Corby: SRA entering its next phase
Caroline Corby, the chair of both the Crown Prosecution Service and the Professional Standards Authority, has been named new chair of the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
She will take on the role on 23 November, succeeding Anna Bradley, whose two three-year terms were extended by a further two in 2024 because the regulator was not in a “steady state”.
Ms Corby, 61, will be paid £105,000 a year and expected to work at least two days a week.
Ms Corby graduated in mathematics and statistics at Bristol University and then worked in the City for 13 years, ending up as the director of a venture capital company. She also served as a non-executive director on multiple company boards.
She took a career break to raise her three daughters, during which time she took up writing and published a series called Before They Were Famous. The six novels were based on the early lives major historical figures: Cleopatra, Boudicca, William the Conqueror, Lady Jane Grey, Pocahontas and Julius Caesar.
Since 2015, Ms Corby has undertaken a number of public appointments, including chairing fitness to practise hearings for several health regulators.
Since 2021, she has chaired the Professional Standards Authority, which oversees 10 health and social care regulators, and has accredited a further 28 registers of other practitioners who are not formally regulated.
She took on the post at the CPS in September 2025, having been chair of the Parole Board for seven years before that.
Other former roles include as a non-executive director of CAFCASS, the Architects Registration Board and the Criminal Cases Review Commission.
She is also currently chair of Peabody, a major housing association, having held roles at smaller housing associations, and deputy chair of the Security Industry Authority.
Ms Corby said: “The UK’s legal services sector is rightly seen as a global leader that supports businesses, strengthens the rule of law and drives confidence in our legal system.
“Strong and effective regulation is fundamental to that success, creating the conditions that drive the public’s trust in legal services.
“I look forward to working with the board, Sarah and colleagues across the organisation as the SRA enters its next phase of becoming a more modern, proportionate, effective and trusted regulator.’
Chief executive Sarah Rapson said: “Caroline brings a wealth of experience in regulation, governance and public protection, as well as a strong track record of leading organisations through change and improvement…
“I would like to thank Anna Bradley for her support and wise counsel since I became chief executive. Her commitment to the organisation and public service has been greatly appreciated, and I wish her every success for the future.”
The recruitment process was carried out by an external agency, with an independent selection panel chaired by senior independent board member Lisa Mayhew, a partner and chair emeritus at City law firm BCLP.
Ms Mayhew said: “Caroline stood out through a highly competitive recruitment process. She combines deep regulatory expertise with a clear commitment to protecting consumers and maintaining public confidence.
“The panel was particularly impressed by Caroline’s experience of guiding transformation across the regulatory landscape and her steadfast commitment to protecting the public. We are confident she will provide outstanding leadership and support the organisation in delivering its ambitious agenda.”
Ms Mayhew praised Ms Bradley for her “dedication and commitment”.
Incoming Law Society president Brett Dixon welcomed Ms Corby to the role, saying her key priorities included “restoring public and solicitor confidence in the regulator”.
He added: “We have been encouraged by the SRA’s new leadership demonstrating a willingness to listen and act when they have got it wrong, and hope this will continue under the new chair of the board.”
During her eight years, Ms Bradley oversaw the introduction of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam but was in the firing line for the SRA’s failures over Axiom Ince, SSB Group and PM Law.
As a result, the SRA is currently under an unprecedented three statutory enforcement measures imposed by the Legal Services Board (LSB) – statutory directions to address its actions over Axiom Ince, and both a public censure and performance targets given what happened with SSB Law.
Infamously, Ms Bradley and then chief executive Paul Philip refused to apologise after the LSB report into Axiom Ince was published, but did so following the SSB report.
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