LSB recommends designation of SRA as a Licensing Authority
16 June 2011
The LSB has granted The Law Society’s application for a recommendation to the Lord Chancellor to become a Licensing Authority for all of its existing reserved legal activities. Full details on this decision will be available at SRA Licensing Authority application on Friday 17 June.
As the approved regulator, The Law Society has delegated its regulatory functions to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) who prepared both the application and the licensing rules (which are contained within the Handbook). Whilst The Law Society is formally the applicant, it will be the SRA that is responsible for the regulation of Alternative Business Structures (ABS). The LSB will now make a recommendation to the Lord Chancellor under Paragraph 14(2) of Part 1 of Schedule 10 to the Legal Services Act 2007 (the Act) that The Law Society should be designated as a Licensing Authority. If an Order is made by the Lord Chancellor designating the Law Society as a Licensing Authority, the SRA’s licensing rules will at the same time be treated as having been approved by the Board.
The SRA has also reviewed the entirety of its regulatory framework. In order to provide consistent protections for consumers, and a “level playing field” for all, the SRA has developed a new Handbook which brings together all of its regulatory requirements in one place, including the proposed licensing rules. As a result it has made significant revisions to ensure that an outcomes-focused and risk-based approach to regulation is created. The new regulatory arrangements are subject to LSB approval as a change for the existing regulated community (under Schedule 4, Part 3 of the Act) as well as forming the licensing rules with which SRA regulated licensed bodies must comply. The LSB has approved these new arrangements and the decision with regards to the Schedule 4, Part 3 application is the subject of a separate Decision Notice and full details on this decision will be available on the Applications page on Friday 17 June.
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