Inside the Law: Excuse me, which aisle should I go to for legal advice, please?

Published on Tuesday 6 January 2009 20:49

A MASSIVE overhaul of Scotland's legal services market will take a big step forward today.

The Scottish Government will launch a consultation on plans to open up the market.

The move will be followed by the launch of new legislation this summer that is expected to end the centuries-old monopoly the legal profession has over the ownership of law firms.

Sources predict that the Legal Profession Bill will make access to legal advice far easier for members of the public.

The move has been called "Tesco Law" in England, which has already embraced the easing of restrictions over who should be allowed to provide legal services.

In theory, it means supermarkets and banks will be able to give legal advice on many issues, from divorce to personal accident claims.

You will probably also be able to access more legal advice on the internet.

The Scotsman understands that much of today's consultation paper – called "Wider Choice and Better Protection" – will be heavily informed by an earlier paper by the Law Society of Scotland.

The society published its policy paper "The Public Interest: Delivering Scottish Legal Services" on so-called alternative business structures in April 2007.

Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, has already told lawyers that the status quo is "not an option", following an Office of Fair Trade ruling that the current monopoly was anti-competitive and bad for consumers.

One senior legal source close to ministerial talks over the matter told me that the public should get a better deal out of the reforms – provided the new legal services providers are properly regulated to ensure high quality advice.

"It's a natural consequence of opening up the market that there will be different kinds of providers. They should be able to offer consumers competitive services. But an absolutely key issue is how we ensure that these new service providers are properly regulated so consumers aren't actually worse off," said the source.