This Bill was not mentioned in the Queen’s speech, but appeared in the background notes.

The government has drawn up a draft Legal Services Bill in order to provide a regulatory framework for legal services which protect the consumer while promoting competition and innovation.

The proposals will be published in a white paper in late 2005, with pre-legislative scrutiny scheduled for 2006.

Under current plans, the Bill will set up an independent Legal Services Board (LSB) to oversee legal bodies such as the Law Society and the Bar Council.

The Bill will also give the LSB regulatory powers and could recognise front-line regulators and delegate some powers to regulators, while maintaining a general oversight of the sector.

Including claims management companies as part of the remit of the LSB is another of the aims of the Bill.

A single independent claims body will also be established by the Bill as the Office for Legal Complaints, as a more straightforward way for consumers to complain about legal services, also supervised by the LSB.

Another provision of the Bill will allow lawyers from different professional bodies, such as solicitors and barristers, to work together on an equal footing, as well as allowing non-lawyers to become managers, owners and investors in legal practices, although under proper safeguards.