The Re-Landscaping of the Legal Profession: Large Law Firms and Professional Re-Regulation

Flood, John

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The Re-Landscaping of the Legal Profession: Large Law Firms and Professional Re-Regulation

Current Sociology Monograph 2, Vol. 59, No. 4

University of Westminster School of Law Research Paper No. 10-33

23 Pages Posted: 8 Oct 2010 Last revised: 22 Nov 2015

See all articles by John Flood

John Flood

Griffith University; Queensland University of Technology; Centre for Blockchain Technologies

There are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: December 30, 2011

Abstract

The recent history of the legal profession is presented as one where the re-regulation of the profession, as epitomized in the Legal Services Act 2007, has placed the large law firm at the centre as a site of regulation in its own right. The legal profession has redefined its professional character from that of autonomous producers to employed lawyers who now exercise discretion within tightly constrained corporate limits. This is paralleled by the move away from individualistic codes of conduct towards entity-based regulation.

Keywords: Ethics, Regulation, Globalization, Legal Profession, Large Law Firms

JEL Classification: J44

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Flood, John A., The Re-Landscaping of the Legal Profession: Large Law Firms and Professional Re-Regulation (December 30, 2011). Current Sociology Monograph 2, Vol. 59, No. 4, University of Westminster School of Law Research Paper No. 10-33, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1688999