President’s report

Education, education, education

In the last few weeks I have experienced at first-hand the future of the profession.

David Preston, Douglas Mill and I visited Dundas & Wilson’s Edinburgh office to listen to concerns and answer questions about the Society and the Scottish solicitors profession. Most of the solicitors there were under 35 and it was a chance for me to learn first hand the particular concerns of newer members of the profession, who work in a large Scottish firm. I attended the Diploma presentation at Glasgow Graduate School of Law (GGSL). After Council’s October meeting was held there, Council members were invited to tour the school and watch and experience some of the current teaching techniques. Council Members were very impressed with the school and the training it offers Diploma students - to the point of being a little envious. The skills based approach along with knowledge learned provides a solid foundation on which to build a career in the law.

I then met 51 new solicitors at last month’s Admission Ceremony which, for me, was one of the most important and enjoyable days of my year so far. A week later, I met the new partners going through the Society’s Practice Management Course and completed my whistle-stop tour.

Solicitors joining the profession need to be able to meet the demands placed on them and it is clear that new trainees as well as new partners have extremely good qualifications, useful and relevant skills and great enthusiasm for the law and the profession. The work of solicitors has always had its stresses and pressures but it is increasingly important that solicitors are equipped to deal with the increased demands and pressures of work as well as having a sound knowledge of the law.

These four recent visits have shown me that the profession’s future is in good hands. That is why the Society must continue to work hard on education and training to make sure that new solicitors as well as partners are given the best possible training so that they can fulfil their ambitions and flourish in the profession. It has been a privilege to meet some of the solicitors and students who will take the profession into the future and who are already a great asset to the profession and its clients.

Lawcare

I mentioned the health of the profession and the stress so many of us are under.

A few years ago the Society recognised that some solicitors needed assistance in dealing with the pressures of modern life. There was a scheme in England that we thought could be adopted here. As a result, SolCare in Scotland was set up and James Ness, the former Council Member from Dalbeattie was the Society’s representative on the main board of SolCare. The confidential service has done sterling work over the past two years and changed its name to Lawcare after expanding to include barristers as well as solicitors. There will be more information about developments in the next issue of the Journal. James has now left Council and I would like to record my appreciation for all that he has done in this important area. Information on LawCare can be found on the website or from George Samson at the Society.  

Regulation inquiry

The Scottish Parliament Justice One Committee Inquiry into regulation of the legal profession in Scotland is progressing and it is likely that evidence will be taken from a number of representatives of the Scottish legal profession, including the Society, within the next few weeks. The Committee recently confirmed that whilst the inquiry seeks to examine the whole issue of regulation, its primary focus, at the moment, will be on the system of complaints against people working in the legal profession.That will include solicitors, solicitor-advocates, advocates, the judiciary, procurators fiscal and qualified conveyancing and executry practitioners.

The inquiry will now exclude investigation of the activities of non-professional legal services although the Committee has confirmed that it may consider the broader issues about regulation of the provision of legal services.

The Society has much good news to tell the Committee about the work it does and the standards it assures. The Society has made no secret of the fact that it welcomes the inquiry which provides an opportunity to explain what the Society does, how it functions and how its regulatory duties could be improved.

To look at only one aspect of a profession is still useful but only gives a part of the picture. I strongly urge the Committee to consider unregulated, non-professional providers of legal services such as claims companies which have been excluded from the inquiry. I believe this is an area where there is a serious lack of consumer protection which can be most unfair to clients.