Where we fit with other approved regulators
31 March 2021
The regulation of lawyers
The Legal Services Board is responsible for overseeing the regulation of all lawyers in England and Wales. There are then eight separate regulators directly regulating the different types of lawyer on a day-to-day basis.
The different types of lawyer, and their approved regulators, are as follows:
- Solicitors—regulated by us, the Solicitors Regulation Authority; we also regulate other types of individual and firms
- Barristers—regulated by the Bar Standards Board, the independent regulatory arm of the Bar Council
- Legal executives—regulated by CILEx Regulation, the independent regulatory arm of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx)
- Licensed conveyancers—regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers
- Patent and Trade mark attorneys—regulated by the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg), the independent regulatory arm of the Chartered Institute of Patent attorneys (CIPA) and the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (ITMA)
- Costs lawyers—regulated by the Costs Lawyer Standards Board (CLSB); the independent regulatory arm of the Association of Costs Lawyers (ACL)
- Notaries—regulated by the Master of the Faculties
The regulation of firms
The SRA and the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) have powers to regulate the firms within which different types of lawyer work. The CLC has the power to regulate firms providing conveyancing and probate services. The SRA is able to regulate all types of legal work a firm may deliver, including conveyancing and probate services.
Lawyers are allowed to set up law firms with other lawyers and non-lawyers. This means that, while individuals are regulated by their own approved regulator, the firm for which they work are regulated by either the SRA or the CLC.
Firms are primarily responsible for ensuring compliance with regulators. But individuals within those firms are responsible for their own conduct.
You can find out if we regulate a firm using the Solicitors Register.