With Standard and Poor’s hinting at a possible downgrade for the UK, the bad news continues. Many firms are predicting a fall in revenues and profitability although most results have not yet been forthcoming. And surprisingly enough, more layoffs were announced this week with Addleshaws and Blake Lapthorn looking to make some cost savings.

The pinch is also affecting the profession in less obvious ways. The SRA has considered trebling the fee for the solicitors’ compensation fund with growing numbers of claims, many resulting from a sharp increase in the number of practice interventions. Such interventions are a last-resort measure involving the SRA sending in an agent to close a practice on grounds such as dishonesty or death. Elsewhere, The Times reports that lawyers are acually doing rather well out of private schools by recovering unpaid school fees. Veale Wasbrough, the leaders in the niche field of school fee recovery, have apparently seen a 33 per cent increase in the number of claims brought by schools against parents in the last year. And then of course there are the dodgy dealings that keep crawling out of the woodwork. We have seen a number of these already this week – the latest involves a couple of investment consultants arrested by police who are investigating an international fraud involving potential losses of £250 million. Lawyers at the ready.

It’s not all bad news though; more than 4,000 members of the legal profession went for a 10k stroll around London this week on the annual London Legal Sponsored Walk and managed to raise and estimated £380,000; topping last year’s total of £360,000. The money will be used to support the work of the London Legal Support Trust which has legal centres offering free advice to the disadvantaged.

So, as degraded Britain makes its way down the u-bend and our democracy declines from disgrace to farce, it must surely be the case that something will improve soon. The big question is when and if it will get any worse in the meantime. No one has the answer obviously, but as the public cannot be trusted with a general election, this parliment looks like it will remain a sitting duck without an island for the time being. When the chickens finally do come home to roost are some of those ducks going to be grilled by the long arm of the law? And will we end up with Ester and Joanna in charge? We shall see…

Enjoy the bank holiday.