Derbyshire Constabulary solicitors secure SRA waiver to work for fire service
Solicitors working in the legal department at Derbyshire Constabulary were last month granted a waiver from a Solicitors Regulatory Authority requirement about in-house practice, it has emerged.
The waiver, which is valid from 25 September 2018 until 24 September 2021, allows Derbyshire Constabulary’s in-house legal department to provide legal services to Northampton Fire and Rescue Service relevant to its statutory duties.
Derbyshire Constabulary applied for an exemption from the requirement about Rule 1.1(e) and 4.1(a) of the SRA Practice Framework Rules 2011. Details of this requirement can be found here.
News of the arrangement came after the SRA set up a register for the first time setting out details of the waivers it has granted since 23 July 2018.
The SRA said the background to the Derbyshire Constabulary application was that as a result of the Policing and Crime Act 2017, the government required greater collaboration between emergency services, including fire and rescue services.
“Currently the rules do not permit the in-house solicitors of Derbyshire Constabulary to provide legal services to the Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service,” it said.
“We are satisfied the waiver meets the requirements of our waivers policy. It is compatible with the regulatory objectives in section 1 of the Legal Services Act 2007. There are no risks to consumer protection and the waiver does not otherwise undermine the public interest.”
Various conditions were attached to the waiver:
(a) Derbyshire Constabulary (in-house legal department) only provides legal services to the Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service, and may only act for clients other than that employer as permitted by rule 4 of the PFR;
(b) There is compliance with the SRA Handbook;
(c) Derbyshire Constabulary (in-house legal department) notifies Professional Ethics in writing within 14 days of any change of circumstances;
(d) The waiver is without prejudice to any other application;
(e) The waiver is limited for three years but is revocable upon reasonable notice;
(f) The waiver does not affect the waiver dated 5 May 2017.
In June the SRA announced a new approach to how it grants and publishes waivers to its rules, which is designed to encourage innovation and make information on successful applications more readily available.
