Anti-Mears candidates contest Law Society seats

Controversial City lawyer David McIntosh, a fierce opponent of Law Society president Martin Mears, has been elected unopposed to a society council seat in London.

Elsewhere, by-elections for council seats are being contested by both Mears supporters and his detractors. The Westminster constituency is being contested by Robert Roscoe and pro-Mears candidate Arnold Rosen.

Out of the 17 constituencies that are up for re-election this year, nine are being contested.

McIntosh has made a name for himself campaigning for solicitors' fees to be made more transparent. He believes lawyers who do not demonstrate a "consumer-friendly approach" will "go the way of the dinosaurs".

McIntosh was nominated by Mark Sheldon, of Linklaters & Paines, who has retired from his City of London seat.

During his election campaign, McIntosh said lawyers should place more emphasis on "value for money service".

He said: "This would be much better than the self-centred approach manifested by the current leader of the society."

McIntosh contributed to Lord Woolf's enquiry into civil court reform and has recently campaigned for solicitors to take out opponents' costs insurance in contingency fee cases.

His firm, Davies Arnold Cooper, was the first major law firm to openly publish a tariff of fees and introduce protocols guaranteeing the levels of expenses charged to clients.

Council members serve a term of four years. All but one of the 17 vacancies this year has arisen by rotation, with the exception of Coventry & Warwickshire where David Mander decided to resign from the council before his term ended.