Legal Services Regulation Act 2015

Amendment of section 58 of Act of 1994

204. Section 58 of the Act of 1994 is amended—

(a) in subsection (1), by the substitution of “Where a solicitor fails to comply with any provision of the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2015 or the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, or with any regulations made thereunder or with any conditions specified in a direction relating to a practising certificate under section 59 of this Act, or has been convicted of an indictable offence and sentenced to a term of imprisonment, and the Society are of the opinion that such failure to comply or, as the case may be, such conviction and sentence is serious and warrants the making of an application under this section” for “Where a solicitor fails to comply with any provision of the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 1994, or with any regulations made thereunder or with any conditions specified in a direction relating to a practising certificate under section 59 of this Act, and the Society are of the opinion that such failure to comply is serious and warrants the making of an application under this section”, and

(b) by the substitution of the following for subsection (3):

“(3) Any application made by the Society pursuant to subsection (1) shall be without prejudice to the right of the Society under—

(a) section 7 of the Act of 1960 to apply to the Disciplinary Tribunal for an inquiry into the conduct of the solicitor concerned on the ground of alleged misconduct, or

(b) section 14A to make an application to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal in respect of the conduct of the solicitor concerned for the holding of an inquiry under section 81 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015.”.