Legal Sector Resilience: A Reimagined Law Society in Wales - with Jonathan Davies

Discover how the Wales office of The Law Society of England and Wales is paving the way for a future-ready legal sector in Wales with Jonathan Davies, Head of Wales. 

Jonathan talks to our host, Emma Waddingham, editor of Legal News Wales, about the ambitious "Reimagining Justice in Wales 2030" initiative, and shares behind-the-scenes details about the extensive policy work and member engagement strategies shaping the future of legal practices in Wales. Learn about the significance of the newly refurbished Cardiff office, and its growing team who are working hard to connect with solicitors in Wales, understand their needs and create valuable engagement opportunities. 

Jonathan also offers a candid look at the Welsh Government's push for justice devolution and the challenges it presents. We discuss everything from the crucial need for improved data collection across the sector to the sporadic use of technology in legal practices. 

Whether you are a member of the Law Society or simply interested in the evolving legal landscape in Wales, this episode promises valuable insights and forward-thinking strategies, and a sneak peak of what’s to follow in the Autumn of 2024.

For more details on the Law Society Admissions Ceremony in Cardiff on the 12th July 2024, and to book your place, click here. 

For more information and signposting, visit the insights section on legalnewswales.com and use the 'Legal Sector Resilience Podcast' filter.

Transcript

Emma Waddingham: 0:00

Welcome to the Legal Sector Resilience Podcast, a series of one-to-one conversations with the people who are passionate about helping you create strong, relevant and thriving legal practices, led by me, Emma Waddingham, editor of Legal News Wales. Expect discussions around technology, pricing, people, culture, compliance, leadership, finance and more to help inspire you to confidently invest in the tools and solutions to help elevate, sustain and grow your legal practice. So you've got a special podcast today. I've invited Jonathan Davis, head of Wales for the Law Society, based in Cardiff but obviously operating across Wales, to talk about a lot of the changes that have happened for the Law Society, for the National Board of Wales, to explain a little bit more about their work, introducing new people and, very excitingly, talk about the newly refurbished office, which I had the pleasure of seeing recently at the summer reception. Welcome, Jonathan, it's lovely to see you.

Jonathan Davies: 1:01

Morning Emma. Always lovely to see you.

Emma Waddingham: 1:03

So tell us how things are going. There's been lots of activity recently, lots of new people, lots of activity on social media, so there'll be a really good opportunity for us to sit down and go through all of those and share that with our audience on Legal News Wales.

Jonathan Davies: 1:18

It's certainly been busy. Yeah, one of the things I'm always concerned about is we often hear what is the Law Society doing for us from members and the answer is quite a lot. The social media activity, and the ramping up of social media activities is hopefully starting to show people what it is that we actually do for members. You mentioned our new office. There's been £150,000 invested into the new office in Cardiff. It really is lovely. Members are welcome. If anybody wishes to come and see us in the office, please get in touch. We've been busy doing policy work. We've developed 30,000 words yes, 30,000. My goodness, reimagining justice in Wales 2030. That's been obviously a massive piece of work and will be the touchstone for our kind of policy influencing and public affairs work for the next at least the next two and a half years, as we head into the Senate elections.

Emma Waddingham: 2:14

Yeah, because that was based on a consultation that went out earlier this year to engage members, to give a bit of feedback, to talk about what was important to them. Tell everybody what was happening in their day-to-day and what's impacting their firms. Is that right?

Jonathan Davies: 2:28

that's right. I mean we, we used lots of methods. We used surveys, we used email networks, we used our social media. We did have a fair bit of feedback. We had more feedback than I think some other consultations across the organizations get, but it was still only a fairly thin slice of the membership and once I appreciate everybody's busy with their day-to-day jobs. It would be nice if we could start increasing that engagement because, at the end of the day, we are working for members.

Emma Waddingham: 2:59

Yeah, absolutely, and we're always happy to share and we can always re-sign posts back from this podcast link as well to that piece of work, and so there's lots of different themes within that which obviously will come out as you talk about that a bit more widely after the summer as well.

Jonathan Davies: 3:14

Yeah, I mean to take it a step back. For a long period of time Welsh Government has been talking about the devolution of justice and pushing justice and the legal sector in Wales up the agenda without, as far as I was concerned, an accompanying vision and set of ideas around. Well, if we're going to improve, invest, devolve into the legal sector in Wales, how and where are we going to do it and over what time span? So that's where the genesis of the reimagining paper came from. I kind of grew and grew and continued to grow as we consulted through the membership. There's some key themes there.

Jonathan Davies: 3:55

Obviously, the headline one is devolution of justice. The Law Society supports some devolution of justice in principle, but without fully costed, fully funded plans. So that support will remain in principle until we are happy that there is the money and the capacity within Welsh Government to deliver an improved legal sector in Wales, and that one is the one that always catches the headlines. But no, for me there's such lack of of data around the legal sector in Wales that needs to be improved. The use of technology is sporadic and isn't really planned and coordinated across the sector. We've got legal level seven apprenticeships in England that have been hugely successful. We don't have them on the apprenticeship framework from Welsh government, which is probably where our main campaign focus will be over the next six months, and, as with lots and lots of sectors, we have mental health considerations that need to be taken into account. Work-life balance how do we, when we're realistically not going to be paying the highest wages across the UK, how do we attract and keep the best homegrown and talent from outside?

Emma Waddingham: 5:14

Absolutely, and that's something we talk a lot about with across the piece, whether with firms or recruiters saying, actually these packages are being built in, there's some of the things that are really attractive um to to new recruits and and they're asking for particular well-being packages. So think you know they are being brought in, but perhaps there's some lessons that can be learned and shared, as you say, across the membership, as well as to what's working.

Jonathan Davies: 5:38

Absolutely, and I'm always wary that Wales can be insular. We need to look across the world. There are firms, not just law firms, but law firms across the whole of Western Europe in particular, who are doing some interesting and innovative things. Um that that, I think would be beneficial to be shared with the sector so that we can come to some kind of common agreement across the legal sector in wales as to what best practice looks and feels like yeah, and actually, and you know the fact that you've I mean, you've always had an office, there's always been, uh, something that you can bring people together.

Emma Waddingham: 6:10

But the the new facilities are absolutely amazing. The technology there is fantastic. We recently held our in-house lawyers event, our second event in this series with you very kindly hosted that for us and everyone remarked on on how, how beautiful and well planned it is. You're looking to bring people into that space as well and get that kind of anecdotal feedback. Is that right?

Jonathan Davies: 6:31

We've engaged with members in various ways over the last five years since I've been in post Email newsletters, we've had events, we've done, but what's worked best is bringing together small groups of people who are motivated and expert in a particular field to get their opinions, to get their ideas, their understanding of where we are, and then using that as the basis and a springboard for where we do our lobbying and where we do our policy work from there. So, increasingly, over the next 12 months, what we will be having are sort of small focus groups within the office where we will be inviting people in. There'll be a set agenda, we'll have a presentation from somebody and then we'll try and kind of get a unified position together on several of these issues.

Emma Waddingham: 7:19

Fantastic and talk through some of the achievements over the past, kind of 12 to months to 24 months, because there have been a number along the way of this kind of level. Seven there's been funding that the office has helped with; t alk us through

Jonathan Davies: 7:37

There's the governance issues, which, which often puts people to sleep, but when I arrived, we had a wales committee that was a subcommittee of a subcommittee in the overall governance structure of The Law Society (TLS). After some significant internal lobbying, we managed to get agreement for a national board for Wales to be established. That is now there with the second level of most powerful committees in the Law Society, which is rightfully where it should have been all along, but it now means that Welsh members are properly represented at the highest levels within the organisation. We've got four council members. We've got more council members now coming, people coming forward to stand for subject specific seats, such as Gareth Jones, our vice chair.

Jonathan Davies: 8:22

All of these things are adding to an increased influence from Wales within the wider organisation and whilst that might not be the sexy end of what we do, it is certainly very, very important. On top of that, we've secured funding £100,000 from Welsh Government for Cyber Essentials rollout, which some of our members listening to this may well have been the recipients of. I think we work with several firms across the sector in Wales, but to a cyber without delivery partners for this particular project, and when you see their presentation on the dangers of having a lack of cyber security in the modern world. It really is frightening and I would urge all members to have to talk to their IT suppliers as a matter of urgency and see if they are compliant.

Emma Waddingham: 9:10

Yeah, absolutely, and also the growth of the team itself. So some people may not know everybody in the team. Do you want to introduce some of the members that have joined recently?

Jonathan Davies: 9:20

We've had Jane Grant join us as our office executive and governance officer. Jane's got 30 years experience in the Metropolitan Police, so managing our office is is a fairly easy task. In comparison, we've got Joshua Hurst, who's our policy and public affairs advisor. Joshua comes with a wealth of experience across public and private sector. Recently we've got Emilia D ouglas, who's joined us as our communications advisor, and hopefully everybody who's listening to this will have noticed the significant uplift in our social media activity over the last month.

Emma Waddingham: 9:58

Absolutely, and we all definitely have. And if you want to follow, they are on Instagram, linkedin and, I think, twitter as well. LawSoc Wales is usually the hashtag and handle for socials. So, congratulations, because you know you've got everybody that you need to be able to get the message out, engage with people and bring them into this fabulous space. And I know you've got another announcement around that space, because not everybody was able, obviously, to come to see the National Board for Wales recently, but if you'd like to tell us a little bit more about the importance of that space, in particular one lady.

Jonathan Davies: 10:34

Yeah, Carolyn Kirby has been council member for, I think, 16 years. She was president in the early 90s of the Law Society and has probably in my five years I've not seen anybody who's put in more work and dedication into the Law Society than Carolyn Kirby. And to recognise all of that effort and dedication we have got a lovely boardroom that, as you said, has just been refurbished and we have now named that the Carolyn Kirby Boardroom.

Emma Waddingham: 11:06

And she was completely delighted to receive that honour as well, and I know she was the first female president for the National Law Society.

Jonathan Davies: 11:16

I believe so yes, the first female president, and it must have been a very difficult gig to want to get elected and to being the first female president. And, being from Wales, I think there's been three or four Welsh presidents over the long and august history of the Law Society. So, yeah, her work and dedication deserves recognition.

Emma Waddingham: 11:39

Absolutely, and there is obviously an increased focus on Wales. There are people working incredibly hard alongside your office to champion the work that we do here. It is the Law Society of England and Wales, or Wales and England, depending on which side of the bridge you sit on, but Mark Evans obviously will become the next president from Wales at the end of next year. That's correct. Yeah, and you have an event on the 12th - another first for Wales - on the 12th of July.

Jonathan Davies: 12:12

On the 12th of July in the royal college of music and drama, we have the first admissions ceremony that is being held in wales. It's only the second admission ceremony that's been held outside of chancery lane in London and anybody who's not been through that admission ceremony whether they're recently qualified or whether they qualified back in the dark and dim distance they are more than welcome. Please, if you just go to the website, if you're interested in signing up, go to the website and all of the sign up details are there.

Emma Waddingham: 12:41

Yeah, it's going to be a fantastic event and a beautiful venue as well, at the Royal College of Music and Drama. Jonathan, thank you very much for joining us today. I know that there's lots of announcements to come. We will be sharing those with you and for you as well, and any further engagement that you, if you'd like, to feed back into the Law Society. Drop Jonathan and his team a line. We'll be sharing the link within the podcast as well. Always happy to welcome you into the absolutely stunning space, which we're looking forward to returning to very soon.

Jonathan Davies: 13:10

Thank you, Emma, always a pleasure.

Emma Waddingham: 13:12

Thanks, Jonathan. Thank you for joining us. All our episodes of the Legal Sector Resilience podcast are available on legalnewswales. com, with further signposting or on all good podcasting apps.