The Government’s wide-ranging and controversial legal services reforms are awaiting Royal Assent after receiving the approval of Parliament today.

The House of Lords approved House of Commons’ amendments to the Legal Services Bill after ministers offered concessions on their plans to exempt trade unions from new safeguards intended to protect consumers from poor legal advice.

The Bill creates a new regulatory framework for lawyers and aims to increase independent regulation of the legal profession and encourage greater competition in the legal services market.

Under the reforms, all organisations in the legal profession will have to separate their representative and regulatory functions.

An independent Legal Services Board will be created with powers to oversee the new approved regulatory bodies for the profession.

The Bill also creates an Office for Legal Complaints which will provide redress for consumers through a single, independent service.

Yesterday justice minister Bridget Prentice told MPs there did not now need to be a total exemption for unions who provided legal advice to their members.

She said: “I accept the spirit of the Lords’ desire to narrow the exemption.”

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