Judicial factors reform a step forward but refinement still needed

New legislation to reform judicial factors is a step in the right direction but could be further improved to ensure clarity, accessibility and efficiency, according to the Law Society of Scotland.

The Law Society has provided written evidence on the Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill, including its provisions related to the use of judicial factors in solicitor firms.

The Director of Interventions at the Law Society, Morna Grandison, said: “Judicial factors have an important role to play in safeguarding money and other property in a variety of circumstances. Modernisation is clearly needed, with most of the current legislation being well over 100 years old.

“We are supportive of many key elements in this bill, particularly those related to our role in upholding legal standards and protecting clients of solicitors when accounts rules have been breached.

“The Law Society worked closely with the Scottish Law Commission on its recommendations for reform, and we’re encouraged to see most of those proposals included in this bill. However we’re concerned that there are areas where the provisions could cause confusion or delay in practice. Modern technology allows for funds to be moved and records destroyed very quickly, so any delay can create risk.

“There similarly remains room for improvement in other parts to this legislation, including a number of areas in need of clarification or further development to modernise practices. Provisions should be clarified for example related to ingathering, the legal process for collecting together assets.

“We will be engaging with MSPs and the Scottish Government to address these issues as the Bill progresses through the Scottish Parliament.”