A three-year project to modernise the constitution of the 10,500-strong Law Society of Scotland has run into difficulties, after solicitors failed to agree on the proposed changes.

At the Edinburgh-based body’s annual meeting last Friday, a motion to rescind the current constitution won approval, with 820 members voting in favour and 742 against.

However, support failed to meet the two-thirds majority required to allow a subsequent vote on adopting a new constitution.

The split follows a revolt earlier this month among a significant number of predominantly Glasgow-based members, who have called for the Society to be abolished in its present form.

Among other things, the rebels claim the Society’s dual role as both representative body and regulator is no longer ‘fit for purpose’.

The new constitution of the body incorporates a number of significant changes, including: a smaller council; appointment of voting non-solicitor council members; the establishment of a new regulatory committee to enable the Society to regulate alternative business structures; and updating voting procedures to allow council members to attend and vote at meetings by video-conference.

Jamie Millar, society president, said: ‘A majority of our members have recognised that the current constitution is outdated and no longer suitable for the world we all operate in.

'However it is also clear that we have not convinced enough of our members that the changes being proposed are the right ones.

‘We will carefully consider the views expressed by our members before deciding on our next steps.

'However, we know that doing nothing is not an option. We need to recognise the enormous changes that have taken place since the Society was first established in 1949 and ensure the rules governing the Society allow us to effectively lead and support Scotland’s legal profession.’

Millar wrote to council members after the meeting, admitting the result of the vote presented the Society with a ‘challenge’.

He added: ‘I am confident that we can quickly move forward, listen to those who have offered to work with us constructively, and forge a document that will command the necessary support among our members.’

In particular, the Society is seeking senior counsel’s opinion on whether its existing constitution allows it to create the regulatory committee envisaged in the Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2010.