Byfield Consultancy has released a report, based on interviews with practitioners, on the future of  law firm regulation in the UK.  The report discusses legal and busniess changes that impact firms in Britain. 

The Big Bang Report: Opportunities and Threats in the New Legal Services Market. November 2009

Jon Robbins

http://www.byfieldconsultancy.com/docs/Big_Bang_Report.pdf

Excerpt from the Executive Summary:

Chapter 3: Revolution in Legal Services

Alternative business structures, the most revolutionary aspect of the Legal Services Act 2007, will allow lawyers to form multidisciplinary practices offering legal services together with non-legal services. They will also allow non-lawyers, including external investors as well as the likes of Tesco, AA, banks and insurers to have a stake in firms.

Times (London) also has an article on the report:

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/law/article6921906.ece?&EMC-Bltn=WAN381F