ABS at the Bar

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) this week began licensing alternative business structures. While the BSB has been regulating lawyer-only owned entities since 2015, it can now license legal services businesses owned jointly by lawyers and non-lawyers. A new edition of the BSB Handbook, which takes the new arrangements into account, was published this week. BSB director of regulatory assurance Oliver Hanmer said: “We believe this development encourages further innovation in the provision of legal services.”