CLEAR

Illinois: licensee data security breach

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking into a security breach that occurred on a State of Illinois server in January 2007 and was confirmed in May. The server contained information on the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation's licensees. The department has established a licensee hotline (1-800-532-8785) and an informational Web page. The department's statement says that "this matter involves criminal conduct, and law enforcement authorities asked us to delay notification to affected licensees and the General Assembly until now so that notification would not interfere with their ongoing criminal investigation."

Scotland: super-complaint calls for legal reform

The designated consumer association Which? filed a super-complaint in May with the Office of Fair Trading charging that restrictions on legal services in Scotland harm consumers. The complaint calls for the removal of barriers that prescribe how lawyers may work with each other and with members of other professions. This week, the Scottish Consumer Council issued a statement addressed to the Office of Fair Trade agreeing with Which? and suggesting additional regulatory reform measures for protecting consumers. The Law Society of Scotland has called the Which? complaint both "inaccurate" and "unhelpful".  The Office of Fair Trading has 90 days to respond to Which.  Read the Which? Legal Services Super-Complaint - Restrictions on Business Structures and Direct Access in the Scottish Legal Profession.