LSB plans greater regulation of will-writing services

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has confirmed plans to regulate all will-writing and estate administration services by classing them as 'reserved activities'. As reported in the Law Gazette, the LSB's watchdog, the Legal Services Consumer Panel, has welcomed the move following its own calls for greater regulation of probate services last month (March 2012).

The LSB's announcement is a result of the findings of a consultation which began in July 2011, and subsequently exposed sloppy standards and in some cases even fraud being practised by some service providers. The LSB will also examine other under-regulated legal services, such as general legal advice for individuals, in order to provide more comprehensive protection for consumers. The regulator pointed out that the consideration of such measures is not an exercise in creating more red tape, but a course that has been necessitated by bad practice and inadequate services being provided to customers.

David Edmonds, the LSB's chairperson, said: "For many people, the service they receive from their lawyer or will-writer meets their needs, but our research shows that there are significant numbers of people receiving poor service and poor outcomes. The prevalence of poor sales practices, and indeed the incidence of fraud, was also disappointing. This is not about extending regulation for the sake of it - it is about maintaining public confidence in an important legal process, enhancing the environment for reputable providers and protecting consumers at particularly vulnerable times in their lives."