A Law Society project team has produced a series of assessments of the shape, nature and size of the legal services market in UK/England and Wales and the factors likely to drive change in the future.
The assessment reports
The assessment findings are being published in three reports:
- An overview of the market as a whole - available now
This includes analysis of materials relating to the full legal services market from both supply and demand perspectives, and including all providers of legal services. - The four most significant sectors within the market - available now
This includes top 200 law firms, the wider market of solicitor-led firms outside of this group, in-house lawyers and barristers and other advocates - 12 key areas of work - coming soon
This covers areas such as residential conveyancing, corporate practice, IP and employment law, selected by contribution to total turnover generated by solicitor/SRA-regulated entities.
Each report provides a thorough synthesis of a broad range of sources of information about the market, and its submarkets, which are likely to be of interest to the Society’s members, non-solicitor suppliers and others interested in the dynamics of legal services provision.
Get a copy of the reports
The first and second reports in the series have now been published. A summary of the findings for each report is available below:
These reports are free for Law Society members. To request a copy of either or both reports, please send your name and SRA roll number via email to MarketAssessment2012@lawsociety.org.uk
Non-members can purchase the reports from the Law Society Bookshop, priced £99.
Scenarios for strategic planning
Building on the evidence gathered during the project the team has created four scenarios for what the legal services market might look like in 2025, using a structured scenario planning process. These have been designed to be used as a strategy planning tool for practical use by members (and others), as well as decision makers within the Law Society.
The scenarios, along with further tools and resources are available below: