The Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has welcomed the government’s plans to reform the buying and selling process, but warns its success will rely on engaging “all participants in the home moving process”.
Simon Law, chairperson of the SLC, said the organisation recognises the potential for the proposed reforms to deliver faster, more transparent and more reliable transactions for consumers.
“The ambition to reduce delays, lower costs, increase transparency and minimise the number of transactions that fall through is one that conveyancers, consumers and the wider property industry can all support,” Law said.
“Proposals such as providing more information upfront, greater use of digital tools and identities, and improving professional standards across the transaction chain have the potential to deliver meaningful benefits for home movers.”
The SLC warned, however, that as with any significant reform, the detail will be critical.
Law added: “It is essential that reforms do not simply move complexity from one stage of the transaction to another or create unintended barriers for consumers and significant additional regulatory burdens for conveyancers.”
Licensed conveyancers have long supported efforts to improve the quality and availability of property information at the outset of a transaction.
The SLC stressed that any reforms must take into account the practical realities of mortgage lending, surveys, title investigations and evolving client circumstances.
“Successful reform will depend not only on technology and regulation, but on ensuring that all participants in the home moving process – buyers, sellers, conveyancers, lenders, estate agents and public bodies – are able to work from accurate information and aligned processes,” Law said.
“Ultimately, we support the objective of creating a faster, more transparent and more reliable home buying system, whilst recognising that achieving lasting change will require careful implementation, realistic timescales and ongoing collaboration across the sector.”
One Response
The Society of Licensed Conveyancers has welcomed the government’s reform roadmap. This enthusiasm is curious.
For instance, early conditional contracts are not just impractical they are legally absurd, ignoring risk, lender requirements, and basic legal certainty.
More importantly, the announcement feels premature and undemocratic. The licensed conveyancers I know do not share this optimism. They see daily that delays stem from government-created AML red tape, tax-adviser registration rules, and weak oversight of the volume factories, not from any lack of digitalisation.
Endorsing unrealistic proposals prematurely reinforces a narrative built by an over‑powerful law‑tech lobby and accepted by a government that has mistaken lobbying for evidence.
Conveyancers do not resist credible reform. However, they will resist charades and will question any organisation claiming to speak for them while applauding ideas many practitioners at the coalface consider unworkable and unsupported by evidence.
If the government wants a legacy worth having, it must stop blaming digitalisation for delays it largely created and start listening to those who protect the public every day.