The legal press often seems to be obsessed with the advent of ABS and portents of doom about the “High Street” (a phrase which seems to have acquired pejorative status in some quarters). Given their legal background it is surprising, therefore, that in the treatment of this topic they consistently fail to define their terms (for example, what exactly does the term “High Street” mean?) and they often show a lack of editorial rigour in checking out and drawing attention to the background of their sources many of whom have a vested interest in pushing scare stories about the impact ABS will have. For example, take what appears to be a prescient article on the topic of a Research Note released this August by the Legal Services Board. This focuses on the likely impact of ABS upon existing suppliers of legal services. Written by one Peter Clements and published by Lexis Nexis the article includes the following opinion:- “The High Street firm will be most at threat, but many will survive by dint of their “local” nature and their client bases. But this is unlikely to be a sustainable position in the medium to long term.” So there you have it – it appears that the LSB is plotting the demise of the “High Street”. But wait a minute what does the LSB paper actually say? Here’s a flavour:- “ [the advent of ABS] may carry particular risks to some small firms who do not adapt to the changing market place. It should not, however, be assumed that large scale exit will occur, as Australian experience suggests that the number of small firms has actually increased in the period following liberalisation.” (Page 2) “ILPs (the Australian equivalent of ABS) in the Australian market are generally not retailers providing legal services….In general the Australian market has not shown an immediate tendency for large scale consolidation or the emergence of national retailers offering legal services.” (Page 18) “Retail or “High Street” firms “High street firms are the main point of contact for people seeking “routine” legal services (e.g. wills, conveyancing, divorce etc) The large number of such firms makes it difficult to draw conclusions about their characteristics and shared factors. It is likely that those firms who are using technology for product delivery and lower unit costs will enable them to better embrace changed market conditions. High street firms are well placed to exploit niche market opportunities and to focus on traditional strengths such as face-to-face service delivery and perceived higher quality of service” (page 37).” Hardly a vision of Armageddon is it? Declaration of interest – This piece was written by the Society’s Press Officer and endorsed by the Council of the Wolverhampton Law Society. The Society’s members work in an incredibly diverse mix of so-called “High Street” practices within and around Wolverhampton. Peter Clements works for an organisation called Global BPO which specialises in providing “Business Processing Outsourcing” to law firms and others. The Legal Services Board is the oversight regulator of the legal services marketing England and Wales.
