Legal Ombudsman

The Law Society has told the Legal Ombudsman to ask the government for “Covid-related financial assistance” instead of expecting the profession to fund a proposed 19% budget hike.

The decision on whether to approve a 19% increase in the Legal Ombudsman’s budget is likely to be “finely balanced”, with the possibility of having to find an alternative to it lurking in the background.

The Legal Ombudsman’s first ever in-year call for supplementary budget, seeking an extra £344,000, has gone to the Lord Chancellor for approval after being given the green light by the Legal Services Board.

The Legal Ombudsman is planning a 19% increase in its budget for 2021/22, and a further 6% the year after, arguing the scheme is currently in an “unsustainable position”.

The Legal Ombudsman is set to make its first ever in-year call for supplementary budget, seeking an extra £344,000 to make up in part for previous miscalculations, Legal Futures can reveal.

The Legal Ombudsman has brought in an experienced public services ombudsman and a senior civil servant to lead its management through the next phase of reform.

The Office for Legal Complaints, the governing body of the Legal Ombudsman, has renewed its call for it to be allowed to extend its reach to unregulated legal services providers.

The Legal Ombudsman has warned law firms against making holiday sickness claims without “verifying the version of events” obtained by claims management companies as complaints rise.

The Ministry of Justice is considering whether to create a register of unregulated providers of legal services and give their clients access to redress if things go wrong, it emerged yesterday.

The Legal Ombudsman is to press ahead with plans to publish its full decisions, as well as annual reviews of the most complained-about lawyers and firms, it has decided.