The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has taken a number of steps to modernise its regulatory decision-making. Recent changes include: A new edition of its handbook – introducing new Enforcement Decision Regulations The establishment of a new Independent Decision-making Body (IDB) The creation of a new Independent Reviewer role to carry out requests for the review of individual decisions The launch of…
Report finds improvement in gender gap in barrister briefings
The Law Council of Australia has just published its Equitable Briefing Policy Annual Report for the 2017-2018 Financial Year. The report shows that female barristers are starting to receive more briefs and are more often recommended for work by their colleagues in new or current matters, however, they still lag behind male colleagues when it comes…
Reasonable adjustments in the provision of legal services: a report for the Solicitors Regulation Authority
The Competition and Markets Authority reported in 2016 that one of the major barriers to accessing and understanding legal services was a general lack of accessibility, particularly in how information is presented and shared. Charities such as Citizens Advice and Age UK have suggested that this is of particular concern regarding people who, due to…
SRA to increase AML checks on law firms
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has announced that they will be increasing checks on law firms after it found that 21 percent of the 400 firms consulted were not complying with anti-money laundering regulations. The majority of firms were using templates and these firms’ risk assessments were generally of lower quality as firms appeared to take…
Independent review of legal services regulation in England and Wales
The Centre for Ethics and Law in the UCL Faculty of Laws is undertaking a fundamental review of the current regulatory framework for legal services in England and Wales, led by Honorary Professor Stephen Mayson. The independent review is intended in part to explore the longer-term and related issues raised by the 2016 Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) ‘Legal Services…
Outcome of Hong Kong foreign lawyers consultation
The Law Society of Hong Kong has been considering changes to their foreign lawyer practising rules for the past three years. The principal proposed changes were as follows: Amendments to Rule 12(1) to clarify that a foreign lawyer may only provide a legal service which relates to the law(s) of the jurisdiction(s) stated on a…
SRA consults on proposed changes to solicitor advocate assessments and qualifying requirements
The SRA has launched a consultation on proposals designed to make sure that high standards of advocacy are provided by solicitors. Proposals include: the introduction of revised standards for the Higher Rights of Audience qualification the creation of a single, centralised Higher Rights of Audience assessment the development of more online resources to help solicitors…
Lawyer regulation reforms in the US
We recently reported on the work of the California State Bar and their proposals for regulatory reform put forward by the Task Force on Access Through Innovation of Legal Services as well as the work being done by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) Testing Task Force. In her article, ‘Re-regulating Lawyers for the 21st…
SRA resources to help solicitors prepare for new standards and regulations
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), has produced a dedicated webpage of resources for solicitors to help them prepare for the introduction of their new Standards and Regulation on 25 November. The new Standards and Regulations aim to reduce bureaucracy, simplify rules and provide greater flexibility. One of the key new requirements is for all law firm…
Positive feedback from pilot of SRA’s Solicitors Qualifying Examination
The Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) is a new, single assessment for qualifying solicitors and is due to be introduced by the end of 2021. A pilot to test the first part of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination – known as SQE1 – has shown that it is on course to be a valid, rigorous assessment, while…