IPS to begin regulating legal businesses in New Year

The final legislative hurdle to full practice rights for chartered legal executives has been cleared, giving CILEx members the ability to set up their own law firms.

The orders, which provide consumer protection powers, were approved in the House of Lords this afternoon, having cleared the Commons last week.

ILEX Professional Standards (IPS), the regulator of CILEx members, expects to begin taking applications from legal businesses in the New Year, subject to final clearance by the Legal Services Board (LSB).

'Great opportunity'

Commenting on the news, Alan Kershaw, chair of IPS, said: "For many new and existing firms, this presents a great opportunity. For the first time they have a real choice of regulator. We should be clear about what that choice means. It does not mean a decline in standards, or a chance to escape scrutiny - it means a regulatory model that is best for your business, giving consumers the protection they need when seeking legal services."

Kershaw continued: "It also means that, for the first time, students starting out on the CILEx route can know that their natural end point is, if they want it, to be authorised to provide reserved legal services in one or more branches of the law either as an employed lawyer, or in running their own practice."

'High standards'

The CILEx president, Frances Edwards, pictured, said: "Today's result is a culmination of years of work in preparing the schemes, consulting stakeholders, and seeking approval from regulators and parliamentarians.

"I want to put on record my sincere thanks to all those who played a part in making this possible, most especially our members; if it were not for their professionalism and high standards we would not have had the confidence to pursue these orders."

It is now up to the LSB to sign off on the rules. Several insurers have reviewed the new regulatory model and have confirmed they will provide indemnity cover for firms approved for practice by IPS.

John van der Luit-Drummond is legal reporter for Solicitors Journal