The Legal Practice Bill recently introduced in Parliament could prove to be both a bane and a boon to the legal profession and rule of law, writes Seth Nthai IN JULY 2003, Lord Falconer, the lord chancellor of the UK, appointed an accountant and a former deputy governor of the Bank of England to conduct an independent review of the regulation of the legal profession in the country.The appointment received mixed reactions. Those in the legal profession were sceptical and questioned the wisdom of appointing a nonlawyer to undertake such a task.They were wrong. Sir David Clementi’s review brought about revolutionary changes in the regulation, disciplinary procedures and independence of the legal profession. In Clementi’s words: "Reform will not be easy. Whilst there is pressure for change, from consumer groups and also from many lawyers, reform will be resisted by other lawyers who are comfortable with the system as it is."Lawyers who are opposed to the reforms in this review will eith...
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