Legal Services Board aims to provide a model of regulatory excellence in legal services
New legal regulator, the Legal Services Board (LSB) has set out its vision for the next five years.
In its “Consultation on draft Business Plan 2009/10”, the LSB sets out how it intends to deliver the changes required by the Legal Services Act 2007. Its goals include more help for those whose incomes exceed legal aid thresholds but who are unable to afford legal services; greater competition in service delivery; “swift and effective redress” for consumers if things go wrong; greater diversity in the professions; and certainty and confidence in the regulatory structures underpinning the market.
Chief executive Chris Kenny said the LSB intends to establish “momentum” on all of these in its first year.
He said the LSB would “give particular priority to regulatory independence, alternative business structures, providing effective redress and working up a model of regulatory excellence in legal services”.
Independent legal consultant Simon Young said: “I think it is very encouraging to see how determined they are to get on with things.
“It is quite a useful practical document in that it sets out clearly what the deliverables are going to be in the next 12 months. I was very pleased to see that ABS’ are being addressed.”
On the LSB’s goal to help those living just above the legal aid threshold, Young said: “That’s an unusual statement for a regulator to make—I couldn’t see how they could achieve that. I can only assume they think that can be addressed by other means.” The Legal Services Board, which launched on 1 January 2009, oversees nine separate legal services regulators including the Law Society and the Bar Council, and the Office for Legal Complaints, which handles consumer complaints about lawyers. Comments must be sent to the LSB by 13 March 2009.
The LSB will issue a discussion paper on the development of Alternative Business Structures for law firms (ABS), hold a round table event on best practice across the profession in complaints handling, and consult on draft rules on approved regulator status, between April and June.
