Any regulatory body, in today’s legislative landscape, is likely to be changing, shifting and adapting constantly, coping with a maze of inter-locking rules and guidelines. As more and more goods and services are shifted from the public sphere to the private sphere – either completely or via joint initiatives – so regulatory bodies are under increasing pressure to ensure that their procedures are robust enough to cope with these new challenges. Doing the minimum is not an option – there are always competing interests from different parties, and therefore difficult decisions must be made within a properly created framework. That’s where we come in. The regulators we work with can operate in the sure and certain knowledge that they have a partner in their team armed with the knowledge of what’s happening today and the experience and foresight to look forward to tomorrow.
Specialist Team
By using us, you’ll be tapping into a wealth of knowledge and experience. We aim to be the equivalent of having a specialist legal expert working on your staff. Our specialist regulatory law team provides a comprehensive range of services working with professional and public bodies in the following sectors:
- Legal
- Financial services
- Local Authority
- Care and social care
- Charities
- Property
- Health and safety
- Church governance
- Advertising
We can also advise private individuals and firms who are dealing with regulatory issues, using our knowledge of being on the other side of the regulation jungle – assisting and representing regulators– to provide unique insight. Taken as a whole, we have the practical experience to deal with a complete range of regulatory issues that arise. We often act in landmark disciplinary proceedings and tribunals, and advise in relation to European procurement rules as well as across regulation, compliance, internal audit and disciplinary matters.
Seamless Service
As a full service firm, we combine an in-depth understanding of how regulatory and public bodies operate with the resources to draw on expert litigation knowledge. This means that we can provide seamless counsel to our clients on all issues related to regulation in a manner that is clear, effective and pragmatic, and the fact that all staff involved are based in the one London headquarters means that the pooling of information and experience required to tackle a brief from every angle comes as second nature.
A Wealth of Experience
Since 2003, we have represented our own professional regulator, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and have undertaken all aspects of their work, including investigations, interventions and disciplinary cases involving solicitors firms. In addition to this we have handled a wide variety of litigation including the recovery of substantial sums missing from client accounts, esoteric areas of professional indemnity insurance and the handling of judicial reviews and other challenges to their decisions.
Our experience in the field enables us to pick up cases early and thereby to find pragmatic solutions, avoiding litigation where possible and therefore resolving cases at speed and at a substantially lower cost to our clients. We have the vital experience of actually drafting rules and regulations – our work with the regulatory panel of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), for example, via which we help to create the framework within which social housing operates – and have dealt with large scale judicial reviews and inquiries, such as The Saville Inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland, where we acted for over 450 clients.
Devonshires Solicitors provides cutting-edge advice on complex regulatory matters for regulators, public bodies and a range of commercial organisations. Our specialist regulatory experts offer counsel in a manner that is clear, effective and pragmatic across regulation, compliance, internal audit and disciplinary matters. Whilst it is possible to use other firms which offer a range of regulatory advice, you simply won’t be able to find another which specialises in the field in the way in which we do.
