City law firms do not generally see alternative business structures as attractive, because they are reluctant to cede control of the firm to source external funding that they do not need.

This is one conclusion of the first of a series of studies looking at the supply of legal services in England and Wales, commissioned by the Legal Services Board. Carried by consultancy Charles Rivers Associates, the study considers the regulation of City firms and how they operate in the legal services market.

The report adds: '[City firms do not] see huge demand for providing a wider range of services beyond the experts that they are currently able to bring in-house anyway.

‘In addition, offering a wider set of services, and having partners who are not lawyers, brings complications for international law firms that have a presence in jurisdictions where ABSs are not permitted.’

A separate study, also published by the LSB today, considers the activities of so-called ‘special bodies’ – not-for-profit organisations which conduct reserved legal activities. Carried out by Frontier Economics, the research was compiled from sources, including interviews with Citizens Advice and the Law Centres Federation.

The research highlights the challenges faced by the sector in delivering quality assured services against a backdrop of greatly reduced funding and variable quality assurance mechanisms.

Go to the Legal Services Board website for more information.