Redefining legal skills

The Law Society should prepare itself for the day when it has nothing to do with regulation

Slowly but surely the idea of a single legal regulator is getting the attention it deserves.

Mostly, this is because the larger approved regulators and their regulatory arms are now considering the Legal Services Board's idea seriously. Their initial positions have not dramatically changed - the majority have been negative - but as the proposal is getting more air time, so are the reactions. It's all helping to shape the LSB's plans further. '¨

The government's own review of legal services regulation has given the issue further momentum, which has attracted a range of responses culminating in the Law Society's bid to regain control over solicitors. Unsurprisingly, the Solicitors Regulation Authority made an opposite suggestion and called for complete autonomy from Chancery Lane.'¨

Now LSB chief executive Chris Kenny is taking the debate further. The Law Society, he says, should prepare itself for the day when it has nothing to do with regulation.

One immediate consequence is that Chancery Lane would no longer be able to charge a compulsory membership levy, requiring it to devise new income streams.

'¨Kenny has spoken about this before and, arguably, the Law Society has already taken steps in this direction. It has been providing membership services since it was set up, and its new quality schemes are seen as the latest examples of supporting the solicitor brand.

'¨But this time Kenny is rather more urgent, saying that value to members in the age of the Legal Services Act can no longer just be about publishing a commentary about the latest version of the Code of Conduct.

He is also rather more conciliatory, inviting the society to see the challenge as an opportunity to convince solicitors that it can engage with all of them and stand as a credible interlocutor with government, industry and regulators - exactly the sort of thing that those preparing for the special general meeting of 17 December will be thinking about.'¨

Kenny is realistic about the chances of the single legal regulator ever becoming a reality. But does it matter if the plan never comes to fruition? Disappointing, perhaps, but the super-regulator would have achieved one thing: to force the profession to start thinking differently about what it stands for and how it needs to compete. '¨

Of course there is an issue with the number of regulatory layers, but deep down the question the LSB is raising is the validity of the solicitor qualification and skills, where so much of the work solicitors does not involve reserved activities.'¨

Solicitors' training should still allow them to stand out against new entrants, but a single authority regulating activities rather than titles would make law firms focus on the skills they need for the 21st century.

Expert legal knowledge will remain a prerequisite, but having business skills and coming to terms with evolving buying patterns will be just as essential.'¨

Jean-Yves Gilg is editor of Solicitors Journal

'¨jean-yves.gilg@solicitorsjournal.co.uk