Staying ahead of the risk: How to strengthen your firm’s source of funds checks
Last month, Legal Eye’s Alison Holt spoke at the Liverpool Law Society’s ‘Legal Finance in Focus: From Cashiering to Compliance’ event. Here, she shares key elements of her presentation with Today’s Conveyancer, using real examples to highlight risk factors and share the lessons that can be learned from each example. Given the recent news […]
Diary of a High Street Conveyancer – When the Christmas rush is over, gift yourself a say in the future of conveyancing
Every year I forget how busy it is in the run up to Christmas. Because we are busy all year around, the rush somewhat takes me by surprise – but this year has been particularly bad. I think it is because of a late Budget and clients waiting to see what was going to happen […]
What conveyancers should look out for in 2026: Emerging risks in AML
David Pett, solicitor and risk and compliance director at MJP Conveyancing, explores the areas regulators will focus on in their crackdown on money laundering in the coming year, and shares advice on how conveyancers can stay compliant. Property remains one of the most attractive routes for criminals who want to move and disguise illicit […]
Profile: Richard Mathias, consultant to the legal sector
Richard Mathias is a former director of Law Firm Services, the company behind Minerva, and a consultant to the legal sector. He has spent almost 40 years working both within and for conveyancing firms across the country. In this Today’s Conveyancer profile, Richard shares his thoughts on digitalisation, upfront information and the future of conveyancing. […]
Material information: Why earlier collaboration is now unavoidable
Mike Stainsby, commercial director at Conveyancer Insights and Property Search Direct, explains why introducing upfront material information could be the answer to the question the property industry has been asking for years. The government’s consultation on material information marks the strongest push yet toward genuine upfront transparency. For agents and conveyancers, it’s not just […]
Source of funds: Why the basics are now the biggest risk in property transactions
In an era of tighter regulation, rising fraud, and increasingly complex financial behaviour, source of funds (SOF) checks have become one of the most challenging, and misunderstood, elements of a property transaction. For estate agents, SOF is no longer simply a conveyancer’s problem. How well buyers prepare their financial evidence can make or break a […]
Home buying and selling reform: A practitioner’s perspective
In a detailed response to the government’s consultation on the reform of the home buying and selling process, David Pett, solicitor and director at MJP Conveyancing, draws on extensive operational experience in residential property law to argue that effective reform must confront the true structural causes of delay and uncertainty. The legal framework of […]
Conveyancing reform: A chance to reset, not retreat
The latest government consultation on home buying and selling has prompted a mix of anxiety, frustration and cautious optimism across the profession. And it’s no surprise – the proposals touch almost every corner of what we do, from upfront information to digital logbooks to the creeping presence of AI. Some of the concerns being raised […]
Diary of a High Street Conveyancer – 10 reasons to love conveyancing
As I have often said, conveyancing is hard work. It is mainly project management of a client and their move, being a shoulder for them to lean on (and cry on as and when) and perhaps some law thrown in at times. We are inundated with emails and sometimes the ‘real work’ has to be […]
Stamp duty and the OBR: What the 2025 budget really tells us about the property market
After months of speculation about possible stamp duty reform, the autumn budget confirmed that the SDLT system remains unchanged. For many across the sector this brings relief, but it also raises an important question. If nothing changed today, why did the market slow so sharply while rumours circulated? The clearest answers come from the Office […]
Confessions of a cyber conveyancer – ‘Machines will never take the place of lawyers’
Attend any conference, trade show or CPD training session and it will only be a matter of time before someone trots out the phrase, “AI will not replace lawyers, it will be lawyers using AI who replace those who do not”. It’s usually accompanied by an irritating side-tilt of the head and a sympathetic look […]
Why are there no dominant players in the conveyancing sector?
Is this indicative as to why it’s quicker to complete a meaningful facial hair project than a property transaction? You may have heard of McDonald’s, or Tesco? Perhaps you’re familiar with Volkswagen? In the worlds of fast food, supermarket shopping and car purchase these brands are dominant – the market leaders. As such, it’s generally […]
As a conveyancer, this budget is definitely a case of ‘less is less’
As a conveyancer, I watched the government’s budget with the same mix of curiosity and cautious optimism shared across the property sector. In conveyancing, budget announcements can bring sudden changes that require an immediate response, and over the years I’ve learned to stay alert. I’ve spent more than one lunch break sitting in my car, […]
How to write a successful awards submission; top tips to win at #BCAwards2026
With the deadline for entry into the British Conveyancing Awards 2026 just days away on Monday 1st December, Today’s Conveyancer considers what makes a standout entry for awards programmes. Awards events pit firms against their peers and really encourages them to think about what success looks like; how they as a firms define success; how […]
Diary of a High Street Conveyancer – The conveyancing playlist
I was thinking about whether we should have a playlist just for conveyancing. The idea was sparked by a recollection of calling one of the larger managing agents some years ago and the hold music was ‘We don’t talk anymore’ by Cliff Richard. So let me start the morning with some musical fun – and […]
Conveyancers championing charity, giving and wellbeing
It was wonderful to see conveyancers being recognised for championing charity, giving and wellbeing at this year’s Modern Law Conveyancing Awards. Our objective at the Conveyancing Foundation is to enhance the lives of those working in the conveyancing industry and we hope that our commitment to wellbeing best practice is starting to pay dividends in […]
Vendor fraud: How conveyancers can detect and prevent one of the sector’s fastest growing scams
Vendor fraud has become one of the most disruptive and costly threats in the conveyancing sector. The SRA highlighted it as an emerging risk in its 2024 AML Sectoral Risk Assessment, noting a sharp rise in cases where law firms had unknowingly facilitated fraudulent sales. Much of this increase is linked to the wider availability […]
Budget 2025: Will the property market be targeted for more tax?
Rachel Reeves’ somewhat unprecedented pre-budget speech on 4th November seemed to pave the way for tax rise announcements at the end of the month. New challenges over the last 12 months are the backdrop to ‘tough choices to be made’ that ‘we will all have to play our part in supporting’. There was a swift […]
Why UPRNs and data standards are central to the next generation NLIS
In October 2025, through the Fourth Round of the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund (RPF), Government’s Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) has awarded Land Data a grant of £999,592 to deliver the next generation of the National Land Information Service (NLIS). The grant marks a major step forward in modernising the NLIS, and at the heart of this next-generation platform […]
Consequences of not serving notice when buying a leasehold property
When buying a leasehold property there is an additional obligation to consider as well as all the usual investigations and reviews (property checks, title and deeds checks, AML and ID verification, to name but a few). It is usual for the terms of a lease to include an obligation to serve notice of the purchase […]