Do solicitors have to be authorised by FSA??

jinglebell

If my solicitor is not authorised by FSA, will this be a problem if i want to complain later??

Hippychick

Your solicitor won't be fsa regulated thats for banks.

Solicitors are regulated by the solicitors regulation authority, complain to them if you need to.

cattie

Never heard of solicitors having FSA authorisation before, I thought this was only for financial advisors?

princeofpounds

Solicitors do not have to be FSA regulated. They are regulated by the Law Society. Which also represents solicitor's interests. No problem there then, just like doctors!

In fact, they are even allowed to give out restricted types of financial advice without being regulated, as can accountants.

Princeofpounds (FSA regulated!)

Hippychick

princeofpounds wrote: »

Solicitors do not have to be FSA regulated. They are regulated by the Law Society. Which also represents solicitor's interests. No problem there then, just like doctors!

In fact, they are even allowed to give out restricted types of financial advice without being regulated, as can accountants.

Princeofpounds (FSA regulated!)

the Law Society doesn't regulate solicitors anymore - it changed recently to the solicitors regulation authority.

http://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/consumers.page

WestonDave

Solicitors can be FSA regulated and should be if they are getting into certain non incidental forms of financial advice. So for example they don't need FSA regulation to sell a conveyancing indemnity insurance policy, or an after the event accident insurance policy (used to cover legal costs in a accident claim). Those forms of insurance are incidental to their normal work. If they get into non incidental financial advice then they should have FSA regulation as well as SRA regulation. In terms of your conveyancing transaction it is unlikely that FSA regulation will be relevant unless perhaps you are selling and they are advising you how to invest the proceeds.

The Law Society no longer regulates solicitors - the Solicitors Regulatory Authority has taken over that role.

Complaints are made initially to the complaints partner/manager at the firm - you should be informed who this is. If this doesn't produce a satisfactory result you can then appeal to the Legal Complaints Service that has the power to look into complaints and order fines/compensation which the firm (subject to appeal) has to pay.

Beardmidget

princeofpounds wrote: »

They are regulated by the Law Society. Which also represents solicitor's interests. No problem there then, just like doctors!

FYI, doctors are regulated by the GMC, which does not represent their interests- the BMA is the doctor's 'union'; the GMC spends its time telling people off.

princeofpounds

Ah, you are right on doctors actually.

To be fair to the solicitors, they did hive off their complaints unit into something nominally independent fairly recently. But then private eye just won a recent case exposing some conflicts of interest that remain in the system.