NEW Guidance Note – Delay

In accordance with s 591 of the Legal Profession Act 2007 (‘the Act’), the functions of the Legal Profession Board include advising the profession on appropriate standards of conduct and to monitor and identify trends and issues that emerge within the legal profession.

A historical canvas of complaints data since the Board’s inception has revealed a significant number of complaints where delay in some form is alleged against a practitioner. The data suggests that in 10 out of 13 years, delay has featured in the top five allegations made against practitioners.

In an effort to provide guidance to the profession in relation to appropriate standards of conduct, the Board has developed a guidance note for lawyers relating to common scenarios of delay which may arise in legal practice. It is hoped that the development of the guidance note will assist in educating the profession on situations where delays may extend beyond a reasonable timeframe increasing the risk of a conduct complaint or disciplinary action.

A copy of the Guidance Note is located here.