Michael Todd QC, chairman of the Bar Council, has called for the LSB's role to be “confined†to prevent it duplicating the role of other regulators. The move comes after the three first solicitor ABSs were licensed by the SRA last week.
I was wrong. On 12 January I predicted that the first alternative business structures to be authorised by the SRA would be the Co-op and a small firm. Last week the regulator revealed that the Co-op and not one but two small firms were the first SRA-licensed ABSs.
The Co-op, a high street firm and a sole practitioner are the first three alternative business structures to have been authorised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority this morning.
Don't let the delayed nomination deadline for COLPs and COFAs and the uncertainty surrounding their role tempt you to put your compliance arrangements on hold, says Susanna Heley
The SRA has blamed a “legacy of inaccurate data†in its latest explanation for the series of delays that have blighted the launch of its mySRA online renewal system.
The SRA has admitted that the roll of solicitors is now a year out of date. A spokesman said the organisation hoped to start work on renewing the roll in April 2011, but this would now take place “later than originally plannedâ€.
The Bar Standards Board has hit out at “last-minute†proposals from the SRA, which “may allow judicial evaluation to be bypassed†in the new quality assurance scheme for criminal advocates (QASA).