SME and high street lawyers alliance turns its attentions to client account proposals
Over 150 signatories have lent their support to calls for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to review its thinking on plans to remit a proportion of the interest earned on lawyers’ client accounts in England and Wales to the government to invest in wider access to justice, including legal aid. Fresh from their campaign to […]
New practice guide outlines when and how to register contractual control agreements
New contractual control agreements are set to come into effect from April 2027 requiring option agreements, conditional contracts and pre-emption rights, amongst others agreements, to be submitted digitally to HM Land Registry (HMLR). To prepare for this HMLR has published a new practice guide to help conveyancers and the wider property market understand and prepare. […]
Now is the time to engage with property market reform warns OPDA
Conveyancers and the wider property market have been challenged to meaningfully engage with upcoming reforms to the process of transacting properties if they are to “retain their competitor advantage and customer confidence” warned the Open Property Data Association (OPDA) following its latest annual general meeting (AGM). Digital processes are becoming more and more a part […]
Zoopla calls for budget to ‘create right conditions’ for loser mortgage rates
The biggest boost the budget could provide to the property market would be to create the conditions for lower mortgage rates said Zoopla in it’s latest House Price Index ahead of the autumn budget on Wedensday. The property portal’s latest data shows a 7% fall in home sales over the last four week compared with […]
Apprentice solicitor handed section 43 order after being “dishonest” about arrest
An apprentice solicitor has been subjected to a section 43 order after stating his reason for his absence from work was due to illness when he had in fact been arrested. Owen Goodhand was training as a solicitor at Martin Tolhurt Partnership LLP until he was dismissed by the firm on 24 June 2025 after […]
When regulatory uncertainty becomes a burden in itself
The SRA’s decision to pause its proposed changes to the roles of Compliance Officers for Legal Practice (COLPs) and Compliance Officers for Finance and Administration (COFAs) will no doubt be welcomed by many smaller firms, but it also raises a much wider question about the amount of regulatory uncertainty conveyancing firms are currently being asked […]
Rule 8.4: welcome relief for affected firms- but what now?
The SRA’s decision to delay its controversial Rule 8.4 changes beyond January 2027 has been welcomed by many. But what should affected firms do now? Kate Burt, solicitor and founder of legal risk and compliance consultancy HiveRisk, sets out how firms can use this breathing space to strengthen internal governance arrangements, build a more defensible […]