Will Writing Regulation

15 February 2013

Will Writing Regulation

The Legal Services Board will today recommend to the lord chancellor that will-writing activities, but not estate administration, should be regulated. It is the first time that the board has recommended bringing new activities under the scope of the Legal Services Act.

The Law Society has welcomed the proposed consumer protection for those making a will, but warned that the failure to regulate estate administration ‘risks consumers losing everything’.

The LSB’s recommendation follows two years of investigation, during which it said it found comprehensive evidence that the market is working contrary to the objectives outlined in the Legal Services Act 2007 to the detriment of consumers and providers.

If accepted, it said the change would give consumers better protection and consistent access to redress by allowing access to the Legal Ombudsman, increase competition by creating a level playing field between traditional law firms and new forms of service provider and require regulators to develop proportionate and targeted risk-based approaches to supervision and enforcement.

Read the full story here