Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee 28 January 2025
The amendments in this group are largely technical. The main amendment is 315, which, at the request of the SLCC, puts a matter beyond doubt by expressly providing that the SLCC can initiate a conduct or regulatory complaint. Amendments 314, 317, 320, 356, 381 and 479 are consequential on that change.
Amendment 313 is a minor amendment to ensure consistency of language.
Amendment 318 is a minor change that is consequential on the removal from the 2007 act of section 2(4), which relates to premature complaints, in favour of the SLCC covering the issue in its rules instead.
Amendment 492 and the related amendment 330 make a technical change to the bill to write out the necessary modifications of sections 48 to 52 of the 2007 act, so that regulators can use those in connection with the investigation of a regulatory complaint in addition to a conduct complaint.
Amendment 493 corrects a cross-reference.
Amendment 362 changes the title of section 23 of the 2007 act to better reflect the content of the revised section, following amendment by the bill, to include reference to handling complaints, which are complaints about the handling of conduct and regulatory complaints.
Amendment 363 allows the SLCC to investigate the handling of a conduct or regulatory complaint by a relevant professional organisation after the six-month expiry deadline where it is considered that there have been exceptional circumstances.
09:45Amendments 364 and 365 are minor and technical amendments. Amendments 366 to 369 make minor procedural changes to the consideration of handling complaints by the SLCC. Amendments 370 and 371 correct typographical errors, and amendment 449 corrects an incorrect cross-reference. Amendments 451 and 460 update cross-references to other provisions of the bill, and amendments 474 to 477 make further consequential changes. Amendment 471 sets out what decisions the Scottish Solicitors Discipline Tribunal is required to publish and provides it with the flexibility to publish any other decision that it feels is necessary.
All of the following remaining amendments in the group are minor correcting technical or consequential amendments. They are amendments 480, 482, 483, 485 to 491, 495 to 498 and 500. I ask members to support the amendments in the group.
I move amendment 313.
Amendment 313 agreed to.