MINISTER FOR Justice Alan Shatter will bring the controversial Legal Services Bill to Cabinet today with a view to the legislation being published by the end of the week.
The far-reaching Bill is designed to reform the legal profession and to address restrictive practices that have prevented access and competition.
The Government is compelled to bring forward the legislation as part of its memorandum of understanding with the International Monetary Fund and European Union. They insisted that three “sheltered” professions – legal; medicine and pharmacy – be targeted for wide-ranging reform that would make them more open to competition and more cost-effective for consumers.
In discussions, the troika also raised the manner in which barristers and solicitors are demarcated.
Mr Shatter brought the first draft of the Bill to Cabinet last month. The final draft was completed last Friday, said a spokeswoman. There was intensive redrafting of the Bill last week and over the weekend. It was expected to go to Cabinet last week to meet the EU-IMF deadline by the end of the week, but was not tabled, following the emergence of differences between Ministers on its contents.
Certain Labour Ministers in particular were concerned some of the proposals contained in the Bill from Mr Shatter went beyond what was required by the EU-IMF and the Competition Authority.
The memorandum of understanding negotiated with the troika required the implementation of the outstanding recommendations of the Competition Authority 2006 report and the establishment of a regulatory body for the legal professions.
The Government also made a commitment in the programme for government to establish independent regulation of the legal profession, to improve access and competition, to make legal costs more transparent and ensure there were adequate procedures for addressing consumer complaints.
Reports from the Legal Costs Working Group and an implementation group set up under the government before last recommended a legal costs regulatory body.
Legal sources are concerned that the proposals contained in the proposed Bill go beyond those outlined in these reports and could compromise the independence of the legal system.
They are concerned an anticipated proposal to have the members of the regulatory body, which will draw up a code of conduct for the legal professions, appointed by the Minister for Justice would subordinate the legal professions to the Executive. They said the Minister for Justice and other Ministers are among the main bodies appearing before the courts.
The Competition Authority recommended an independent regulatory body, not one reporting to the Minister, which would have a supervisory role over the existing regulatory bodies, the Law Society and the Bar Council. It stated it should be “independent, transparent and accountable”, involving a wider group of stakeholders than at present, where the Law Society and the Bar Council regulate members, and have a lay majority.
There is also concern that multidisciplinary partnerships (MDPs), allowing barristers and solicitors set up partnerships or practices with other professionals, could lead to regulatory difficulties for the professions. The Competition Authority declined to recommend MDPs in its final report, stating: “Multidisciplinary practices . . . raise regulatory issues. These issues encompass public policy issues not limited to competition and require further examination by a wider group of stakeholders.
“The Competition Authority recommends that these issues be explored by the Legal Services Commission,” it said.