The Legal Services Board (LSB) has approved in full the Law Society of England and Wales and Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) application for 2026–27 practising and registration certificate fees, as well as periodic fees for SRA-regulated law firms. The annual practising or registration certificate fee for individual solicitors and registered European, foreign and Swiss lawyers will increase from £326 to £382, a rise of £56 or 17%. The fee includes a £48 administration fee. Together with the compulsory £170 contribution to the compensation fund, the standard annual payment will be £552. Solicitors applying for a certificate during the year will pay a pro-rated amount, and reduced payments may be available to those on maternity, shared parental or adoption leave, and to registered foreign lawyers based outside England and Wales. Crown Prosecutors are exempt from the compensation fund contribution.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has issued a formal public censure against the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) for its failure to protect consumers affected by the collapse of Sheffield-based law firm SSB Group Limited in January 2024. Despite receiving over 100 reports raising concerns about the no-win-no-fee specialist firm between January 2019 and March 2024, the SRA failed to act effectively on the warning signs. The LSB has directed the SRA to publish mandatory performance targets within seven days and identified the following six key areas of regulatory failure: (1) delayed responses to risks; (2) siloed working; (3) over-reliance on firm-provided information; (4) underuse of statutory powers; (5) inadequate protection for vulnerable clients and (6) poor internal governance.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched a consultation on proposals to replace its current diversity guidance with a new policy statement issued under Section 49 of the Legal Services Act 2007 (LSA 2007). The proposed statement sets out key outcomes and expectations regulators must meet to help build a strong, diverse and effective legal profession. The LSB is also seeking views further steps it could take beyond the policy statement to encourage diversity in the sector. The consultation closes on 2 March 2026.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched a consultation on draft guidance aimed at assisting legal services regulators in fulfilling their new statutory duty to promote the prevention and detection of economic crime. This obligation, introduced by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, establishes a fresh regulatory objective under the Legal Services Act 2007. The proposed guidance outlines requirements for regulators, including understanding and addressing risks, ensuring legal professionals can identify and avoid economic crime, monitoring compliance, and regularly evaluating standards. The consultation, running from 15 November 2024 to 7 February 2025, seeks to bolster the legal sector's role in combating economic crime and maintaining public confidence in legal services.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched a consultation on new regulatory measures to strengthen ethical standards in the legal sector. The proposals, published on 6 March 2025, aim to reform how lawyers' ethics are taught, overseen and supported in workplaces. The consultation addresses legal education, training and codes of conduct, responding to evidence of ethical failures including court misleading and misuse of Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation. The consultation closes on 29 May 2025 and forms part of the LSB's broader initiative to enhance professional ethics in legal services.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched an independent review of the Solicitor Regulation Authority’s (SRA) regulatory actions prior to the collapse of the SSB Group. This review will form part of the scope of the LSB’s current review into the SRA’s intervention into Axiom Ince, which was announced in December 2023. The LSB intends to report on Axiom in Spring 2024, and the review in relation to SSB Group in Summer 2024.

Law360, London: England's legal oversight regulator said 13 October 2025 that it is reviewing guidance issued by regulators and representative bodies before a shock ruling that has left law firms in limbo by casting doubt on what litigation work can be carried out by nonqualified employees.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has announced that it is postponing its report of its review into regulatory events leading up the the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) intervention into Axiom Ince until after the general election on 4 July 2024. It has done so as a result of official general election guidance which states that public bodies such as the LSB 'should not be seen to compete with the election campaign for public attention'. The LSB further clarifies that this delay will not prevent it from pursuing any required action or matters arising from the review in the public attention.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has published its Business Plan 2024–25 that focuses on how it will reshape legal services to better meet the needs of society, with particular emphasis on the regulatory objectives in the Legal Services Act 2007, which the LSB has a statutory duty to promote. The plan explores three strategic themes, including fairer outcomes, stronger confidence, and better services, along with their challenges. The LSB also sets out its regulatory objectives, statutory functions, workstreams, and key areas of work for 2024–25.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched a consultation on its draft business plan and budget for 2026/27. It proposes a revised, proportionate and risk-based approach to regulatory oversight, focusing on underperforming regulators such as the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Bar Standards Board while reducing burdens on those performing well. The LSB also intends to strengthen professional ethics and diversity across the sector, and enhance consumer protection in response to emerging risks, including through exploration of AI-powered consumer tools. The draft plan is structured around four objectives: delivering targeted and effective regulatory oversight; focusing policy work where it can have the greatest impact; improving strategic capability through horizon-scanning and research, including development of a three-year plan; and enhancing organisational efficiency and use of technology. The consultation closes on 11 February 2026.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has published its final report on a regulatory review of the advice and guidance issued by approved regulators and regulatory bodies. The review was launched in October 2025 following the High Court judgment in Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys LLP, which held that a person conducting litigation must be authorised or exempt, even where acting under supervision. However, on 31 March 2026, the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal brought by the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives and held that an unauthorised person may act on behalf of an authorised person to conduct litigation under their supervision, provided the authorised person puts in place appropriate arrangements for the supervision of, and delegation to, the unauthorised person. Following that clarification, regulators revisited their guidance, which had at times reflected differing interpretations of the Legal Services Act 2007 (LSA 2007), and the LSB’s final report considered both those earlier inconsistencies and the steps taken to align the guidance with the Court of Appeal’s judgment.

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has published an interim report setting out its initial findings from a regulatory review of advice and guidance provided to the profession on the conduct of litigation by approved regulators and regulatory bodies. The review follows the High Court judgment in Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys and considers whether guidance has been clear and consistent across the regulated sector, noting variation in clarity, levels of detail and engagement between regulators, as well as differing interpretations of the statutory framework under the Legal Services Act 2007 and is intended to support improved clarity, consistency and collaboration across regulators’ regulatory arrangements.