The failure to protect clients of SSB Law should lead to an overhaul of the regulatory framework and complaints-handling procedures, the Legal Services Consumer Panel has said. The watchdog today expressed ‘deep concern’ about the failings of the Solicitors Regulation Authority to protect clients of the Sheffield claims firm.
SSB Law went into administration in 2024 around £200m in debt and leaving thousands of vulnerable claimants facing potential costs bills. An investigation commissioned by the Legal Services Board last week found that the SRA received more than 100 reports over five years from clients and creditors about SSB Law, but the regulator allowed the risk to escalate rather than contain it.
The consumer panel said the LSB report, which prompted a full apology from the SRA, had highlighted ‘systemic shortcomings’ in consumer protection and the responsiveness of regulators that must be urgently addressed.
It made clear this was not an isolated incident but reflected deeper vulnerabilities in the legal services market that have been repeatedly highlighted by the Competition and Markets Authority and others. Without decisive reform, it added, consumers will continue to face unacceptable risks and barriers.
Panel chair Tom Hayhoe said: ‘This report lays bare a regulatory failure with devastating consequences for consumers. The SRA’s inaction over five years enabled a pattern of misconduct to escalate unchecked. The legal services sector must now confront the reality that its regulatory framework and oversight does not prevent harm to consumers, especially the most vulnerable.’
The panel said the SRA had delayed its response to complaints, despite clear patterns of harm, and showed a lack of joined-up thinking in particularly high-risk areas such as litigation funding. Clients were not protected and were unaware of the financial risks they faced from signing what they were told were no win, no fee agreements.
Nobody from the SRA has resigned or offered to resign in the wake of the LSB report, and the panel also said that ‘insufficient transparency and accountability’ from the solicitors’ regulator had undermined public confidence.
The panel recommends an overhaul in how the SRA handles complaints and assesses risk, and clear safeguards put in place to protect clients involved in high-volume claims. It also wants regulators to proactively inform consumers about their rights, risks and avenues for redress.
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