Legal Services Act 2007

Practising fees

51 Control of practising fees charged by approved regulators

(1) In this section “practising fee”, in relation to an approved regulator, means a fee payable by a person under the approved regulator’s regulatory arrangements in circumstances where the payment of the fee is a condition which must be satisfied for that person to be authorised by the approved regulator to carry on one or more activities which are reserved legal activities.

(2) An approved regulator may only apply amounts raised by practising fees for one or more of the permitted purposes.

(3) The Board must make rules specifying the permitted purposes.

(4) Those rules must, in particular, provide that the following are permitted purposes—

(a) the regulation, accreditation, education and training of relevant authorised persons and those wishing to become such persons, including—

(i) the maintaining and raising of their professional standards, and

(ii) the giving of practical support, and advice about practice management, in relation to practices carried on by such persons;

(b) the payment of a levy imposed on the approved regulator under section 173;

(c) the participation by the approved regulator in law reform and the legislative process;

(d) the provision by relevant authorised persons, and those wishing to become relevant authorised persons, of reserved legal services, immigration advice or immigration services to the public free of charge;

(e) the promotion of the protection by law of human rights and fundamental freedoms;

(f) the promotion of relations between the approved regulator and relevant national or international bodies, governments or the legal professions of other jurisdictions.

(5) A practising fee is payable under the regulatory arrangements of an approved regulator only if the Board has approved the level of the fee.

(6) The Board must make rules containing provision—

(a) about the form and manner in which applications for approval for the purposes of subsection (5) must be made and the material which must accompany such applications;

(b) requiring applicants to have consulted such persons as may be prescribed by the rules in such manner as may be so prescribed before such an application is made;

(c) about the procedures and criteria that will be applied by the Board when determining whether to approve the level of a fee for the purposes of subsection (5).

(7) Rules under subsection (6)(c) must, in particular, contain—

(a) provision requiring the Board, before it determines an application for approval of the level of a fee, to consult such persons as it considers appropriate about the impact of the proposed fee on persons providing non-commercial legal services;

(b) provision about the time limit for the determining of an application.

(8) In this section “relevant authorised persons”, in relation to an approved regulator, means persons who are authorised by the approved regulator to carry on activities which are reserved legal activities.