Legal Service Act 2007 Summary
186.This section provides that an approval authority is either the board or an approved regulatory body designated as the approval body in accordance with Part 1 of Schedule 10. Under subsection 73(2), the Agency is an approval authority in respect of all reserved legal activities, but an approved regulatory authority is only an approval authority in respect of the reserved legal activities for which it has been designated in accordance with Schedule 10. Under subsection 73(3), the board may delegate its functions as an approval authority and must ensure that its functions as an approval authority are properly separated from its other duties. 147. The Lord Registrar may, by order, revoke the designation of a body as an authorised regulatory authority for one or more of the reserved legal activities for which it is intended (section 45(1)). However, the Lord Chancellor can only act on the recommendation of the Council (Rule 45(2)). 103.This provision ensures that the rights of individuals under the existing provisions are protected during the transition period. Any lawyer, qualified lawyer, partnership, ILEX approved legal representative, licensed freight forwarder, duly certified notary, licensed patent attorney, registered trademark attorney and attorney`s fee signatory shall be deemed to be authorized by his or her professional association to engage in certain reserved legal activities listed in Part 2 of the Schedule. 27.In section sets out the eight regulatory objectives that the Agency, accredited regulatory bodies and OCOL must consider in carrying out their functions. This includes promoting and maintaining respect for professional ethics by persons entitled to engage in reserved legal activities. The crisis in Ukraine has highlighted the vulnerability of economic crime to the services sector.
The legal services sector was classified as highly vulnerable in the National Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Risk Assessment (2020) [note 1] [note 1]. The sector is exposed to other risks such as fraud or violations of sanctions laws. We need to ensure that legal services regulators have the powers they need in this area. 106.Annex 6, introduced by this section, sets out the procedure for including new activities in the list of reserved legal activities. It also sets out the procedure for determining whether a recommendation under article 26 should be made (recommendations that activities should no longer be considered reserved legal activities). 182.Im response to the 2004 Clementi Report,(13) the government released a white paper in 2005 entitled The Future of Legal Services: Putting Consumers First. (14) It proposed ABSs that would allow different types of lawyers and non-lawyers to work together in a law firm or ABS company and/or the possibility to practice and invest on non-legal terms. It identified potential benefits for both consumers and legal service providers. It allows lawyers and non-lawyers to form legal partnerships and corporations as vehicles for the provision of reserved legal services. Where non-lawyers are directors of such an entity or have an interest in doing so, the body becomes a recognised entity approved and regulated by an approval authority in accordance with the provisions of Part 5. Existing legal services regulators may apply to the Commission to become licensing authorities. If there are no other appropriate approval authorities, the board itself may act as the approval authority.
The creation of an independent legal complaints centre: a body with the legal authority to establish a system for handling complaints about services provided by persons under the supervision of the Commission and to remedy them in appropriate circumstances. This means that customers of all kinds have more choice, although they are still far from exercising it consistently. It`s important to note that lawyers also have more choices – where they work and how they practice. And the lawyers` qualifying exam will broaden that selection to the way lawyers are trained – with many new entrants developing exciting new avenues that increase the chances. Can other parts of the legal profession keep pace? What will the CLSB, for example, do for future qualification as a cost lawyer? 1.These explanatory notes refer to the Law on Legal Services, adopted on 30. In October 2007, it received Royal Assent. They have been prepared by the Department of Justice to help the reader understand the law. They are not part of the law and have not been approved by Parliament. 122.As already noted in the Background section of the Commission des services juridiques,(9),(9) in his 2004 independent review of legal services, Sir David Clementi referred to comments that the current regulatory arrangements resembled a “maze” and stated that he agreed with the government`s earlier statement(10) that the current regulatory system for legal services was “outdated, rigid too complex and not responsible or transparent enough.” He proposed the establishment of an independent supervisory authority to simplify regulation and ensure that the system is clear to consumers. The government`s White Paper, The Future of Legal Services: Putting Consumers First(11), sets out how this regulator should operate: it should empower authorised regulators to carry out day-to-day regulation, and it should also be able to act in the event of failure of these authorised regulators.
What does all this mean for cost lawyers? According to the title, it means everything and nothing. I am sure that most expense lawyers can continue what they are doing now without changing much and retire. But for the profession as a whole, the changes are more fundamental. Changes in legal regulation have taken place alongside a range of other changes, and the pandemic could only accelerate some of them. Here are some to consider: 9.Part 3: Reserved Legal Activities lists and defines reserved legal activities. It explains who has the right to carry out these activities and the penalties incurred by those who carry out these activities or claim to have the right to do so if they are not entitled to it. It provides transitional provisions for those who are currently allowed to engage in reserved lawful activities. It also explains the procedure for changing the scope of reserved legal activities. Accredited regulatory authorities are the bodies that empower and regulate individuals to engage in reserved legal activities. This part of the Act explains what an accredited regulatory body is, lists the bodies designated by the Act as accredited regulatory bodies, and explains how other bodies may become accredited regulatory bodies in the future. in accordance with paragraph 15, an authorised entity which is not a company or limited liability company established in England or Wales must have a business address in England and Wales where it carries on some or all of the reserved legal activities for which it is authorised; 111.Paragraph 8 provides that where the Committee receives a request from the Lord Chancellor, the OFT, the Consumer Panel or the Lord Chief Justice to consider whether reserved legal activities should be extended or whether an activity should cease to be a reserved legal activity, it may refuse to conduct the inquiry only if: 119.This provision authorises the Lord Registrar to: Decide on applications for regulatory or licensing bodies.
Authority in respect of an activity that is a “temporary reserved legal activity”, that is, an activity that may become a reserved legal activity in the future. While ABS has obvious advantages for consumers, it has a number of drawbacks. Lower costs can mean a lower level of service, unqualified staff doing the work (albeit supervised), or less experienced lawyers. Indeed, a personalized service that the consumer would otherwise receive from the lawyers of a traditional law firm is reduced or eliminated.