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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, 11 February 2016

LSB consults on amendments to the PCF rules

The Legal Services Board (LSB) launches today a consultation on amendments it proposes to make to the Practising Certificate Fee (PCF) rules.

Practising fees are paid to an approved regulator for the cost of regulation. An approved regulator may only require the payment of a practising fee if the LSB has approved the level of that fee.

The rules help the LSB assess applications relating to the level of the PCF. At a time of understandable concern about regulatory costs it is essential that the rules are up-to-date and allow an appropriate level of scrutiny.

The proposed changes are to Rule 10 of the PCF Rules which sets out the criteria against which the LSB will assess any application for approval of a PCF and Rule 11 which describes the evidence that the LSB will require when considering an application against the criteria when an increase in PCF is proposed.

Neil Buckley, Chief Executive of the Legal Services Board said:

"The Legal Services Board (LSB) believes in the importance of reducing regulatory costs in legal services. Where possible we use our role in the oversight of legal services regulation to reduce costs to both the profession and the public.

Practising certificate fee rules have been in place for six years and we think it is now time to test whether they continue to meet the purpose for which they were intended.

We want to see the regulatory burden reduced and at the same time we believe that this reduced burden could also potentially contribute to a reduction in costs. I would encourage anyone with an interest an interest in the reduction of regulatory burdens in legal services to respond to this consultation.

ENDS

For further information, please contact the LSB's Communications Manager, Vincent McGovern (020 7271 0068).

Notes for editors:

  1. The consultation document Changes to the rules made under section 51 of the Legal Services Act 2007 can be found here.

  2. The existing practising certificate fee (PCF) rules can be found here.

  3. This is a consultation on rule 10 and 11 of the PCF rules. It is not a consultation as to what should be treated as a “permitted purpose”. Nor is it about the cost of regulation.

  4. The closing date for the consultation is Friday 8 April 2016.

  5. The Legal Services Act 2007 (the Act) created the LSB as a new regulator with responsibility for overseeing the regulation of legal services in England and Wales. The new regulatory regime became active on 1 January 2010.

  6. The LSB oversees nine approved regulators, which in turn regulate individual legal practitioners. The approved regulators, designated under Part 1 of Schedule 4 of the 2007 Act, are the Law Society, the Bar Council, the Master of the Faculties, the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers, the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys, the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys, the Association of Costs Lawyers and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. In addition, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants are listed as approved regulators in relation only to reserved probate activities

  7. As at 1 April 2015, the legal profession comprised 142,109 solicitors, 326 alternative business structures, 15,237 barristers, 7,848 chartered legal executives and 5,678 other individuals operating in other areas of the legal profession such as conveyancing. The sector is valued at £25.49 billion per annum (total turnover in 2010).