The Chief Executive of the WS Society Robert Pirrie has proposed a radical overhaul of the regulation and representation of the solicitor branch of the profession as part of the WS Society’s response to the Legal Services Bill.

As the drive towards a consumer-friendly legal profession proceeds, Pirrie has called for the profession to assert its independence against increased government regulation as part of the profession's development.

“It is right that the regulatory framework for legal services in Scotland be brought up to date with 21st century thinking in terms of commercial freedom and consumer choice. We have no quarrel with that. Our concern is that, in implementing the changes, the Bill increases government intervention in the Law Society of Scotland because it regulates solicitors. That inevitably compromises the independence of the Law Society if, as the Bill contemplates, it is also supposed to represent solicitors,” Pirrie said.

“Solicitors rightly pride themselves on independence. Consumers should want them to. Anything that undermines the independence of lawyers is bad for the public and bad for the reputation of Scotland’s legal system.

“If the government has the power to remove control of the Law Society from solicitors, then so be it, but then everybody should wish to see solicitors represented by a body which is independent of the Law Society as regulator.”

The WS Society has proposed a radical solution that would return the representation of the solicitor branch to the hands of solicitors without the involvement of the Law Society.

“The representation of solicitors should be left entirely to solicitors themselves through a joint council comprising solicitor bodies such as the WS Society. This would be a revival of the Scottish model which existed before the Law Society of Scotland was established (following what happened in England) after the Second World War,” the WS Society said in a statement.

“The WS points out that the distinctive Scottish model of an independent legal profession dates back to the formation of the College of Justice in 1532.”

Earlier this year a motion at the Law Society AGM to cap the practising certificate fee at £400 led to a fee reduction of £100 coming into effect, after concerns were expressed by members.

Yesterday the consumer lobby called for lay representation on the Law Society Council to be increased to 50%.

The next edition of the Firm will carry a special feature analysing whether the representation of the solicitors’ profession should be independent of the Law Society of Scotland.