Written question asked by Alan Meale (Labour) on Monday, 12 December 2011, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 14 December 2011. It was answered by Crispin Blunt (Conservative) on Monday, 19 December 2011 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Legal Opinion: Consumers

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether the Government has assessed the potential effect of new forms of regulation of legal services on consumer protection.

Answer: The licensing regime for alternative business structures (ABS) contained in the Legal Services Act 2007, became operational on 6 October 2011. The Act sets out numerous regulatory safeguards and consumer protections, including requiring all potential licensing authorities to demonstrate to the oversight regulator, the Legal Services Board, that they have robust procedures in place to regulate and monitor the bodies that they will license. Before a body is licensed, it has to meet the criteria set out in the rules and regulations of licensing authorities. In addition, every person working in an ABS firm must comply with licensing rules and licensing authorities may take disciplinary action for con-compliance.All consumer complaints about legal services arising from a traditional law firm or an ABS, will be handled by the Legal Ombudsman in the first instance. An impact assessment was prepared specifically for the commencement of ABS. The Legal Services Board will monitor the impact, which is expected to realise over the next three to five years, and conduct a post implementation review.

Secondary information