The Legal Services Board (LSB) has announced an independent review of the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) regulatory actions in the lead-up to the collapse of SSB Group. The LSB will add this review to the scope of its current review into regulatory events prior to SRA’s intervention into Axiom Ince (announced in December 2023). The additional terms of reference will be published shortly. It remains the aim to report on Axiom in spring 2024, with the review in relation to SSB Group and overall learning and conclusions being reported in the summer.
Given the considerable consumer detriment, the Board believes that it is important to understand the regulatory events in relation to both firms. Learning from these cases will be vital for public and professional confidence.
The LSB will continue to partner with the law firm Carson McDowell to carry out the reviews.
About the Legal Services Board
- The Legal Services Board is an independent body responsible for overseeing the regulation of lawyers in England and Wales.
- We oversee nine approved regulators, some of which have delegated their regulatory functions to independent regulatory bodies.
- We are funded by a levy on the approved regulators
- We operate within a statutory framework set out in the Legal Services Act 2007, which describes our functions and our powers. The Act sets out nine regulatory objectives, which we share with the approved regulators and regulatory bodies.
- We also oversee the Office for Legal Complaints, which is responsible for administering the Legal Ombudsman scheme, and we have specific functions in relation to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
About Carson McDowell
- Carson McDowell is Northern Ireland’s largest independent law firm, with over 200 people working in their Belfast and Dublin offices.
- They are a market-leading presence in the legal industry guides The Legal 500 and Chambers UK, where they are ranked number one across more areas of expertise than any other law firm in Northern Ireland.
- For more information on Carson McDowell, visit https://carson-mcdowell.com/about