Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2025

50 Receipt of complaints: preliminary steps

(1) The 2007 Act is amended as follows.

(2) The italic heading before section 2 becomes “Conduct, services and regulatory complaints”.

(3) In section 2 (receipt of complaints: preliminary steps)—

(a) in subsection (1), for paragraph (b) substitute—

“(b) suggesting that—

(i) professional services were inadequate where they were provided by a practitioner in connection with any matter in which the practitioner has been instructed by a client, or

(ii) legal services were inadequate where they were provided by a person other than a practitioner to the public for fee, gain or reward,

(a complaint suggesting any such matter being referred to in this Part as a “services complaint”),

(c) suggesting that an authorised legal business is failing (or has failed) to comply with—

(i) the practice rules forming part of the rules for authorising and regulating the legal business made by the relevant professional organisation under (or for the purposes of) section 41(1)(a) of the 2025 Act, or

(ii) the terms on which its authorisation is granted by the relevant professional organisation including any conditions or restrictions imposed in relation to the authorisation,

(a complaint suggesting any such matter being referred to in this Part as a “regulatory complaint”).”,

(b) after subsection (1) insert—

“(1ZA) A complaint as mentioned in subsection (1)(b)(ii) suggesting that legal services provided by a person other than a practitioner were inadequate—

(a) may include a complaint suggesting that the manner in which legal services were provided by the person was inadequate,

(b) but is not an eligible services complaint for the purposes of this Part where the Commission considers, in accordance with any provision in rules made under section 32(1), that the legal services provided by the person were merely incidental to other services (not being legal services) provided by the person.

(1ZB) Where a services complaint is made in relation to a practitioner who is an individual and the Commission considers that the complaint should also be made against the practitioner’s firm or (as the case may be) where the practitioner is an employee of another practitioner that other practitioner (referred to in this Part as the “employing practitioner”), the Commission may decide to treat the complaint as—

(a) also having been made against the practitioner’s firm or the employing practitioner (as the case may be), or

(b) having been made against the practitioner’s firm or the employing practitioner (as the case may be) instead of the practitioner.”,

(c) for subsection (1A) substitute—

“(1A) The Commission must, subject to any provision in rules made under section 32(1) as to eligibility for making complaints, determine whether the complaint constitutes (to any extent)—

(a) a conduct complaint,

(b) a services complaint,

(c) a regulatory complaint, or

(d) any combination of more than one of the categories of complaint mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c).

(1B) For the purpose of subsection (1A), the Commission may determine—

(a) where the complaint includes more than one element, that—

(i) an element constitutes a complaint falling within a category mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (1A), and

(ii) another element constitutes a separate complaint falling within another of those categories,

(b) that any element of the complaint—

(i) constitutes a complaint falling within a category mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (1A), and

(ii) additionally constitutes a complaint falling within another of those categories,

(for example, a single element of the complaint may constitute both a conduct complaint and a services complaint).”,

(d) in subsection (2), in paragraph (a), after “complaint” insert “or a regulatory complaint”,

(e) the following subsections are repealed—

(i) subsection (2A),

(ii) subsection (2B),

(iii) subsection (2C),

(iv) subsection (4).