Legal Services Bill [HL]

House of Commons

Session 2006 - 07
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Legal Services Bill [HL]

Legal Services Bill [HL]
Part 5 — Alternative business structures
49

Licensing
84
Application for licence
(1)
A licensing authority other than the Board must determine any application for
a licence which is made to it.
(2)
The Board (acting in its capacity as a licensing authority) may determine an
5
application for a licence which is made to it only if the applicant is entitled to
make the application by virtue of a decision of the Board (acting otherwise than
in its capacity as a licensing authority) under Schedule 12.
(3)
A licensing authority may not grant an application for a licence unless it is
satisfied that if the licence is granted the applicant will comply with its
10
licensing rules.
(4)
If the licensing authority grants an application for a licence, it must issue the
licence as soon as reasonably practicable.
(5)
The licence has effect from the date on which it is issued.
(6)
References in this section to an application for a licence are to an application for
15
a licence which is—
(a)
made to a licensing authority by a licensable body, in accordance with
the authority’s licensing rules, and
(b)
accompanied by the required application fee (if any).
85
Terms of licence
20
(1)
A licence issued under section 84 must specify—
(a)
the activities which are reserved legal activities and which the licensed
body is authorised to carry on by virtue of the licence, and
(b)
any conditions subject to which the licence is granted.
(2)
If an order under section 106 has been made in relation to the licensed body,
25
the licence must also specify the terms of the order.
(3)
In the case of a licensing authority other than the Board, the licence may
authorise the licensed body to carry on activities which are reserved legal
activities only if the licensing authority is designated in relation to the reserved
legal activities in question.
30
(4)
A licence must be granted subject to the condition that—
(a)
any obligation which may from time to time be imposed on the licensed
body or a person within subsection (5) by or under the licensing
authority’s licensing rules is complied with, and
(b)
any other obligations imposed on the licensed body or a person within
35
that subsection by or under this or any other enactment (whether
passed before or after this Act) are complied with.
(5)
The persons mentioned in subsection (4) are the managers and employees of a
licensed body, and persons having an interest in shares, or holding a material
interest, in the licensed body (in their capacity as such).
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(6)
A licence may be granted subject to such other conditions as the licensing
authority considers appropriate.

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(7)
Those conditions may include conditions as to the non-reserved activities
which the licensed body may or may not carry on.
(8)
In this Part references to the terms of the licence are to the matters listed in
subsections (1) and (2).
86
Modification of licence
5
(1)
A licensing authority may modify the terms of a licence granted by it—
(a)
if the licensed body applies to the licensing authority, in accordance
with its licensing rules, for it to do so;
(b)
in such other circumstances as may be specified in its licensing rules.
(2)
If a licensed body is a body to which section 106 applies, the licensing authority
10
may modify the terms of its licence in accordance with sections 106 and 107.
(3)
A licensing authority modifies the terms of a licensed body’s licence by giving
the licensed body notice in writing of the modifications; and the modifications
have effect from the time the licensing authority gives the licensed body the
notice or such later time as may be specified in the notice.
15
(4)
The licensing authority’s power under this section is subject to—
(a)
section 85(3) and (4), and
(b)
licensing rules made under paragraph 6 of Schedule 11.
87
Registers of licensed bodies
(1)
Each licensing authority must keep a register containing the names and places
20
of business of all bodies which hold or have held licences granted by the
licensing authority.
(2)
Where any licence held by a body is for the time being suspended, the licensing
authority shall cause that fact to be noted in the register in the entry for that
body.
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(3)
A licensing authority must provide facilities for making the information
contained in the entries in its register available for inspection by any person
during office hours and without payment.
(4)
The Board may make rules about—
(a)
the register to be kept by the Board under this section, and
30
(b)
the register to be kept under this section by each licensing authority
designated under Part 1 of Schedule 10.
(5)
Rules under subsection (4) may in particular prescribe any further information
which must be contained in an entry in the register in relation to a licensed
body or former licensed body.
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88
Evidence of status
(1)
A certificate signed by an officer of a licensing authority appointed for the
purpose and stating one of the matters within subsection (2) is, unless the
contrary is proved, evidence of the facts stated in the certificate.
(2)
The matters are that any person does or does not, or did or did not at any time,
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hold a licence granted by the licensing authority under this Part.

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(3)
A certificate purporting to be so signed is to be taken to have been so signed
unless the contrary is proved.
Ownership of licensed bodies
89
Ownership of licensed bodies
Schedule 13 makes provision about the holding of certain interests in licensed
5
bodies by non-authorised persons.
Regulation of licensed bodies
90
Duties of non-authorised persons
A non-authorised person who is an employee or manager of a licensed body,
or has an interest in shares, or holds a material interest, in a licensed body,
10
must not do anything which causes or substantially contributes to a breach
by—
(a)
the licensed body, or
(b)
an employee or manager of the licensed body who is an authorised
person in relation to an activity which is a reserved legal activity,
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of the duties imposed on them by section 177.
91
Duties of Head of Legal Practice
(1)
The Head of Legal Practice of a licensed body must—
(a)
take all reasonable steps to ensure compliance with the terms of the
licensed body’s licence, and
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(b)
as soon as reasonably practicable, report to the licensing authority any
failure to comply with the terms of the licence.
(2)
Subsection (1) does not apply to the terms of the licence so far as they require
compliance with licensing rules made under paragraph 20 of Schedule 11
(accounts) (as to which see section 92).
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(3)
The Head of Legal Practice of a licensed body must—
(a)
take all reasonable steps to ensure that the licensed body, and any of its
employees or managers who are authorised persons in relation to an
activity which is a reserved legal activity, comply with the duties
imposed by section 177, and
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(b)
as soon as reasonably practicable, report to the licensing authority such
failures by those persons to comply with those duties as may be
specified in licensing rules.
(4)
The Head of Legal Practice of a licensed body must—
(a)
take all reasonable steps to ensure that non-authorised persons subject
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to the duty imposed by section 90 in relation to the licensed body
comply with that duty, and
(b)
as soon as reasonably practicable, report to the licensing authority any
failure by a non-authorised person to comply with that duty.

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92
Duties of Head of Finance and Administration
(1)
The Head of Finance and Administration of a licensed body must take all
reasonable steps to ensure compliance with licensing rules made under
paragraph 20 of Schedule 11 (accounts).
(2)
The Head of Finance and Administration must report any breach of those rules
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to the licensing authority as soon as reasonably practicable.
93
Information
(1)
The relevant licensing authority in relation to a licensed body may by notice
require a person within subsection (2)—
(a)
to provide information, or information of a description, specified in the
10
notice, or
(b)
produce documents, or documents of a description, specified in the
notice,

for the purpose of enabling the licensing authority to ascertain whether the
terms of the licensed body’s licence are being, or have been, complied with.
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(2)
The persons are—
(a)
the licensed body;
(b)
any manager or employee (or former manager or employee) of the
licensed body;
(c)
any non-authorised person who holds a material interest in the licensed
20
body.
(3)
A notice under subsection (1)—
(a)
may specify the manner and form in which any information is to be
provided;
(b)
must specify the period within which the information is to be provided
25
or the document produced;
(c)
may require the information to be provided, or the document to be
produced, to the licensing authority or to a person specified in the
notice.
(4)
The licensing authority may, by notice, require a person within subsection (2)
30
(or a representative of such a person) to attend at a time and place specified in
the notice to provide an explanation of any information provided or document
produced under this section.
(5)
The licensing authority may pay to any person such reasonable costs as may be
incurred by that person in connection with—
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(a)
the provision of any information, or production of any document, by
that person pursuant to a notice under subsection (1), or
(b)
that person’s compliance with a requirement imposed under
subsection (4).
(6)
The licensing authority, or a person specified under subsection (3)(c) in a
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notice, may take copies of or extracts from a document produced pursuant to
a notice under subsection (1).
(7)
For the purposes of this section and section 94, references to a licensed body
include a body which was, but is no longer, a licensed body.