Regulator offering candidates £52,000 for three-day week
Kate Wellington is stepping down after five years as chief executive of the Costs Lawyer Standards Board (CLSB) in the new year.
Ms Wellington, who is based in Australia, will be take up a new role as chief executive of the Law Society of Western Australia.
CLSB chair David Heath said: “Kate has done a superb job both for the CLSB and for the profession as a whole. Through her dedication and tenacity over the last five years, she has turned the CLSB into a modern, innovative regulator, and won the respect and admiration of all who have had the pleasure of working with her.
“Kate leaves the CLSB with an excellent foundation for her successor to pursue our vision and strategy for the future. We thank her for everything she has achieved with the CLSB, and wish her every success in her new role.”
ACL chair Jack Ridgway commented: “Kate Wellington leaves a very big pair of shoes to fill. She took an organisation that was in some distress and turned it into the best-performing regulator, as assessed by the Legal Services Board.
“Importantly, she has worked collaboratively with the ACL in the interests of the public and the profession, and we thank her for the legacy she leaves. The CLSB shows how a small regulator with limited resources can make a big difference and we wish Kate all the best in her future endeavours.”
Ms Wellington, a qualified solicitor in the UK and Australia, began her legal career in the public sector before moving into private practice at City giant Linklaters and the joining consumer group Which?, where she was head of legal operations among other roles. A former consumer representative on the Civil Procedure Rule Committee, she joined the CLSB in 2019. She is also involved in a number of high-profile consumer class actions.
The CLSB is now recruiting for a replacement, who will be paid £52,000 for a three-day week (£87,000 full-time equivalent), plus a 3% employer pension contribution.
The closing date for applications is 3 December, with first interviews to be held online in the week of 16 December and second-round interviews in person in London in mid-January.
Among the ‘desirable’ qualities for candidates are “familiarity with litigation, legal costs and/or the way lawyers are engaged by and charge their clients in England and Wales” and “understanding of the issues affecting lawyers, their clients and the legal sector in England and Wales”.