The vetting for a law firm accreditation was made to sound more rigorous than it actually is
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The Law Society of England and Wales was found to have misled consumers in an advertisement for the organisation’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS), a UK government watchdog has found.
Reversing a decision handed down in June, the Advertising Standards Authority said that the Law Society “misleadingly exaggerated the membership requirements of the CQS.” The watchdog took issue with the Law Society’s ad claiming that “all Law Society Conveyancing Quality Scheme firms go through rigorous examination and testing to demonstrate that they have a high level of knowledge, skills, experience and practice.”
The ASA found that in the four years to the end of 2016, just 12 firms received visits from the Law Society regarding the CQS. Between 2014 and 2016, 291 of 293 applications under the scheme were granted. More than 3,000 firms have CQS accreditation.
The ASA ruling comes after the UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) ruled earlier this year that the Law Society was in breach of competition law. The tribunal said that the Law Society abused its dominant position by requiring accredited firms buy Law Society training to maintain their CQS qualification.
“We acknowledge the ASA council’s ruling and have taken steps to amend the advertisement. The advertisement was never intended to mislead consumers,” the Law Society said. “The intention of the CQS scheme has always been to promote the highest standards of conveyancing practice and ensure consumer and lender confidence in conveyancing transactions.”
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Reversing a decision handed down in June, the Advertising Standards Authority said that the Law Society “misleadingly exaggerated the membership requirements of the CQS.” The watchdog took issue with the Law Society’s ad claiming that “all Law Society Conveyancing Quality Scheme firms go through rigorous examination and testing to demonstrate that they have a high level of knowledge, skills, experience and practice.”
The ASA found that in the four years to the end of 2016, just 12 firms received visits from the Law Society regarding the CQS. Between 2014 and 2016, 291 of 293 applications under the scheme were granted. More than 3,000 firms have CQS accreditation.
The ASA ruling comes after the UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) ruled earlier this year that the Law Society was in breach of competition law. The tribunal said that the Law Society abused its dominant position by requiring accredited firms buy Law Society training to maintain their CQS qualification.
“We acknowledge the ASA council’s ruling and have taken steps to amend the advertisement. The advertisement was never intended to mislead consumers,” the Law Society said. “The intention of the CQS scheme has always been to promote the highest standards of conveyancing practice and ensure consumer and lender confidence in conveyancing transactions.”
Related stories:
Tribunal finds Law Society of England and Wales in breach of competition law
Swelling UK solicitor ranks becoming more diverse – study
