Regulation still top priority for Society, member survey finds

Regulation of the solicitors' profession is still seen by its members as the the Law Society of Scotland's most important function, and a huge majority believe it should continue to be responsible for representation as well as regulation of solicitors in Scotland, according to the Society's latest member survey.

In research carried out by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Law Society, 95% of respondents believe the Society should continue in its dual role, 91% agree that it is "an effective regulator of the solicitor profession", and 84% said that "intervening in firms where a critical failure has been identified", should be high priority for the Society, the highest rating for any of the Society's specific roles.

In line with last year’s results, regulatory duties, including setting standards and updating practice rules (78%), investigating conduct complaints and prosecuting cases before the Scottish Solicitors’ Discipline Tribunal (67%), and inspecting firms to ensure compliance with the accounting rules (66%) were also ranked as high priority.

The findings come in the context of the Scottish Government’s independent review of the regulation of legal services, under Esther Roberton, current chair of NHS 24, which aims to report to ministers by August 2018. The Society is seeking reforms to enable it to keep abreast of changes in the way the profession works and improve consumer protection.

Legal aid and the UK’s vote to leave the EU emerged as key issues facing Scottish solicitors: 78% expressed concern that current policy on legal aid puts the principle of access to justice for the poorest in society at risk, while 57% believe that Brexit will have a negative impact on their organisations over the next two years, though the same number are confident that there will be an agreement in place when the UK leaves the EU.

The Society’s Accredited Paralegal status, relaunched and renamed last year, was given a positive endorsement: 87% of respondents believe that it is important for the legal sector that paralegals have a recognised professional accreditation. 

In the run-up to GDPR taking effect, 76% of solicitors said they were confident that their businesses were prepared. The Society has been running a campaign to drive awareness of GDPR requirements and continue to provide tailored training products and resources for members.

Paul Mosson, executive director for member services commented: "We strive to meet our members’ various needs – a high street solicitor for example may have very different training needs to those of an in-house corporate lawyer. This insight enables us to identify where the opportunities and gaps lie and tailor our products and services accordingly.

"The research allows us to take a temperature check on the profession, tracking trends and flagging views on topical issues. It is a critical piece of insight for us and informs much our work on behalf of Scottish solicitors and in the public interest."

Solicitors also value the practice advice provided to members by the Society, with 95% of those who had received advice from its Professional Practice team saying they were satisfied by the overall quality of the service, and 58% saying its provision should be a high priority.

In the year that the Society's charity the Lawscot Foundation awarded financial and mentoring support to the first eight bursary recipients, 71% of respondents said that the Society’s education and training standards are flexible and promote equal access.

Overall the majority of respondents, at 62%, are optimistic about the future of the profession, but there are differences across sectors: the 50% of high street solicitors compares with the 75% of in-house solicitors who said they are optimistic about the future of the legal profession in Scotland.

Graham Matthews, President of the Society, commented: "In many respects our members’ views remain consistent with previous years’ results. In particular, the high importance which Scottish solicitors attach to regulation is unwavering.

"Members continue to show concern about the impending impact of Brexit and access to justice issues, which in turn will continue to drive and inform much of our policy and engagement work.

"Overall, the results are positive both in terms of the profession’s outlook for the future and their assessment of our performance. We are however, acutely aware that there is always work to be done to meet and exceed our members’ needs and protect the public interest."

An article from the Society on the survey findings will appear in this month's Journal.