1. The Legal Services Act 2007, s.51(4) specifies the permitted purposes for which fees received by the CLC may be applied. s.51(5) specifies that ‘a practising fee is payable under the regulatory arrangements of an approved regulator (such as the CLC) only if the Board has approved the level of the fee’.
2. The CLC Council met on 25 June 2024 and after careful consideration of the options, agreed that Practice Fees should be increased by 9% and that the allocation of the OLC levy to practices should be amended so that 50% is collected as an availability fee from all practices and 50% as a usage fee allocated to practices with cases accepted for investigation by the Legal Ombudsman. The Council further resolved that there would be no change to any of the other fee rates (Individual License Fees, Compensation Fund Contributions and Administration & Application fees). These proposals are subject to consultation and LSB approval.
3. The CLC is a pure regulator and does not have a representative function. All costs incurred by the CLC are applied only to permitted purposes.
4. The CLC’s role is to safeguard consumers and the public interest by regulating providers to deliver high quality and accessible legal services.
5. The CLC’s regulatory activities include:
· setting educational and training standards for entry to the profession
· issuing licences to practise to those qualified to provide conveyancing and probate services and to Alternative Business Structures
· maintaining a register of all CLC Lawyers and CLC Practices
· setting standards to regulate the professional practice, conduct and discipline of CLC Lawyers and CLC Practices
· setting standards to maintain adequate professional indemnity insurance and a compensation fund to protect consumers
· monitoring the work and conduct of CLC Practices
· providing guidance and advice to CLC Practices to maintain compliance with our regulatory requirements
· investigating allegations of misconduct and where appropriate taking disciplinary action and
· collaborating with key stakeholders in the legal services market to monitor and shape future policy.
· Professional body supervision for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing.
6. The CLC’s approach to regulation is proportionate, risk-based and outcomes-focused. Licence holders are required to demonstrate that they:
· act with independence and integrity
· maintain high standards of work
· act in the best interest of clients
· deal with regulators and ombudsmen in an open and cooperative way and
· promote ease of access and service.
