Latest legal news

The number of reported defamation cases rose from 70 to 86 over the last year, pushed up by a substantial growth in those relating to social media. | 12yrs

DLA Piper has been sued by Facebook and its creator Mark Zuckerberg in relation to the firm's representation of Paul Ceglia in a case against the social media giant in 2010. | 12yrs

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld has won over 21 junior lawyers from Bingham McCutchen and taken on Bingham's City centre lease. | 12yrs

RoboLaw, a consortium of Italian lawyers and experts, has begun examining the legal issues for cases in which driverless cars and other robots become involved in accidents. | 12yrs

Leigh Day is facing allegations of 'fraudulently' inflating a compensation bill in the run-up to last year's agreement by the British Foreign Office to pay £19.9 m in a settlement compensation over the Mau Mau uprising. | 12yrs

China is expected to announce reforms this weeks which would reduce the influence of Communist Party and local officials on court cases. | 12yrs

An English judge has warned of a 'nightmare' scenario in which a Malaysian/English divorce ends up being heard in both territories. | 12yrs

London-based Nabarro partner Robin Baillie, a specialist in infrastructure, is joining Squire Patton Boggs, along with two associates. | 12yrs

Law firms, among the most generous political donors in the US, are giving some 35% less than in the 2010 mid-term polls. | 12yrs

There are at least 15 US law firms offering higher salaries to newly-qualified lawyers in London than the Magic Circle in the 2014/15 pay year. | 12yrs

Bird & Bird is to open next month in Australia, with a headcount of 42, through a merger with technology boutique practice Truman Hoyle. | 12yrs

A 40-year Missouri lawyer has been sentenced to 44 months in prison after a series of misdemeanours including drink driving, leaving his practice in disarray and stealing from his mother. | 12yrs

Female lawyers are continuing to earn less than their male colleagues and are not promoted at the same rate as men. | 12yrs

M&A deals are soaring in comparison with the figures for 2013, according to an analysis by Allen & Overy. | 12yrs

The ruling BJP party in India has made its first comments on the status of foreign law firms when a spokeswoman said that protection would be extended for local firms. | 12yrs

Pacific Lawyers, an affiliation of law firms in Hawaii, the Philippines and other locations, is joining ALFA International, the global network. | 12yrs

The 1,000-lawyer, international practice Holland & Knight is to defend claims from a former senior partner that he has been underpaid by US$1.5m. | 12yrs

The American Bar Association has criticised the proposals which would impact firms with $10m or more annual gross receipts. | 12yrs

Hogan Lovells has recruited a senior associate, Jeff Olson, from Allen & Overy, and is appointing him as its first partner on the ground in Vietnam. | 12yrs