Welcome to the Public Law Today/Local Government Lawyer Marketplace Portal.

Here you can find the full range of services that public law departments and lawyers need. For departments, this page provides a directory of specialist legal advisers - including local authority legal departments that provide external services - expert witnesses, consultants, training courses, technology providers and much else besides.

MARKET NEWS Sep 07, 2021 District councils pursue s.113 agreement to continue sharing legal services and other officers following end of wider partnership Sep 06, 2021 LGSS Law becomes Pathfinder Legal Services with target of being “a national leader for local government law” Aug 20, 2021 DAC Beachcroft announces record £17m profit growth in last year Aug 17, 2021 Increased instructions from shareholders and external clients during pandemic lead to surge in profits at council-owned LGSS Law Aug 06, 2021 Local authorities make shortlist for In-House Team of the Year in Law Society Awards 2021 Aug 03, 2021 Bevan Brittan unveils significant increases to revenue and net profit in 2020/21	TENDERS AND INSTRUCTIONS Sep 07, 2021 Freeths advises on project to convert landfill site into community owned solar-farm Aug 30, 2021 DEFRA hands law firm £360k contract for Environment Agency civil litigation cases Aug 23, 2021 County names six law firms to expanded framework for delivery of claims service Aug 17, 2021 Historic England chooses four law firms for £2m legal services panel Aug 13, 2021 North West council to appoint “strategic legal triage project partner” Aug 13, 2021 Crown Commercial Service kickstarts procurement of £80m rail legal services framework
PEOPLE Sep 08, 2021 Bevan Brittan strengthens higher education team with Soundy hire Sep 08, 2021 Irwin Mitchell bolsters Public Law and Human Rights Team with honorary QC hire Sep 06, 2021 Anthony Collins bolsters Manchester office with housing partner hire Sep 03, 2021 Devonshires names head of housing management and property litigation Sep 01, 2021 Three judges appointed to Court of Appeal Sep 01, 2021 Browne Jacobson partner appointed social care sector ambassador for charity	TECHNOLOGY Apr 13, 2021 University legal team considers artificial technology to assist workflow Mar 08, 2021 Sharpe Pritchard launches innovative online local government law platform Feb 10, 2021 Midlands set moves to completely paperless working Jan 06, 2021 Borough council to adopt Lexis Visualfiles case management system Oct 02, 2020 City council to procure case management system in £240k, five to ten-year deal Aug 14, 2020 Thomson Reuters acquires document bundling platform CaseLines
COMMENT AND ANALYSIS Delivering 21st-century customer experience in the public sector Rachel Buchanan examines how legal teams should support their authorities in delivering tailored services at a time of restrained resources. Virtual Training – why didn’t we think of it earlier!? Member development trainer Bethan Evans relives her experiences of switching from face-to-face to online training during lockdown and looks at how they may affect the physical/virtual divide post-pandemic. Striking out in a new direction: Setting up an ABS What does it take to set up a legal services alternative business structure? Hilary Irving of North Yorkshire County Council outlines the risks and rewards. The Company Sec in local government As commercialisation grows, Azhar Ghose outlines the increasing importance of the Company Secretary role within local authorities and offers some tips on how it can be performed. One size does not fit all Offering a one-size-fits-all approach will inevitably undermine the relationships we have with our clients, writes Geoff Wild. Personal philosophies Chris Guy, a former local authority head of legal, sets out how he tried to overcome his weaknesses. Aiming for the top How should you go about securing the position of head of legal at a local authority? Chris Guy shares some thoughts. Understanding the objectives of clients What will make your clients relish the opportunity to work with you again: content or delivery? Geoff Wild considers the issues. Professionalism or mucking in? “Perception is reality, but it’s the clients' perceptions that we have to address, not our own” - Read Geoff Wild's latest blog. Ever decreasing circles Gwendoline Davies, Andrew Northage and Robert Starr analyse the latest case to further limit legal professional privilege. Service standards or service excellence? Service standards could have the effect of lowering expectations of excellence when we should be raising them instead, writes Geoff Wild. Brand values or independent thought? Does having a proper regard for ensuring the right degree of independence make you appear aloof, arrogant and uncaring? Geoff Wild reports. Challenge your perspectives … In the first in a series of articles, Geoff Wild considers how clients assess their lawyers. Better than ever Jayne Francis-Ward, head of EMLawShare, sets out the highlights from the legal services consortium's fifth conference. Helping to define the client With Lawyers in Local Government calling for clarification of who local authority solicitors can act for, Crispin Passmore sets out the Solicitors Regulation Authority's view. Selling your services Iain Miller deals with the question of what is permissible under the SRA's Handbook and the Legal Services Act 2007 for those local authorities looking to sell their services more widely. Lead or follow? The number of in-house counsel in the private sector has boomed as the general counsel role has grown in importance. Paul Cummins looks at the lessons for local government lawyers. Dancing with the devil? Tanya Corsie of Iken Business explains why you should be using technology to improve your service. Improving internal efficiency The LexisPSL Local Government team provide a checklist for a continuous improvement model in the context of contemplating the delivery of shared legal services. The shape of things to come Derek Bedlow looks at the implications of the Legal Department of the Future survey for how legal departments organise, recruit and retain their staff. A short guide to shared legal services The LexisPSL Local Government team explain the background to and advantages and disadvantages of shared legal services in achieving improved cost efficiency within the public sector.