The Legal Services Board (LSB) has published its business plan for 2022/23. It focuses on strengthening progress in overcoming the nine challenges facing the sector identified in the ‘Reshaping Legal Services’ strategy and continuing to discharge its statutory functions.
Activities include completing the review of the regulatory performance framework to ensure it is effective and continuing to collaborate with regulators to ensure that consumers can engage effectively with the legal services market.
The LSB will also finalise a statement of policy on ongoing competence following public consultation and sector-wide engagement to protect the interests of consumers and promote greater trust in the legal system. Through its diversity and inclusion work, the oversight regulator will continue to support a profession that reflects wider society and can meet consumers’ differing needs.
New workstreams for 2022/23 include:
Financial protection arrangements (Professional Indemnity Insurance and compensation funds): In light of mounting concerns about regulators’ compensation fund arrangements and the Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) market, this work will build on work already started to help ensure that the right balance is struck between protecting consumers and the associated costs of that protection. Ultimately, this project will support public confidence in the legal sector.
Consumer redress: As well as overseeing the Office for Legal Complaints as part of its statutory duties, the LSB will focus on delivering the best possible redress system for consumers, including those who use unregulated legal services. The LSB will also review its 2016 rules and guidance on first-tier complaint handling to support good outcomes and align with best practice.
The rule of law and regulation: Legal services are central to upholding the rule of law and supporting the effective administration of justice. This project will help define how regulation can best support that role through mechanisms like education and training, ongoing competence, and the promotion of professional ethics.
Dr Helen Phillips, Chair of the Legal Services Board, said:
‘Our new business plan continues and builds on our work to address the challenges identified in our consumer-focused strategy for the sector. We will continue workstreams such as diversity and inclusion, technology and innovation, and ongoing competence to ensure legal services are accessible to everyone, promote growth and competition, and support public confidence.
‘The regulatory objectives underpin all our work and, alongside the collaborative efforts of others across the sector, will deliver fairer outcomes, stronger confidence, and better services for society.
‘As in previous years, our business plan continues to be flexible to ensure legal services regulation plays the fullest possible part in addressing issues affecting consumers, people who need legal services, and society more broadly as they develop. Indeed, this approach has ensured that we are prioritising work in response to the war in Ukraine and will continue to be a focus for us, the regulators, and others over the coming weeks and months. We will continue to ensure that regulation supports the rule of law and plays its part in protecting democratic values and upholding high standards of ethics and professionalism.’
Notes to editor
- The LSB’s business plan for 2022/23 was agreed by the LSB Board on 22 March 2022 following a public consultation from 6 December 2021 to 4 February 2022.
- The consultation response document is available on the LSB’s website.
- The responses to the consultation are available on the LSB’s website.
- The ‘Reshaping Legal Services’ strategy was published on 29 March 2021. This sets out a ten-year strategic direction (2021-31) for the sector and outlines the role of regulation in reaching this destination. The strategy also identified priority areas of focus for the next three years (2021-24) and how the LSB will contribute to these priorities.
- The LSB recently convened a discussion between legal service regulators, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), the Office for Professional Body AML Supervision (OPBAS), and government on the financial sanctions regime as it applies to legal services. It is important that the regulatory objectives of “an independent, strong, diverse and effective legal profession”, “supporting the constitutional principle of the rule of law” and “promoting and maintaining adherence to the professional principles” is not undermined by either the perception or reality of profiting from assistance to sanctioned individuals or businesses. While upholding the principle that everyone is entitled to legal representation is of paramount importance, the sanctions regime in the UK is very clear: if you are going to receive legal fees from a sanctioned entity or individual you need a licence in advance from OFSI, and any fees must be within “reasonable” limits. The LSB will continue to coordinate and convene discussions to ensure ongoing compliance by the legal sector with the sanctions regime.