denotes premium content | Nov 18 2008 
News
posted 27 Aug 2008
Legal Services Board starts work
THE BRITISH Government has announced the first members of the newly-established UK regulatory authority, the Legal Services Board (LSB).
The nine-member board, set up by the Legal Services Act 2007 to be a single independent oversight regulator of legal services, was appointed by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Jack Straw, in July 2008.
Members include former Reuters general counsel Rosemary Martin, Irwin Mitchell senior partner Michael Napier QC, Financial Services Authority (FSA) general counsel Andrew Whittaker, Matrix Chambers founder David Wolfe and Nicole Smith, panel chair at the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC). They will be joined by independent consumer consultant Barbara Saunders, retired chief constable of Nottinghamshire Police Stephen Green, the non-executive director of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme Terence Connor and Bill Moyes, the executive chairman of NHS regulator Monitor.
“Establishing a new LSB is another important step towards raising the standards and simplifying regulation in the legal-services sector,” said Straw. “The board members bring with them a wealth of experience of service delivery.”
Officially commencing their duties on 1 September 2008, new members are to work closely with the LSB chair David Edmonds, who took up his own post on 1 May 2008. The part-time roles are for a period of three years, with early duties including establishing the design and outlook of the organisation and deciding on the regulatory framework.
“I have every confidence that, together, we will further enhance the important work that needs to be done to ensure high-quality services are delivered to people using legal services,” said Edmonds.
