Welcome to the website of the Legal Services Regulatory Authority
Updates: 6 December 2018 -
Authority Meetings
Minutes for Authority Meeting of 6 September 2018 are now published in our Meetings section.
Report to the Minister for Justice & Equality under Section 34 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (Education and Training of Legal Practitioners):
The Legal Services Regulatory Authority has submitted a report to the Minister for Justice and Equality on the education and training of legal practitioners, as required by section 34 of the 2015 Act. The report has been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and is available in our Section 34 Report section.
In fulfilling its obligations under section 34 of the Act, the Authority engaged Hook Tangaza consultants to conduct a review of legal education and training, and their detailed report to the Authority is also available in the Section 34 Report section.
The Authority is not making recommendations to the Minister for Justice and Equality under section 34 at this time, as there is a programme of further work still to be carried out. The Authority’s report to the Minister outlines our plan to conduct further engagement with the key stakeholders in the area of legal education, leading to a symposium to be held next year.
Update on Legal Partnerships and Limited Liability Partnerships
The LSRA has prepared draft regulations under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, to provide for the operation and management of Legal Partnerships and Limited Liability Partnerships. It has begun a process of informal consultation on the draft regulations with the professional bodies as defined in the Act.
The LSRA invites practising barristers, who are not members of such bodies but who may be subject to the proposed regulations, to contact the LSRA at
lsra-inbox@lsra.ie to request a copy of the draft regulations and to make observations on same should they so wish. Any observations would be welcomed as soon as possible but in any event not later than 14 December 2018.
Update on Professional Indemnity Insurance
The LSRA has prepared draft regulations regarding professional indemnity insurance as required under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015. In accordance with Section 47(2) of the Act the LSRA has begun the process of statutory consultation on the draft regulations with the professional bodies, as defined in the Act.
In addition to its statutory obligation to consult with the professional bodies, the LSRA is keen to hear from practising barristers who are not members of such bodies but who may be subject to the proposed regulations.
The LSRA invites any such barristers to contact the LSRA at lsra-inbox@lsra.ie to request a copy of the regulations and to make observations on same should they so wish. Any observations would be welcomed as soon as possible but in any event not later than 14 December 2018.
Code of Practice for Practising Barristers - Consultation Notice
The Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA) invites submissions as part of a consultation
in accordance with s. 22(3) of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (the Act) prior to the issuance of a Code of Practice for Practising Barristers.
Both the Consultation Notice and Draft Code of Practice can be found in the Barristers area of the website.
Roll of Practising Barristers
12 November 2018 - Updated Irish language guidance now available.
The provisions of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 necessary for the establishment of the Roll of Practising Barristers have been commenced by the Minister for Justice & Equality. Fixed date for commencement is 29 June 2018.
The form for applying to be included on the roll and associated guidance and information notes can be found in the Barristers section of the website.
This form has been amended slightly (19 September 2018) to clarify the consent required to allow the LSRA verify the application.
The Application Form Guidance Note has been amended (10 October 2018).
Opportunities to work with the Legal Services Regulatory Authority
This competition is now closed and positions filled.
Corporate Governance Assurance Agreement
A Corporate Governance Assurance Agreement between the LSRA and the Department of Justice & Equality was signed on 13 July 2018 and is available in the Governance section of the website.
Section 6 - Review of the Operation of the 2015 Act
The closing date for the receipt of submissions for the Public Consultation under Section 6 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 (Review of the Operation of the Act) has now passed.
LSRA Appearance before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice & Equality
The Chairperson (Dr Don Thornhill) and CEO (Dr Brian Doherty) of the Legal Services Regulation Authority appeared before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice & Equality on 4 July 2018.
A link to the video of the session and the official report can be found on the Oireachtas website here.
Section 6 Public Consultation - Review of the Operation of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015
The LSRA has commenced its review of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015.
The Public Consultation notice is available here. The deadline for receipt of Submissions was 27 July 2018 and the Public Consultation is now closed.
Section 34 Public Consultation and Report - This Public Consultation is now Closed!
The dedicated Section 34 review website is available here.
The report under section 34 is to be submitted to the Minister before 30 September 2018.
The LSRA has engaged Hook Tangaza Consultants to assist with the public consultation and research required for the report into legal education and training. The Hook Tangaza research team include Alison Hook and Katherine Bird of Hook Tangaza Consultants, Professor Nigel Savage of Savage Hutchinson Consulting and Professor Scott Slorach of York University.
Once the research report has been laid before the Oireachtas by the Minister for Justice and Equality, it will be made available on the LSRA website. Previous statutory reports into legal partnerships, multi-disciplinary practices and certain issues relating to barristers can be found in our Reports section.
Our 2017 Annual Report and Strategic Plan 2018-2020 are now available:
The LSRA's Annual Report for 2017 has been laid before the Oireachtas by the Minister for Justice & Equality and is now available on our website here.
The Report sets out the breadth of work completed in 2017 by the LSRA and is complemented by our First Strategic Plan for 2018-2020 which can be found here.
LSRA Protected Disclosures Report 2017:
The LSRA's Protected Disclosures Report for 2017 can be found in the Reports Section of the website here.
The LSRA's Protected Disclosures Policy and Procedures can be found in the Governance Section of the website here.
Legal Partnerships
The LSRA is currently focused on developing the framework necessary for the introduction of Legal Partnerships as required by the Legal Services Regulation Act, 2015.
The LSRA has held workshops with the Law Society, the Honorable Society of the King’s Inns and the Bar of Ireland.
The LSRA is developing draft regulations and a Code of Practice.
Professional Codes
The Law Society of Ireland has recently uploaded its professional codes to its website along with other useful information here.
The Bar of Ireland Code of Conduct can be found here and the Disciplinary Code can be found here.
Update in Detail:
A fuller update on the work of the LSRA can be found here - LSRA Update March 2018.