Scots independence call
The Scottish Parliament last week backed self-regulation for the legal profession, but called for a series of changes to the way complaints against Scottish lawyers are handled, including a single gateway for all complaints against the profession.
A report on regulation by the parliament's Justice 1 committee said members were not persuaded by the option of a completely independent system.
'The committee...
believes it would be more effective to maintain the present system of joint regulation, namely self-regulation with the additional independent regulatory mechanism of the [Scottish legal services] ombudsman, but with increased independence,' it said.
It recommended a series of reforms, including a 'firewall' between the Law Society of Scotland and complaints-handling, as is already the case in England and Wales.
The ombudsman's powers would also be beefed up.
On a single gateway, the report said: 'It would improve the public perception of the complaints system and play a valuable oversight role.'
While welcoming the endorsement of self-regulation, David Preston, president of the Law Society of Scotland, expressed concern that the single gateway 'could be costly, bureaucratic, cause delay and could undermine the very independence supported by the committee'.
Neil Rose
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