LEGAL PRACTICE REGULATIONFOR LAW FIRMS ASPIRING TO THE HIGHEST LEGAL PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS

BENEFITS

Regulation with ILEX Professional Standards (IPS):

• Is open to all Authorised Persons running their own law firms;• Enables CILEx members to compete on an equal footing with

other practitioners;• Gives consumers more choice;• Raises quality standards;• Expands availability of good-value regulated legal services;• Delivers competence-based authorisation, focusing on how you

run your business;• Demonstrates you can provide a good service to your clients;• Makes clear to consumers that you provide specialist legal

services;• Provides dedicated Relationship Officers to assist you in the

regulatory process;• Is risk-based, regulating your business in a proportionate,

outcomes-focused way; and• Offers a fee structure which is competitive with other regulatory

bodies.

RESERVED LEGAL ACTIVITIES

IPS has qualification schemes to allow members to deliver the following reserved and regulated legal services:

• Conduct of litigation; • Rights of audience;• Probate activities;• Conveyancing; and• Immigration advice and services.

All reserved and regulated legal services must be delivered through a regulated legal practice. IPS is a regulator for legal practices.

AUTHORISING LAW FIRMS

IPS can regulate practices that are owned and managed by Authorised Persons, whether authorised by IPS or one of the other approved regulators.

We take a risk-based approach to regulation. We will assess your application for regulation of your legal practice against the nine Principles in the CILEx Code of Conduct and Rules, and the statutory objectives set out in the Legal Services Act. We will look at the risks your legal practice may pose to the delivery of each Principle.

APPLICATION PROCESS

We will ask you to:

• Complete an application form. The form asks for details of your organisation structure, client base, and practice, accounts and risk management procedures;

• Provide supporting documentation to demonstrate the procedures you have in place; and

• Provide financial and accounts information to demonstrate your financial management.

Copies of application forms, details of fees and our guidance to applicants can be found at www.ilexstandards.org.uk

We will initially assess your application on the basis of the information provided and the supporting documentation. We will consider whether your application meets the CILEx Code of Conduct and other criteria set out in the Authorisation Rules and, if it does, authorise your practice on the documentation assessment.

Where we need to explore aspects of your application or seek further information, we may conduct a site visit to your practice. During the visit we may ask to look at your files, your processes and procedures and areas of potential risk and non-compliance.

Information gathered from the site visit will enable us to review an application against the authorisation criteria, so that we can be satisfied as to risk and compliance issues.

REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS

All legal law firms IPS regulates will have to meet a number of continuing regulatory requirements. For example, they will have to:

• Acquire Professional indemnity insurance cover in accordance with IPS rules, through one of IPS’ approved insurers;

• Comply with the CILEx Code of Conduct and Accounts Rules, including submitting annual accounts reports;

• Make an annual contribution to the compensation fund; and • Seek IPS approval before making any changes to the practice

management arrangements or key personnel in the practice.

KEY PERSONNEL IN YOUR PRACTICE

To seek authorisation you must have a number of key office holders in your practice. They are:

• A person authorised in the reserved legal practice area in which you seek to provide legal services – this person will be called an approved manager;

• A person authorised to take responsibility for practice management – this person will be called a compliance manager; and

• A person authorised to take responsibility for accounts management – this person will be called an accounts compliance manager.

It is possible for the above roles to be carried out by the same person or different people.

The compliance managers must demonstrate knowledge and understanding of practice and accounts management. We have developed two levels of competencies for these areas.

All approved managers and compliance managers must demonstrate competence in practice management and accounts at Level 1.

Compliance managers must also demonstrate competence at Level 2 in practice management and/or accounts for whichever area they are responsible.

Practice management and accounts competencies comprise knowledge, skills and experience elements. Managers can meet most of the competencies by undertaking courses in these areas. Details of courses that meet the competencies can be found at www.ilexstandards.org.uk. Alternatively the competencies can be demonstrated by evidence from the workplace through a logbook or portfolio of evidence.

OUR DECISION

When we have approved your application, the managers (approved and compliance) and the practice model you have proposed, you will be able to begin delivering legal services. Our dedicated relationship officers will support you through the set up period as necessary.

We may authorise your practice or the managers with conditions on their authorisation and we will work with you to ensure compliance during this period.

Where we decide that your application poses risks to any of the nine Principles in the CILEx Code of Conduct that cannot be mitigated, we will decide not to authorise your practice.

REGULATION OF YOUR LEGAL PRACTICE

All authorised legal practices are subject to supervision.

We will ensure your continuing compliance with the CILEx Code of Conduct to protect the public and the administration of justice. Our aim is to always protect the consumer, all of the time.

Each year, as part of our monitoring procedures, you will be required to submit an updated form relating to your legal practice structure.

We continually gather intelligence from the market and our legal practice risk assessments.

ILEX Professional StandardsKempston Manor, Kempston, Bedford MK42 7ABT +44 (0)1234 845770F +44 (0)1234 840989E practicerights@ilexstandards.org.uk www.ilexstandards.org.uk

CILEx

Founded in 1963 the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives is the professional association for more than 7,500 qualified Chartered Legal Executive lawyers and 12,500 paralegal and other legal practitioners in England and Wales.

IPS

ILEX Professional Standards Ltd (IPS) is the regulator of Chartered Legal Executives and other members of CILEx. IPS also regulates practitioners and legal practices authorised to provide reserved and regulated legal services.

IPS sets the standards of conduct and qualification for those it regulates and assesses compliance with these standards. IPS takes proportionate and risk-based action in cases of non-compliance.

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© CILEx December 2014Information correct at time of going to press.