Regulatory practice review - questions and answers

What does the Law Society hope the project will achieve?

The Law Society is committed to ensuring that the regulation of the profession is proportionate, its impact properly targeted and should enhance public confidence in the reputation of the profession and sustain high standards. This project will help all those who have responsibility for the regulation of lawyers to understand how to best achieve these goals.

How do the two strands fit together?

The main project will look at what is required for regulation of the profession generally. The corporate firms project is looking at the particular situation of corporate firms and includes examination of the appropriate structures for regulating these firms. The regulatory issues and risks associated with such firms are different from those in respect of firms with significant private client work and we believe that this is a particular piece of work in its own right. It will report to both the Society and will be fully taken into account by the main strand.

What is the SRA's involvement?

The Law Society commissioned this work but it will draw extensively on the experience of the SRA. The future of regulation and ensuring that it is effective and appropriate is of great concern to our members, and to the public at large. It will be for the SRA to decide the way regulation should be carried out in the future.

Have the recent financial crises lead to the demise in trust between professionals and consumers? If so, does it mean that it is impossible for professions to regulate themselves?

The financial crises have raised many questions around how to define effective regulation and how best to achieve a system which protects consumers from risks without stifling providers. The legal profession is in a very different position from the financial system (which is independently regulated by the Financial Services Authority). The legal profession has met the challenges arising out of Sir David Clementi 's report and will continue to ensure that the consumer and public interest is properly maintained.

How will the Law Society ensure that all relevant interests are represented?

It is impossible to consider the full impact of regulation if you look at the subject from just one angle. We expect the reviewer to seek the views of all significant stakeholder groups in order to come up with conclusions that can be appropriately implemented.

Why is there a sub-strand for corporate firms and not for any other sector?

Over the last twenty years the corporate legal sector has grown immensely, especially its international dimension. This has led to specific issues around what type of regime is best placed to regulate them. We believe that this means that it is sensible to have a separate corporate sub-strand which will report into the main report and the Law Society.

How will the project be run?

It would be wrong for us to answer this question as we would not want to pre-empt how the reviewer will want to conduct his research.