Legal services regulation review publishes call for evidence

A formal call for evidence has been issued by the Independent Review of the Regulation of Legal Services in Scotland, with submissions due by 30 March 2018.

The review, under NHS 24 chair Esther Roberton, is considering what changes may be needed to the statutory framework for the regulation of legal services to protect consumer interests and promote a flourishing legal sector – including by promoting competition and innovation, and the principles of accountability, consistency, flexibility, transparency, cost effectiveness and proportionality, as well as a framework that retains the confidence of the profession and the general public.

Appointed last April, it is due to report by this summer.

The questions on which views are invited include:

• what features of the regulatory system should be retained, and what should be changed (and how) – covering entry, regulated activities, standards, compliance, complaints and redress;
• people's experiences of legal services and how they could be improved, generally or in relation to specific types of problem;
• innovation and barriers to innovation;
• immediate steps that could be taken to enable providers to compete better with those in other jurisdictions.

Earlier this week the Law Society of Scotland published its own submission to the review, claiming there was a "drastic need" to modernise legal services regulation, including the complaints system. (Click here for report.)

Click here to access the call for evidence.