Client care
Law firms face £6m negligence claim from property investors
Two law firms have been facing multiple claims worth nearly £6m from disgruntled investors who lost money on hotels and student accommodation that were never built.
Solicitors, surveyors and estate agents reach NI “understanding”
An agreement between solicitors, surveyors and estate agents in Northern Ireland to improve the conveyancing process could be a template for England and Wales.
“Huge savings to come” from local land charge digitisation
HM Land Registry launched its new digital local land charges register last week, which will cut the time it takes to get results from days or weeks to seconds.
ICAEW takes voluntary approach to firms publishing prices
The accountancy regulator has decided not to force its firms that provide reserved probate services to publish their fees – unlike the legal regulators.
‘Mystery shoppers’ finds law firms missing out on business
Law firms are still failing to respond to customer enquiries properly, with a mystery shopper survey showing a “dismally poor” performance in respect of follow-up calls.
Home owners “do not trust” law firms referred by estate agents
A significant proportion of home owners do not trust the law firms they are referred to by estate agents, a survey has found.
Conveyancing clients would pay more for “premium” service, research finds
Over a third of home movers would be prepared to pay more for a “premium customer service” from their conveyancer, according to new research that also charts how local solicitors have lost ground to licensed conveyancers and online operations. It said that many conveyancing firms were not responding quickly enough to “21st century mindsets”.
Conveyancers “doing a decent job” but leasehold information a concern, says SRA
A fifth of those buying leaseholds do not recall their solicitors giving them key information such as the length of the lease remaining, service charges and ground rent, according to research commissioned by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. But overall, conveyancing clients were generally happy with the service they received.
Online quotes giving specialist conveyancers edge over high street solicitors
High street solicitors are losing out to specialist conveyancing businesses in capturing clients, new research has shown, but all lawyers still have much to improve on client communication. More than a third of clients would even consider paying more for a premium service, it found.
Small businesses shy away from “pricey” solicitors when facing legal problems, major survey find
Only 11% of small businesses consider solicitors to be good value for money, and most choose not to use them when faced by a legal problem, seeing them as a last resort, according to major new research. It also found that the annual cost of small businesses’ legal problems to the UK economy to be roughly £40bn.
Blog
The power of participation for trainees and apprentices
It’s important as a trainee or an apprentice to get involved in the life of your firm – even under the pressure of discovering how to navigate professional life and now the demands of the SQE.
Is it time to change how law firms view compliance?
Although COFAs often hold senior positions and play an essential role in a firm’s financial and regulatory integrity, the perception of the compliance function itself is still evolving.
From templates to culture change: Lessons from the SRA on source of funds
The SRA’s new thematic review into source of funds and wealth reveals both progress and persistent blind spots, with source-of-funds checks too often thought of as a procedural hurdle.
