Legal Services Board
Public supports stronger ongoing competence checks for lawyers
There is near unanimity among the public that lawyers should have to demonstrate more actively than now that they remain competent throughout their careers, the Legal Services Board has found.
LSB: Bar regulator “put interests of profession ahead of the public”
The Bar Standards Board places “a disproportionate weight on the impact of its work on the profession” and pays insufficient regard to the impact on the public, the Legal Services Board said today.
Lawyers should have to take competence tests “every 10 years”
Lawyers should have to take online tests every 10 years to prove that they remain competent in their specialist fields, the chair of the Legal Services Consumer Panel said yesterday.
LSB praises “impressive progress” made by smallest regulator
The Legal Services Board has commended the “impressive progress” made by the Costs Lawyer Standards Board – the smallest of the legal regulators – in meeting its performance framework.
Plan for single register of all regulated and unregulated legal providers
A digital register of regulated and unregulated legal services providers would be “the simplest solution” to improve consumer navigation of the market, the Legal Services Board has said.
LSB eyes accreditation scheme for comparison websites
The Legal Services Board is set to recommend an accreditation scheme for review and comparison websites as take-up among both law firms and consumers continues to rise.
Signs of progress at Legal Ombudsman, figures show
Performance at the Legal Ombudsman is finally improving, with more cases being closed, but dealing with the backlog is only lengthening wait times for new complainants.
International innovation to inform ongoing competence reform
New forms of intervention introduced in other countries to ensure the ongoing competence of lawyers – such as annual assessments and greater self-reflection – will influence reform in England and Wales.
LSB diversity report finds multiple failings by regulators
Measures taken by frontline legal regulators to improve diversity and inclusion are insufficient and based on inadequate evidence, according to a report published today.
Anger over proposed ‘good faith’ rule for immigration lawyers
Government plans to impose a ‘good faith’ requirement on immigration lawyers have been strongly attacked by solicitors and barristers, while the Legal Services Board has also questioned it.
Blog
Change in regulator shouldn’t make AML less of a priority
While SRA fines for AML have been climbing, many in the profession aren’t confident they will get any relief from the FCA, a body used to dealing with a highly regulated industry.
There are 17 million wills waiting to be written
The main reason cited by people who do not have a will was a lack of awareness as to how to arrange one. As a professional community, we seem to be failing to get our message across.
The case for a single legal services regulator: why the current system is failing
From catastrophic firm collapses to endemic compliance failures, the evidence is mounting that the current multi-regulator model is fundamentally broken.
