- The SRA releases first public statement on legal outsourcing ethics
- Practice of LPO OK’d by SRA providing ethical obligations in Code of Conduct 2007 are upheld
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) issues its first public statement on the ethics of legal outsourcing which OKs the practice as long as contingent ethical obligations are satisfied, including client disclosure.
As originally reported by the LPO Ethics Resource Center (www.LPOethics.com), the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) statement reads, “Where law firms are outsourcing some of their legal or administrative work to other law firms or non law firms, the SRA’s guidance is that this is allowed on the basis that all relevant rules are complied with (Solicitors’ Code of Conduct 2007) and that the arrangement is made transparent and is agreed with the client.”
The statement continues with the citation of existing ethical guidelines, which the SRA deemed applicable to outsourced legal services.
In its conclusion, the SRA notes, “In accepting work from a client, the firm must always consider whether the work should be outsourced at all as they should have the necessary resources and competency to undertake the task. In summary, a firm must act in the best interests of their client and comply with their core duties.”
Managing principal of Fronterion Michael Bell said “We believe this is the first public statement issued by the SRA on the issue of outsourced legal services and expect further guidance to follow this statement by other representative bodies.”
The complete statement by the SRA is available on the LPO Ethics website.
Preceding the SRA’s public statement, United Kingdom’s Law Society began a consultation into the impact of outsourcing on the profession, trade magazine The Lawyer reports.
The recent singular announcement by the SRA stands in contrast to multiple comments made by legal organisations in United States. Ethical guidance has been provided in some US jurisdictions as early as 2006. The most notable guidance in the United States is Opinion 08-451 issued by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility in 2008.
