Responses call for end to self regulation
10 Oct 05
Majority back independent policing of complaints against lawyers
More than 90% of those responding to the Scottish Executive's consultation on legal complaints handling want a change to the current system which allows lawyers to police themselves, according to today's Herald.
The article reveals that less than 15 of the 280-plus organisations who have responded want to retain the status quo which allows governing bodies the Law Society of Scotland and the Faculty of Advocates to resolve complaints about lawyers.
Those opposing include the Office of Fair Trading and the consumer bodies, Which? and the Scottish Consumer Council, which believe that arrangements under which the professional bodies continue to handle complaints would be unable to ensure public confidence.
A number of legal firms support of the existing practice, maintaining that it works well and questioning the bureaucracy involved if outside bodies were to police lawyers, which one firm suggested could be too much for smaller practices to handle.
The FSA has suggested that Scottish law firms should underwrite the costs of the reformed system, paying a proportionate share of the costs based on the size of the business and a fixed fee per case.