Legal Services Act

A leading law firm and an accident management company have joined forces to offer insurance companies and brokers a ‘white label’ alternative business structure combining legal and non-legal operations to revolutionise motor claims processes.

City firms’ concerns over the international rejection of alternative business structures can be overcome quite easily, a Legal Services Board study has concluded – but they are not interested in ABSs anyway, confirming the findings of a host of other surveys and reports.

Recognition of the QualitySolicitors brand is registering low among consumers, Law Society research has found, which it says justifies the efforts with its new advertising campaign to ensure the network does not appropriate the word ‘quality’.

The relationship between large law firms and general counsel is likely to evolve in three phases, with the “endgame” around five years away, Professor Richard Susskind has predicted. He also expects the large accountancy firms to return to the arena.

Legal publishing giant LexisNexis has become the latest entrant to the automated document assembly market with the launch of LexisSmart. It will next month be linked up to the company’s LawyerLocator referral service so that customers can seek a lawyer review of documents.

In-deed, the AIM-listed online conveyancing service, may alter its business model after struggling to convert quotes into instructions, its chairman has revealed. Nonetheless, it is preparing to move into wills next year and planning a television advertising campaign.

The first wave of alternative business structures is on the way after the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) opened its doors for applications. The CLC will be able to start licensing ABSs from 6 October.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has strenuously denied it was responsible for the slippage of the timetable for licensing alternative business structures. On Tuesday, Professor Stephen Mayson accused regulators of failing the market.

Clients view fixed fees and online access to the progress of their case – but not brand names – as key elements of legal services they would buy, according to unique new research, while law firms are waiting for competitors to close under pressure from ABSs and legal aid.

The implementation of alternative business structures has become “something of a shambles”, Professor Stephen Mayson said yesterday. He accused regulators of failing the “new entrants, new capital and entrepreneurial law firms” poised to take advantage of the new regime.

The spiralling costs of legal services is prompting some leading general counsel to consider a “production line” approach to handling legal work, with more companies looking to go offshore or in-house, according to new research from an Oxford professor.

The Insolvency Service last week presented petitions to wind up three will-writing businesses. The news comes as the Legal Services Board issues a call for evidence on whether to make will-writing, the entire probate process and estate administration reserved legal activities.

The latest national marketing organisation for solicitors could be an attractive takeover target for a big brand looking to enter the legal market, its founder has admitted. Lawyers2you, the consumer-facing brand of Birmingham law firm Blakemores, is being rolled out nationally.

A host of major businesses are being lined up to offer a new service providing consumers with help to handle a wide range of legal matters for an annual subscription of £59.99, we can reveal. CPP recently launched ‘Your Law’ and is to roll it out to high-profile business partners.

Turcan Connell has signalled its intention to become one of the first alternative business structures in Scotland, while its joint senior partner has called for law firms to be subject to capital adequacy requirements. Douglas Connell said the introduction of ABSs provides a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” for lawyers.