You and Your Regulator Flashcards
What are the rules relating to the provision of information to the BSB?
You must:
- promptly provide all information to the BSB as it may require of you and notify it of any material changes to that information; and
- comply in due time with any decision or sentence imposed by the BSB
What should you do if the BSB request that you disclose information which has come from your client?
You are not entitled to disclose this information without the permission of your client. You may enquire as to whether your client is willing to waiver privilege but you must make your client alert to the possibility that you may have a conflict of interest in giving him any advice as to whether he should.
What is the duty to report certain matters to the BSB?
You must report promptly to the BSB if:
- you are charged with an indictable offence; in the jurisdiction fo England and Wales or with a criminal offence of comparable seriousness in any other jurisdiction
- you are convicted of, or accept a caution, for any criminal offence, in any jurisdiction other than a minor criminal offence.
- you to your knowledge are subject to any disciplinary or other regulatory or enforcement action by another approved regulator
- you are a registered European lawyer and their is investigation into you conduct by your home regulator, or a finding of professional misconduct has ben made bu your home regulator or you are charged with a disciplinary offence
- you have committed serious misconduct;
- you have become authorised to practise by another approved regulator
- bankruptcy proceedings etc are initiated against you.
What should you do if you have committed serious misconduct?
take all reasonable steps to mitigate the effects of such serious misconduct
What is the rule on reporting serious misconduct of others?
You must report to the BSB is you have reasonable grounds to believe that there has been serious misconduct by a barrister or a BSB authorised body.
When are you not under a duty to report the serious misconduct of others?
If:
- you become aware of the facts giving rise to the serious misconduct in the public domain and you reasonably consider it likely the facts will have come to the attention of the BSB;
- you are aware that the relevant person that committed the serious misconduct has already reported the serious misconduct to the BSB;
- the events that made you aware of the serious misconduct are subject to their legal professional privilege
- you become aware of such serious misconduct as a result of your work on a bar council advice line
What is included as misconduct?
- dishonesty
- assault or harassment
- seeking to gain access without consent to instructions or other confidential information relating tot he opposing party’s case
- seeking to gain access without consent to confidential information relating to another member of chambers, member of staff or pupil
- encouraging a witness to give untruthful or misleading evidence
- being drunk or under the influence of drugs in court
- failure by a barrister to report promptly to the BSB
- conduct that poses a serious threat to the public
What should you do when you believe that there has been serious misconduct?
carefully consider all of the circumstances, including:
- whether that person’s instructions or other confidential matters might have a bearing on the assessment of their conduct;
- whether that person. has been offered an opportunity to explain their conduct and if not, why not
- any explanation which has been or could have been offered for that person’s conduct
- whether the matter has been or will be raised in the litigation.
what circumstances give rise to an exception from the duty to report?
where the misconduct is reported in the national media, as it would not be in the public interest for every BSB regulated person to have an obligation to report that misconduct.
What is the rule regarding access to premises?
you must permit the Bar Council, or the BSB, or any person appointed by them, reasonable access on request to inspect:
- any premises from which you provide, or are believed to provide legal services; or
- any documents or records relating to those premises and your practice or BSB authorised body.
What is the BSB entitled to do with any documents or records provided to them?
to take copies o such documents or records as required by them for the purposes of their functions
What is the rule regarding the legal ombudsman?
you must give the legal ombudsman all reasonable assistance requested of you, in connection with the investigation, determination of complaints made under the ombudsman scheme.
What should you do once you are aware that you will cease to practice?
you shall effect the orderly wind-down of activities, including:
- informing the BSB and providing them with a contact address;
- notifying those clients for whom you have current matters and leasing with them in respect of the arrangements that they would like t be put in place in respect of those matters
- providing such information to the BSB in respect of your practice and your proposed arrangements in respect of the winding down of your activities as the BSB may require
