Quality management system review procedure for legal practices

Quality management system review procedure for legal practices

LAW 9000 – Legal Best Practice

Clause 5.6 Management review

1. Purpose

To provide guidelines about the review and continuous improvement of the QMS and to reference

specific procedures that apply to this subject.

2. Scope

This procedure covers the review and continuous improvement of the QMS through the management

review process. The management review covers the operation of the whole practice, and includes both

legal and non-legal aspects.

3. Persons Affected

All professional and support staff.

4. Policy

At planned intervals during the year, the Management Review Team (MRT) will review the QMS to

ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness for achieving client and regulatory

requirements. These reviews will include assessing opportunities for improvement and the need for

change to the current QMS including the quality policy and quality objectives.

5. Responsibilities

The quality systems manager (QSM) is responsible for scheduling the management review meeting,

preparing the agenda, keeping records and communicating the outcome to all lawyers and support staff.

The QSM will also be responsible for coordinating the completion of all corrective actions agreed by the

MRT.

6. Frequency of meetings

Our legal practice holds management review meetings every six months (January and July) to evaluate

how the QMS is performing, to ensure that the QMS is effective, and to discuss areas for improvement.

Other management meetings and other activities such as internal audits, look at the effectiveness of

specific areas of the management system.

7. Management Review Team

Permanent members of the MRT are:

the principal (who acts as Chairman)

the practice manager

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Quality management system review procedure for legal practices

the QSM (who also acts as Deputy Chairman).

The QSM will decide on the minimum number of attendees for convening that meeting. The principal (in

consultation with the QSM) will decide whether or not it is necessary to invite additional members and if

so, who should be involved.

8. Agenda

All members of the MRT may contribute items for the agenda, but they must be submitted to the QSM no

later than 2 weeks prior to the meeting date. The QSM will prepare the agenda in consultation with the

principal and ensure that the relevant documents have been attached. The practice receptionist will

distribute the agenda and attached documents so that these will be in the possession of all members of

the MRT at least 1 week prior to the meeting.

Inputs to Quality Management Reviews (QMR) will include the following sources of information regarding

the performance of the QMS as well as improvement opportunities.

The standing agenda for this review meetings is as follows:

Review Inputs

results from internal and external audits

review of quality objectives compared to plan

client feedback and complaints

production and efficiency data

non-conformance trends

process performance and product conformity

status of corrective and preventive actions

recommendations for improvements to specific systems

currency of training program

appropriateness of policy statements

report on follow-up actions from previous reviews

changes that could affect the quality management systems

quality assurance of work output

risk management

financial performance

performance against the business plan

compliance with statutory obligations including licence and practising certificates

physical resources and equipment

recent industry changes and new procedures

review of regulations and codes of practice

use of procedures and check lists

attending management and industry training courses.

9. Meeting Contents

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Quality management system review procedure for legal practices

The nature of the management review meeting is such that all major issues affecting our practice will be

considered as appropriate.

Review Outputs from QMS will be minuted and include decisions made and actions taken related to: 

the improvement of the effectiveness of the QMS and its processes to achieve the quality policy

and quality objectives

assessment of the QMS continuing suitability and effectiveness in satisfying the LAW 9000

standard

resource needs

improvements to procedures, forms and work instructions

improvement of client service/value adding

improvement of product related to client requirements

improvement of resource planning and management processes

improvement of the communication systems

assessment of likely future requirements to ensure that the system will remain suitable and

effective.

10. Actions 

If the results of the review are such that corrective action is necessary, the MRT will:

consider solutions and agree on the corrective action(s)

agree on responsibility for the implementation of the corrective action chosen

agree on a time scale for the implementation and review of corrective action(s) taken.

The review and the agreed corrective actions will be recorded in the practice improvement register by the

QSM. All actions raised at previous meetings will be reviewed and progressed at subsequent meetings.

11. Meeting Records

The QSM is responsible for ensuring that minutes of the meeting, addressing the above agenda items

are prepared and distributed promptly.

The minutes will clearly state:

actions agreed upon

persons responsible for implementing these actions

agreed completion dates.

The minutes will be maintained in accordance with clause 4.2.4 of the LAW 9000 standard.

12. Communication of minutes

The outputs from the meeting will be communicated to all lawyers and support staff by email by the QSM.

Quality Management for Legal Practices Blog

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