The Board met on Tuesday 19 July 2022 for our final meeting before the summer.
The role of Regulation and the Rule of Law
Recognising the fundamental role that legal professional’s play in society, one of the projects in our business plan this year is on Rule of law. It will focus on defining the role of legal services regulation in supporting the constitutional principle of the rule of law, which is of course one of the regulatory objectives. To help inform our early thinking on these important matters and as part of our ongoing programme of engagement with stakeholders across the sector, the Board heard from Abiodun Michael Olatokun, Research Leader in Citizenship and the Rule of Law; and until recently, Head of Public and Youth Engagement at the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law. Abiodun shared his insights and perspectives on the role of Regulation and the Rule of Law.
Abiodun discussed the reputation of the sector in light of recent news stories about the judiciary, the rule of law and the role of lawyers in some high-profile legal cases. We observed that what well-known public figures say about lawyers can have an impact on public perceptions.
Working with the sector to protect and promote the interests of consumers
At the start of our meeting, the Board reflects on news from the sector and considers new research related to our work. This month we noted the Legal Services Consumer Panel had published its eleventh Tracker Survey exploring how consumers are using legal services.
The survey shows more people are shopping around for legal services. There is increased satisfaction by consumers with legal services providers with 85% reporting they were satisfied in 2022 compared to 79% in 2012 and an increasing proportion of respondents believe that the service they received was good value for money, rising from 65% in 2021 to 70% in 2022. This proportion has risen from 58% in 2012. It is clear that consumer behaviour is changing, particularly following the Covid-19 pandemic. Regulation also plays a part in stimulating competition and increasing consumer choice in the market. In April 2022, we published our Statement of policy on empowering consumers. This will contribute to further transforming the relationships between consumers and lawyers to ensure people who need legal services get clear and useful information and can exercise choices.
We hope that these trends continue. We continue with our work as part of the overall Reshaping Legal Services Strategy to ensure that consumers are satisfied with the outcomes of legal matters – there has been slower growth in this area.
Join us at the Reshaping Legal Services Conference on 13 October 2022
The Board is excited to see that the programme for our inaugural Reshaping Legal Services conference on 13 October 2022 is coming together well. We will be bringing together a wide range of voices from across the legal sector to help build and maintain momentum on the challenges set out in the Reshaping legal services strategy, published last year.
We all understand the importance diversity and inclusion play in shaping the future of legal services, and the theme of this year’s conference is ‘a diverse public deserves a strong, ethical and diverse profession.’
We are organising it jointly with the Legal Services Consumer Panel. It will include a keynote address from Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls. There will also be panel sessions on ethics and trust in the profession, equality, diversity and inclusion and delivering consumer-focused services for a diverse public. Further details will follow – speakers will include Dame Lady Justice Simler DBE, HHJ Kaly Kaul QC, and Zelda Perkins. Please register on the Reshaping Legal Services Microsite if you would like to receive updates regarding our conference.
Continuing our urgent action to ensure the effective implementation of the financial sanctions regime in the legal services sector
We continue to do all we can to increase knowledge of the sanctions regime and ensure widespread compliance and enforcement, when necessary. The regulators have provided their individual plans in relation to sanctions, against the expectations set out in our letter to regulators dated 21 April 2022 and published with our April Board papers.
We will continue to monitor and scrutinise regulators’ progress in delivering their action plans, and we will undertake more targeted reviews and analysis of steps taken where necessary. We will convene the next sanctions roundtable to discuss the collective sectoral risk assessment and will also continue to work with Government and the regulators to pursue information sharing and broader powers to secure compliance with the sanctions regime.
The Board welcomed the actions that the majority of the regulators had taken, but called for much more urgent action from those further behind.. We asked the Executive to explore how our statutory powers might be used to ensure gaps are closed quickly and firmly. We will be looking at how we use our statutory powers to enforce this.
Setting new expectations to ensure lawyers remain competent throughout their careers
The Board were delighted to approve a statement of policy on ongoing competence. This is a significant milestone, representing the culmination of an extensive programme of evidence gathering, independent research and engagement since 2019.
The final statement of policy reflects the contributions of a wide range of stakeholders from the legal services sector, other regulated sectors and other legal jurisdictions. We are grateful for their views in shaping our new expectations of regulators, which will better protect consumers from harm and build greater public trust and confidence in the legal sector.
The Board welcomed that the statement is outcomes focused and provides significant scope for regulators to develop their own approaches for their regulated communities, while ensuring that all legal professionals remain competent throughout their careers.
We plan to publish the statement of policy next week and expect regulators to proceed with both ambition and pace to meet the outcomes and expectations within 18 months.
Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) – Scheme Rules changes
Having an effective system for complaining when legal services go wrong is central to public trust and consumer confidence. The Board welcomed the proactive action that the Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) were taking to amend the Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO) Scheme Rules. One of the proposed changes that instigated a significant level of Board discussion was the proposals to change the requirement that complaints be brought within six years from the act/omission or three years of the date when the complainant should reasonably have known there was a cause for complaint.
We had a very extensive debate on the risks of moving to a one year time limit (accompanied by the ability of LeO to apply discretion to remedy an unfairness, for example if a complaint had been held up by a service provider). On balance, we consented to the proposal, and indeed the whole package, but asked for robust monitoring and evaluation to be put in place.
Application from the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) to withdraw from legal services regulation
We discussed the application from the ACCA to complete its withdrawal from legal services regulation. We agreed that the ACCA application met the requirements of the Act and will shortly make a recommendation to the Lord Chancellor that an order be made to cancel the ACCA’s designation as an approved regulator for the reserved legal activity of probate.
LSB Corporate Risk Register and Risk Management Strategy
The Board regularly considers risk as part of its approach to effective governance and effective decision making. The Board discussed the Corporate Risk Register and agreed the revised risk management strategy and risk appetite.
Our next Board meeting is on 13 September 2022 with part of the meeting dedicated to a strategic discussion to help inform the drafting of our business plan 2022/23.