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| This research examined the provision and use of specialist resources by principals (partners or sole practitioners) in private legal practice in Scotland. The main findings are presented below and a detailed report is available in the Central Research Unit Series. |
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| Main findings |
- There were 7,08] solicitors in Scotland, including 3,663 principals(1) in 1,046 firms at the time of this study; Almost 35% of the Scottish legal firms were sole practices and nearly 44% were firms of 2-4 partners. Only 8% of firms had more than 7 partners.
- The majority of Scottish solicitors who were principals were men between the ages of 30 and 44. Just over 12% of partners were women, most of whom were between the ages of 30 and 34. The majority of women partners were in firms of two to four partners.
- More than 80% of the private practice firms in which sample members practised were described as general practices, but seventy-three per cent of firms had specialist departments.
- The three most common fields with which a Scottish solicitor deals are: housing (excluding conveyancing), landlord and tenant law (72%); business matters (70%); and commercial property (69%). Nearly half of those interviewed dealt personally with legal aid cases. Forty-nine per cent of all principals spent most of their time at conveyancing. Less than 25% of Scottish principals dealt with welfare benefits and social security rights.
- Almost 64% of principals considered themselves specialists in some type of legal work. Forty-three per cent would advertise themselves as specialists. Seventy-six per cent of principals reported that they are consulted as specialists by other solicitors. Forty per cent of specialists were in the largest firms. Sixteen per cent of the principals described themselves as specialists in new types of law.
- Only 3% of principals had qualifications that permitted them to practice in other jurisdictions. Only 9% of principals had higher degrees or diplomas in specialist legal studies, and half of these principals practised in the largest firms.
- Nearly all the principals regularly 5attended continuing legal education courses, despite the fact that such courses were not compulsory in Scotland when the research was conducted. Such courses are now compulsory.
- Almost half of the principals said that they had become more specialist than they had been three years prior to the study.
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| (1) Throughout this report the term principals is used to refer to partners and sole practitioners. |
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| Background to the study |
| Over the past decade, a variety of social and political factors have increased the complexity of the legal climate in which Scottish solicitors operate. These include the deregulation of the financial markets; the sale of council houses, providing an increase in home ownership coupled with a diminution in public housing stock available for rental; the effects of a severe and lingering recession, which has compromised financial gains made earlier in the decade; the ending of artificial boundaries between member states of the European community and the acceptance of the primacy of EC law, in some instances, over jurisdictional law; a rise in the number of recorded divorces and of cases involving child and sexual abuse; a vast expansion in the numbers of personal and corporate bankruptcies; and a general rise in recorded crimes, particularly against property. |
| Reparations and medical negligence cases have increased in number, thereby increasing litigation in Scottish courts and also in courts in other jurisdictions. In addition, the expansion in different types of legal work, including intellectual property law; computer law; changes in statutes affecting licensing, taxation, planning, leasing, conveyancing and construction; investment planning; and alternative dispute resolution, including international arbitration, has contributed to a need for an increasingly informed legal profession. As many solicitors have observed, the law has now become so complex that no one person can know it all. |
| Moreover, the easing of professional constraints against advertisement of services and the positive fostering of professional competition, even prior to the introduction of the reforms codified in the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1990, has created further demands on the legal profession for swift, cost-effective delivery of services to a consumer population increasingly willing to shop around for legal services. |
| Because no one person can know the law in its entirety and because solicitors are under increasing pressure to produce quick and effective results at a competitive price, the need for specialist advice has grown in line with changes in law and legal practice. Sources of specialist advice provide specific information that can augment general legal knowledge, reinforce or validate legal judgement, and facilitate preparation of a case or transaction. |
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| The legal profession and specialisation |
| Specialist advice sought by solicitors includes specialist legal advice, specialist non-legal advice, organisation and management advice, and personal and professional advice. Links between solicitors can be formal (by statute, by contract, by instruction, by litigation, by membership of organisations) or informal (by reason of kinship, by co-traineeship, as classmates, through colleageship, through friendship). While a solicitor's professional reputation is formed through the evaluation of formal criteria, it is informal links which provide the contexts within which a solicitor's personal reputation is established. The major impact of the 1990 law reforms appears to be the altering of existing conventional and traditional relationships between Scottish solicitors and others, and the introduction of a new range of permitted linkages. |
| Although there is a broad similarity between the solicitors' professions in Scotland and in England and Wales, the profession in Scotland is less than one-sixth of the size of that in England and Wales. Both professions are primarily characterised by the primacy of traditional, small-scale legal businesses. Sole practitioners in both jurisdictions were much more likely than others to describe themselves as generalists. |
| This study demonstrates a trend towards increasing specialisation among solicitors in firms of all sizes. In addition, it suggests a trend towards polarisation in the profession between small firms of under 5 partners and much larger firms. |
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| Certification of specialists |
| Recent revision of practice rules relating to advertising came into effect in Scotland in May 1991. These practice rules specified for the first time solicitors' rights to certify themselves as possessors of specialist expertise. |
| Among the factors affecting solicitors' increasing need for specialist advice are: the increasing complexity of the law and the emergence of new types of law; the maintenance of professional standards; the wish to achieve a competitive advantage; and the obligation to use specialist resources in contexts where their use is dictated by statute or convention. |
| Self-certification and formal accreditation of panels of specialist solicitors together comprise a two-tier system of specialist certification of solicitors in Scotland. Formal accreditation of specialists in employment law by the Law Society of Scotland has been in effect since 1989. The Law Society of Scotland, which provides a large programme of courses under its own auspices, has recently imposed a requirement for continuing compulsory education for all solicitors, not just those seeking accreditation as specialists. |
| Over 53% of principals interviewed for the study thought that formal certification of specialists was unnecessary. Even those who thought such certification was desirable found it difficult to identify a certification system they thought would be fair. Just over 12% of principals thought that it was a good idea to have some type of formal contract or practice rules to regulate solicitors' use of other specialist solicitors. When asked if certification should be compulsory for specialist solicitors, nearly 67% of advocates replied that such certification was unnecessary. |
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| The provision of specialist resources |
| Among solicitors, the three most common fields dealt with were housing, landlord and tenant law; residential conveyancing, business matters and commercial affairs. Less than 25% of Scottish principals dealt with welfare benefits and social security rights. Eight-three per cent of principals described themselves as spending fifty per cent or more of their time on one type of legal work. Forty-nine per cent spent most of their time at conveyancing. Almost 64% considered themselves specialists in some type of legal work. Of these, 16% of principals described themselves as specialist in new types of law. Forty-three per cent of principals would advertise themselves as specialists, and 76% reported that they are consulted as specialists by other solicitors. Almost half of the interviewees said that they have become more specialist than they were three years ago. |
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| The use of specialist resources |
| Principals in the survey were questioned about the types of specialist advice they used in their work, their perceptions of the relative cost of that advice, and the frequency with which they called upon specialist resources. |
| Although virtually all principals used their firm's library on a regular basis, only 30% of solicitors regularly used computerised databases. Nearly 62% of interviewees used the Law Society of Scotland as a source of advice. Eighty-three per cent of sole practitioners turned to other solicitors for advice and assistance, as did 76% of partners in the largest firms. Seventy-our per cent of principals use legal academics as a source of specialist advice, but only 14% contacted their local Faculty for such advice. Nearly half used their Edinburgh correspondents as a source of advice, and 56% reported using other correspondents or agents. Over 93% of principals reported using advocates as sources of specialist advice, and more than 60% thought that advice from advocates was value for money. Less than 5% reported use of any law centres as sources of information or advice. By contrast, nearly 99% of interviewees used the services of other professionals, and nearly 68% considered them to be value for money. Nearly 21% of principals contacted Citizens Advice Bureaux (CABx) as sources of information and advice, approximately the same proportion who undertook work for CABx. Nearly 84% of principals referred clients directly to specialists. Just over 21% had been involved directly in a group calling on specialist resources. |
| More than 57% of those interviewed thought that there were gaps in the provision of specialist advice in Scotland. Among sole practitioners, who were the major users of specialist advice, almost 73% thought that there were gaps. Among the major gaps perceived were areas of law relating to benefits and welfare; consumer law, EC law, tax law, and emerging fields like intellectual property law and computer law. |
| Nearly 89% of the advocates interviewed thought that the Bar should do more to identify specialists. Nearly 56% of advocates thought that there were gaps in the provision of specialist advice in Scotland, including perceived gaps at the Bar in areas of law such as taxation, agricultural law, international law and areas of family law. |
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| About the study |
| This study was devised to build up knowledge in an area in which comparatively little information was available or known outside the solicitor profession. The study was commissioned by The Scottish Office Legal Studies Research Group and was undertaken by Dr Karen Kerner of the Department of Human Resource Management, University of Strathclyde. |
| The specific aims of this research were three-fold: |
- to provide baseline information on the current setup of specialist advice networks;
- to describe the contexts in which solicitors make use of specialist resources; and
- to identify gaps perceived by solicitors in the provision of specialist advice and to ascertain whether solicitors could make use of more specialist advisors.
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| For the purposes of this research, a specialist was defined as an individual who brings both academic knowledge and practical experience to a particular area of law or legal practice. |
| The researcher interviewed a random sample of solicitors from firms throughout Scotland. A total of 135 sole practitioners and partners in 124 firms were interviewed. Because the solicitors were chosen randomly from alphabetical lists of practitioners supplied by the Law Society, several of the largest law firms were represented by more than one solicitor. In addition, 67 other specialists and representatives of other organisations and institutions were also interviewed. |
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| "Specialism in Private Legal Practice: The provision and use of specialist resources by solicitors in Scotland ", the research report summarised in this Research Findings, may be purchased (price £5 per copy). |
Cheques should be made payable to The Stationery Office and addressed to:
The Stationery Office Ltd, Mail Order Department, 71 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 9AZ. Telephone: 0131 228 4181 Fax: 0131 622 7017 The report can also be ordered online from:www.thestationeryoffice.co.uk |
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| This Research Findings may be photocopied, or further copies may be obtained from: |
The Scottish Office Central Research Unit
Room 306
St Andrew's House
Edinburgh EH1 3DG
Tel No: 0131 244 5397 or Fax No: 0131 244 5393 |