Legal regulation amendments must remove political control of lawyers

New amendments lodged in the Scottish Parliament this week must deliver on a government promise to reverse proposed political controls over the way lawyers work, the Law Society has said.

The Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Bill was lodged in April of last year. While many parts of the Bill include important and long overdue reforms to legal services regulation, the draft legislation contained sweeping new powers for the Scottish Government to directly control and involve itself in the work of Scottish lawyers.

The proposals were met with widespread criticism, with the Scottish judiciary warning that Scotland would “be viewed internationally as a country whose legal system is open to political abuse”. The International Bar Association described the proposed political interference as “disturbing” and “shocking”.

More than 300 Scottish Government amendments to the Bill were published on Tuesday, including in relation to ministerial powers, with more expected to follow in the coming days.

Susan Murray, President of the Law Society, said: “We are pleased to see the many new Bill amendments published earlier this week, but the detail requires careful scrutiny, to establish if they fully address all the concerns that we and others have expressed since the Bill was first lodged.

“The Scottish Government’s initial plans would have enabled it to exercise political control over the work of Scottish lawyers. The grave nature and serious implications of assuming the power to interfere with the independence of the legal profession was why so many, including Scotland’s most senior judges, spoke out against the Government’s proposals, warning that such an action by Government would severely damage the rule of law in Scotland.

“When acting for clients, solicitors often require to challenge excessive use of government power or defend their clients against prosecution from the state. It is essential they can act freely in doing so, with no risk of government interference. This is why the Government’s pledge earlier this year to change position was much welcomed.

“The Scottish Government promised the Society that their amendments would remove political control of lawyers from the Bill. We will be looking carefully at these new amendments to ensure the drafting meets that intention.”

The Law Society is continuing to push the Scottish Government for further amendments to give the Society a range of important new regulatory powers to act in the public interest.

David Gordon, Convener of the Law Society’s Regulatory Committee said: “We have been pushing for almost a decade for the Law Society to have a broader range of powers to take action in the public interest. Too often, 40-year-old, rigid and outdated legislation has meant we’ve not always been able to act when we want or need to.

“Stronger powers to suspend a solicitor, the ability to conclude complaints cases more quickly, and the chance to place conditions on the way law firms practice were all missing from the original Bill. Further Government amendments providing for such new powers would be good news for those who care about protecting the public and the reputation of the Scottish solicitor profession.”