Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2025

8 Exercise of regulatory functions

(1) A category 1 regulator must exercise its regulatory functions—

(a) independently of its other functions or activities (if any),

(b) properly in all respects (in particular, with a view to achieving public confidence).

(2) Where a category 1 regulator has functions other than regulatory functions, it must—

(a) establish and maintain a regulatory committee to discharge its regulatory functions,

(b) ensure that the governing body of the regulator does not interfere with the committee’s discharge of those functions,

(c) when consulted on a matter relating to its regulatory functions, delegate responsibility for responding to the committee (in so far as the matter relates to those functions).

(3) A category 1 regulator must—

(a) consult its regulatory committee before making decisions affecting the committee’s funding and resources, and

(b) ensure that the committee is adequately funded and resourced to be able to discharge its functions.

(4) A regulatory committee—

(a) must (in accordance with this Act or any other enactment) determine its composition, governance arrangements and priorities,

(b) may arrange for the exercise of its functions by a sub-committee or an individual (which may be a member of staff of the regulator).

(5) But, an arrangement under subsection (4)(b)—

(a) may not delegate—

(i) the regulatory committee’s function of making regulatory rules under this Act or any other enactment,

(ii) to an individual, the committee’s function of determining what action it proposes to take in respect of a conduct or regulatory complaint remitted under section 6 or 7A of the 2007 Act or, as the case may be, initiated in accordance with section 33A or 33B of that Act, and

(b) does not affect or limit the regulatory committee’s—

(i) responsibility for the exercise of the delegated functions, or

(ii) ability to exercise those functions.

(6) A regulatory committee must maintain and publish a document setting out its—

(a) composition, membership and governance arrangements,

(b) regulatory functions (including powers and duties) and procedures,

(c) arrangements (if any) for the delegation of functions.

(7) A regulatory committee of a category 1 regulator must consult the governing body of the regulator before making any material change to its governance arrangements.

(8) Except where provided for in an enactment, the governing body and regulatory committee of a category 1 regulator are to agree arrangements for resolving any disputes that may arise between them.

(9) In this Part, a reference to the governing body of a category 1 regulator is a reference to the group of persons (however described) who are responsible for the direction, management and control of the regulator and the exercise of its statutory functions.