearance at LegalEdCon North later this month Those that...
Our reforms strike the right balance
Legal services matter to everyone. They can help us at some of the most important and potentially vulnerable moments in our life – whether passing money on to loved ones, buying a house, or handling a relationship breakdown. While most people are happy with the service they receive, unfortunately sometimes things can and do go wrong. When this happens, it is crucial that the public are protected. That is why all regulated firms are required to have professional indemnity insurance.
Law firms snub reform at their peril
Walking around the City of London you can stumble across halls that were once home to powerful guilds. Their strength waned after the 1666 great fire when rules were relaxed for seven years to increase the supply of skilled labour. It was hard for the guilds to reintroduce the protectionist restrictions after the benefits of liberalisation had been experienced. Now the livery halls can be a great place for a wedding, but the market has moved on. Something similar is happening in law.
A STAR is born
The 25 November 2019 is an exciting day for me: the SRA's new Standards & Regulations (STARs) go live. It was announced that I was leaving the SRA the day after the LSB approved them and go-live is the culmination of a large part of my career. So excited am I to see them come into force that I have flown to the other side of the world – just so that 25 November starts a little sooner. How much are others excited by these changes?
Your ethics and culture in the STARs
It’s not the SRA that protects the public from rogue solicitors and law firms. It is the ethical choices underpinning the millions of decisions made by lawyers every day when no one is looking. Ethics is personal and while the SRA can set standards, guide conduct and provide the right framework and enforce robustly, it cannot watch over everyone all the time. Nor should it. The SRA’s new Standards & Regulations are designed to incentivise ethical decision making when no one is looking.
Is the US at a tipping point?
I have blogged before (here and here) about the moves in 2019 for re-regulation of lawyers in the United States. California and Utah have made the running this summer, with Arizona and New Mexico alongside them and now Illinois taking up the challenge. New York, are you out there?
Time for SRA to update warning notice on NDAs
The SRA warning notice was a significant step forward in acknowledging the harm that solicitors can do when they misuse their power and status. * But much has changed since early 2018: knowledge on problematic practices is becoming clearer, as are the roadblocks to progress. The Women’s & Equalities Select Committee reported on the need to clean up the use on NDAs in July 2018. It followed this with its June 2019 report specifically on the use of NDAs in discrimination cases.
Utah turns US reform party into a carnival
Less than a year ago the Utah State Bar asked the State Supreme Court to charge two of the state's leading thinkers on regulatory reform to organise a working group to make recommendations about optimising the regulatory structure for legal services in 'the Age of Disruption'. The task force is jointly chaired by Supreme Court Justice Deno Himonas and John Lund (past President of the Bar).
Legal aid: my manifesto
I recently wrote a blog about the future of corporate law and was challenged by Roger Smith to do the same for legal aid. Never one to duck a challenge, I agreed. I’ve been wracking my brains ever since, but it is hard to predict when none of the rules of a normal market appear to exist. Government is the sole purchaser: they decide what they buy - Government constrains price without doubt but also constrains any real competition and the innovation that flows from that.
United States comes to the party
England and Wales has been leading the world in regulatory reform over the last ten or more years. Many global business tell me that this has been instrumental in making the UK the best place to invest in the legal market and site a global legal business or law firm. But the US appears to be recognising the potential and after many false dawns several states are making serious moves. This week the California State Bar issued its options for reform for 60 days of public comment.
Wild predictions from a scary fool?
I was asked by Neville Eisenberg of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner to speak today at the London Legal Market Conference. This blog is a mix of what I planned to say, what I think I might have said in the heat of the moment and what on reflection I wish I had said. It might not be fluent (and lots of is it in note form) but it is more fluent than the live version.
Occasional thoughts on legal market
The Law Society receives around £30m each year from the practising certificate and turnover fees paid by each solicitor and regulated legal business. This money is used to fund the trade association activities that the Law Society focuses on. It explains its core focus as supporting its members but perhaps solicitors should be asking if it is really acting in their interests all the time?
A Good Time to Consult?
Is this a good time to launch a consultancy business? Well in a year’s time I might be able to tell you if it was a good time for me to launch one, but right now I can say it is a good time to be helping legal business think about their present and their future. Technology, pressure from consumers and regulatory reform are all impacting on the law firm model.
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