Legal services consumer panel definition

View the related practice notes about Legal services consumer panel

Legal complaints handling—regulatory bodies

This Practice Note sets out details of the various bodies that have responsibilities for and interests in legal complaints handling, including the Legal Services Board (LSB), Office for Legal Complaints (OLC), Legal Ombudsman (LeO), SRA and Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP). The main focus is on LeO, which deals with complaints about legal service providers.Legal Services Board The LSB is an organisation established under the Legal Services Act 2007 (LSA 2007) as the single independent oversight regulator of the legal profession. It is responsible for ensuring the highest standards of competence, conduct and service in the legal profession. The LSB has set requirements that the SRA must satisfy in relation to the complaints procedures of authorised persons. It is also responsible for appointing the chair and members of the OLC, which administers the LeO complaints scheme.The LSB does not handle complaints about lawyers and cannot intervene in any complaint or dispute.For more information on the LSB, see Practice Note: Legal Services Board.Office for Legal Complaints The OLC is an independent...

Relationship between legal regulators

There are six main regulatory bodies concerned specifically with the regulation of solicitors’ practices. These are the:•Legal Services Board (LSB)•Law Society/Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)•Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT)•Legal Services Consumer Panel•Office for Legal Complaints (OLC)•Legal Ombudsman (LeO)Some of these deal exclusively with the regulation of solicitors and SRA-regulated law firms and others cover other providers of legal services, such as barristers, legal executives and licensed conveyancers.This Practice Note explains the role of, and relationship between, these six main regulatory bodies. For information on other relevant regulatory and governmental bodies that are not specifically concerned with the legal profession, see Practice Note: Other regulatory bodies—regulation of solicitors.Legal Services BoardBefore the Legal Services Act 2007 (LSA 2007), there were a number of independent legal bodies providing some form of regulation, operating in different sectors of the legal market, eg the Law Society (solicitors), ILEX Professional Standards Board (legal executives), the Bar Council (barristers).These bodies largely operated independently of one another and there was no single oversight regulator. This created inconsistencies in the regulatory...

View the related News about Legal services consumer panel

LSB takes enforcement action against SRA after Axiom Ince collapse and client money loss

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has taken enforcement action against the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) following an independent review of issues connected to Axiom Ince Limited. The firm, which expanded rapidly through mergers and acquisitions, collapsed in October 2023, resulting in the loss of approximately £60m in client money and 1,400 job losses. Under its statutory powers provided by the Legal Services Act, the LSB has issued binding directions requiring the SRA to enhance its risk identification and response measures, improve the safeguarding of client money, and strengthen controls to address risks from the concentration of key compliance roles within law firms. The SRA has already initiated a plan to address these issues and is required to comply with the new directions within 12 months, providing progress reports every three months. The process included consultations with the Lord Chancellor, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the Legal Services Consumer Panel, and the Lady Chief Justice.