The Law Society's regulatory and representative roles will be formally separated from January 2006 after a historic vote of the council last week, which received support from the Lord Chancellor.

Members voted four to one for separation and decided to create two new bodies: one dealing solely with consumer complaints - which foreshadows proposals to move complaints handling to an independent body - and one dealing with all other regulatory matters.


The council - probably with around half its 105 members - will remain as the representative body for solicitors, although it will still legally be required to pass changes to the practice rules and set some fees. Members agreed only to do so on the basis of reports from the regulatory boards.


The new structure will be in place in shadow form from September.


Addressing the council ahead of its debate and vote, the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, said separation 'will reduce the scope for confusion amongst consumers. It will promote confidence in the system'.


Provided the governance structure meets the standards set by the proposed legal services board - which will oversee regulation of all lawyers - Lord Falconer said 'it should allow you to retain the ability to regulate your own profession'.


He added that the Society's attitude was 'an important factor' in the government's preliminary agreement with Sir David Clementi that a Financial Services Authority-style regulator was not appropriate.


The regulatory board will have 16 members, with a solicitor chairman and majority to maintain the principle of profession-led regulation; the complaints board will be 12-strong, with a lay chairman and majority.


A proposal that a council member could also sit on either of the regulatory bodies was voted down. Members also opposed plans for limited elections of solicitors to the regulatory bodies, preferring instead that they be appointed on Nolan principles.


Opposing elections, Manchester member Nigel Day said such solicitors should not be 'representatives of the profession but representatives from the profession'.


Law Society chief executive Janet Paraskeva said that the reform means 'we will be able to demonstrate that all our regulatory decisions are made clearly and unambiguously in the public interest'.