President calls for mental health reform and more communication with lawyers

Jonathan Ames hears new Law Society President Carolyn Kirby outline her strategy for the profession

Last month, the previous Law Society President, David McIntosh, handed over Chancery Lane's highest badge of office to Carolyn Kirby.

She had a brief moment to bask in the accolades before the Lord Chancellor's Department (LCD) released a consultation paper - on the regulation of the legal profession - which emphasises just what a monumental moment in the profession's existence Ms Kirby is walking into.

The full panoply of issues affecting all lawyers will be debated over the next 12 months, with multi-disciplinary partnerships, the future of the high street and the state of legal aid being just three of the main footballs to be kicked around.

And hanging over all discussions will be the recent suggestion by the now outgoing Legal Services Ombudsman (LSO), Ann Abraham, that the so-called regulatory maze covering the legal professions should be co-ordinated under one umbrella (see [2002] Gazette, 11 July, 1).

As only the third Welsh practitioner to reach the presidency, Ms Kirby is well acquainted with the difficulties of provincial practice and the challenges facing Chancery Lane in convincing all sectors of the profession that the Society is relevant and useful.

Ms Kirby is also the first woman to take the top officer slot at the solicitors' governing body.

And while that is an achievement she is proud of - 'it is important that there is a first female president, if nothing else but to illustrate that there are no glass ceilings at the Law Society' - it is not a point she emphasises.

Indeed, it is specific issues of law reform that stir her passions, most particularly Whitehall's position regarding mental health and incapacity legislation.

A mental health law specialist, she points out that the Society has been pressing successive governments for the past 15 years to address the gaping legislative holes that exist concerning incapacity.

Ms Kirby is also keen to promote the Society's recent position paper on co-habitation (see [2002] Gazette, 25 July, 6).

As she explains: 'We are not seeking to undermine marriage, we are not seeking to change society, but it is a fact that a large proportion of children are born to parents who are not married to each other.

If that couple splits, then it is to the child's disadvantage.

We think it is important that is rectified to reflect the way in which people live.'

But undoubtedly the biggest and most pressing issue for the new president will be the minefield of regulation.

Ms Kirby - a firm supporter of the Society's role as a regulator and its ability to represent the entire solicitors' profession - says the LCD consultation paper 'doesn't specifically ask what the ideal regulatory framework would be'.

She maintains that it is too easy for ministers and the public to fall into the misconception that regulation is about nothing more than complaints-handling.

'Complaints form part of the regulation equation, and it might be easy for the government to slice off complaints by introducing some sort of system headed by a complaints commissioner, but that would only cover part of regulation,' she explains.

'The point about self-regulation is that we [the Law Society] also govern the training, education, registration and accreditation of solicitors and trainees.

That would be difficult for an external regulator to do.

Indeed, it would involve several different agencies and would not be easily accomplished.'

Ms Kirby argues that this year's annual ombudsman report painted a skewed picture as it focused on 'a particularly difficult period of change.

The figures dealing with complaints since [that] report was finalised have levelled out'.

Indeed, Ms Kirby is eagerly awaiting the first report from Sir Stephen Lander, the Society's recently appointed independent commissioner.

'He will have an opportunity of looking at our complaints-handling across the board, as opposed to the LSO's remit, which is to look at the complaints that have not been well handled or those where the client is not satisfied with the outcome for whatever reason.

That represents a small percentage of the complaints that we handle.

It is also the nature of the LSO's remit that she is looking at matters that are a couple of years old, as opposed to the standard of work that is being carried out now.'

If 2002/03 promises to be one of the most important years in the legal profession's recent history, Ms Kirby appears confident of success.

Ultimately, she would like her legacy to be one of having expanded on the increasing respect of the Society.

'We have built a lot of bridges, but we still have a lot of work to do in terms of communicating with practitioners on the ground.

There is so much good work going on at the Law Society, but people are not aware of it.'

Factfile

Carolyn Kirby, 49, qualified as a solicitor in 1979 and spent more than 20 years in private practice in Swansea, focusing on a range of non-contentious private client work.

Her husband, Robin, is also a solicitor.

She is chairwoman of the Mental Health Review Tribunal for Wales, the Law Society Council member for mid and west Wales, and chairman of Chancery Lane's mental health and disability committee.

She is also a member of the Society's Welsh affairs working party and is involved in co-ordinating its Welsh devolution group.

Outside the legal profession, she spent six years as a non-executive director of West Glamorgan Health Authority and also chairs a charity supporting cancer sufferers and their families.