Legal Services Board strategy and business plan 2023/24 – Law Society response
The proposals
The LSB proposes that it will continue its work on:
- disciplinary and enforcement processes
- advancing equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI)
- rule of law and professional ethics
- technology
- financial protections
- guidance on education and training
- handling first-tier complaints
- discharging statutory functions
The LSB’s plan also introduces new workstreams, including:
- market surveillance and horizon scanning
- consumer vulnerability
Our view
We support a number of the proposed workstreams and are pleased to see a continuation of work on EDI, as well as policy areas that align with our strategic priorities, such as:
- technology and innovation
- the rule of law and professional ethics
However. we would like to see a greater emphasis on the LSB’s core function of discharging its statutory functions, including monitoring regulators’ performance.
While we support many of the proposals in principle, many do not seem to directly sit within the LSB’s core function and may duplicate work already carried out across the sector.
In the context of the current challenging economic conditions, we hope that the LSB will seek to avoid duplication of work that potentially leads to a duplication in costs.
What this means for solicitors
The way the LSB regulates, in its capacity as an oversight regulator, will impact on the profession and the whole sector.
For the strategy to have its desired impact, the LSB will need to be cognisant of the perspectives and experience of the professions.
Next steps
The consultation closed on 3 February 2023.