Investigations by the Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA)
The LSRA may, whether following receipt of a complaint or on the LSRA's own initiative, carry out an investigation into any alleged breach of the regulations.
If an investigation is commenced, the LSRA will notify the practitioner and require a response in (no later than) 10 working days.
Depending on the response, the LSRA may:
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request further particulars,
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convene a meeting, or
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make a determination (regulation 12(a)-(e)).
Where a breach of the advertising regulations is determined, the LSRA may:
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Request that the advertisement is removed from publication, or
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request an undertaking from the practitioner that they will desist from such contravention or alleged contravention and not repeat it in the future (regulation 12(f) & (g))
The LSRA reserves the right to investigate any alleged breach of the regulations as a complaint of misconduct on the part of a legal practitioner and the provisions of Part 6 of the Act of 2015 shall thereto apply (regulation 13).
