The Law Society’s new Board will build on excellent work to promote and support the profession.

Every organisation is wise to look at its structures from time to time to see whether they correspond to the modern world. At the Law Society we have been doing just that, looking at our governance and thinking about whether it is configured so it serves both the solicitor profession and the public alike.

Robert Bourns

Robert Bourns

That is why last July the Law Society Council – the governing tier of your professional body – agreed to form a single Board to work with Council and the Executive to ensure delivery of the Society’s work on behalf of members.

The Society’s purpose is ‘to be the voice of solicitors, to drive excellence in the profession and to safeguard the rule of law’. Our vision is: ‘A valued profession delivering the highest-quality legal services in the public interest and advancing the rule of law.’

The need for effective representation has never been greater. Access to justice is under pressure and the country is in flux. It has never been more vital that solicitors are recognised for their fundamental role and contribution to society. We are the cornerstone when it comes to the administration of justice and we support every area of life: through business, through politics and through the personal.

Council was determined that there should be greater coordination in the development and delivery of its work, furthering its responsibilities to a diverse and dynamic membership – a profession with a worldwide reputation for standards and independence.

Since July, the new Board has been populated. Four members were recruited through an externally run selection process, five others were elected from Council and I was appointed as chair.

Our composition deliberately includes two solicitors not previously involved with Council: Penelope Warne, senior partner of CMS, and Vickie Lockie, in-house counsel with Pearson Plc and formerly of Clifford Chance. They join non-solicitors Bill Butler, who was a member of the Audit Commission, and Judy Craske, formerly with Sodexo and the Welsh government.

The four will work with Council members Mark Evans (Chester and North Wales), Michael Garson (Middlesex), David Greene (Holborn and Westminster) and Peter Wright (Yorkshire), with the final member currently being elected.

As you may know my background includes a term as Society president and I am honoured to have been appointed in this new role of chair. I see it as an opportunity to ensure that the changes introduced by Council (with majorities of 91% to 98%) become a reality. It means we have fresh insight from our new members, combined with institutional expertise and memory from our Council board members.

Success will be a recognition that the Law Society is demonstrating a greater clarity and confidence in promoting the solicitor profession, supporting individuals as they develop their careers in a changing environment.

Members will see that the Board has a good mix of knowledge and practice experience, and the context within which the profession is working. It is able to ensure that strategically important issues are being considered, brought to Council and to the profession in a timely fashion. These include: thinking ahead and expressing our views on the future for the market for legal services, recognising all regulatory objectives and the value to be attributed to professional independence, and protecting client interest, particularly so far as it concerns confidentiality.

There is much to be done to build on the excellent work done by the Society, much of it out of sight of the profession.

So over the coming months, I know everyone on the Board will be getting on with our important job – serving the profession, serving the public and making sure that your professional body evolves so it continues its work and becomes even more effective.

Robert Bourns is chair of the Law Society Board

 

 

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