News that Big Four accounting firm EY is considering spinning off its global audit business should sound a warning bell to law firms, as the big consultancies continue to encroach on the legal services business, according to industry observers.

While the development seems aimed at dodging the increasing regulatory scrutiny that audit businesses appear to be facing, it also solves the conflict of interest barriers that EY faces in providing legal services. And there's speculation that, if EY succeeds in jumping through the substantial hurdles necessary to separate the units, its Big Four peers will follow.