Clause 17

Part of Legal Services Bill [Lords] – in a Public Bill Committee at 12:00 pm on 19 June 2007.

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Photo of Bridget Prentice Bridget Prentice Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice 12:00, 19 June 2007

I agree absolutely that transparency is the key to maintaining consumer confidence. When consumers engage a firm of solicitors, they should expect the best advice that the firm can provide for the price that it charges. If they then find that the advice comes from someone else—hopefully, not the cleaner—that might undermine their confidence in it, and not surprisingly so. That does not necessarily mean that the advice is wrong; some firms of solicitors are staffed by a variety of qualified lawyers, some of whom will be “authorised persons”, using the Bill’s language, while some will not be solicitors, but will be authorised for other reasons, and will include legal executives, barristers and conveyancers. I do not want anyone to be under the impression that a particular authorised person is somehow second best; it is just who is appropriate in the circumstances.

It is possible, too, that non-authorised persons may provide reserved legal services direct to clients, but only under the supervision of authorised persons who still remain responsible for the provision of the service. Having said that, there is a lot of merit in the amendment tabled by the hon. Member for North Southwark and Bermondsey. I take on board what was said by the hon. Member for Enfield, Southgate and I want to explain why I shall take the amendment away and consider it. It is clearly in the consumer’s interest to be informed of the way in which their case is handled. Not only is that helpful to them, but it lets them know where they stand and what their rights are, all of which the Bill is supposed to be about. It is important, too, that the Bill makes it clear to the consumer what that particular solicitor or legal adviser can or cannot do so that there is less scope for misunderstanding.

However, there are a couple of small gaps in the amendment, the first of which concerns enforcement. It would be best to provide for that subject as part of the duty in the regulatory arrangements. As the hon. Member for Enfield, Southgate said, the codes of conduct already include something along those lines. We may want to consider redrafting the amendment so that the primary duty lies with the regulator rather than the individual adviser. In that way, the regulated people would have to comply with the duty and action could be taken if they did not do so. Secondly—although a minor point—the duty might not arise in full in all circumstances. Barristers in independent practice, for example, all have the same level of qualification. They are also practitioners, and not accountable to anyone in that sense, so we would have to consider how their code of conduct would apply in that situation.

Finally, an important feature is missing. Although the consumer could know the body to whom the adviser is accountable, the amendment does not go far enough because it does not say to whom the consumer can complain or what the complaints process is. Many codes of conduct contain a complaints procedure, so we need to take that into account, too. I am happy to  consider the amendment, but I urge the hon. Member for North Southwark and Bermondsey to withdraw it so that we can consider how we will incorporate it, taking into account all the points that have been raised.