This announcement comes after the Legal Services Board (LSB) approved proposed fees set out by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) in July this year.
Here is a breakdown of the key changes:
Practising fees to fall
According to the regulator, the individual practising fee will reduce by £12 to £266 in 2021-2022 – representing a 17 per cent reduction over the last six years.
Firm fees, meanwhile, will continue to be based on turnover.
Practising fees are used to fund the work of the LSB and the SRA, as well as the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision.
New fees reflect a “continued rise” in practising solicitors
Whilst the funding requirement for all regulators has increased from £101.2 million to £104.3 million, the “continued rise” in the number of practising solicitors means that individual fees in 2021-2022 will be less than in 2020-2021.
Compensation Fund contributions “also set to fall”
Compensation Fund contributions will also fall, from £50 in 2020-2021 to £40 in 2021-2022.
Contribution levels for at-risk firms, holding client money, will also fall from £950 in 2020-2021 to £760 in 2021-2022.
Contributions deposited into the fund are used to make payments to clients who have lost money when a solicitor “misappropriates or fails to account for money when providing legal services”.
“Difficult time” for the sector
Commenting on the changes, Paul Philip, SRA Chief Executive, said: “This has been the second year of what has been a difficult time for everyone. I am pleased to confirm a fall in both practising fees and compensation fund contributions at a time when we know that the long-term implications of the pandemic are uncertain for many businesses.”
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