Legal Services Bill gets royal assent

The Legal Service Bill has received royal assent today (30 October) following the House of Lords approving the Bill last Thursday (25 October).

The Queen approving the bill has been welcomed by the legal profession, with the Bar Council and the Bar Standards Boards (BSB) both today content that the bill is in a form that will service the legal profession.

Bar Council chair Geoffrey Vos QC, said the two years of campaigning has led to the right outcome.

“We are pleased that the Government recognised the force of our arguments and brought forward amendments to address our concerns, while maintaining the central thrust of its legislative reforms, which the Bar Council has always supported,” said Vos.

BSB Chair Ruth Evans said: “It was no secret that we had concerns about the legislation when it first appeared as a Bill, and many of those were echoed in both Houses of Parliament.

“We are delighted that the Government listened to these concerns and the Bill was substantially improved before receiving royal assent.”