Property
CLC warns conveyancers over breaching undertakings
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers has received “too many complaints” about some of the practices it regulates breaching undertakings.
Law Society presses lenders for more Building Safety Act changes
The Law Society is pushing for more changes to the building safety provisions in the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook after one was made last week.
Large North-West conveyancing practice to close doors on Friday
A large conveyancing firm in the North-West is to close its doors on Friday, with its two directors taking some staff to join the practice owned by listed company Smoove.
Estate agents back higher conveyancing fees for quicker sales
Estate agents would “absolutely, categorically” accept conveyancers increasing their fees if it meant speeding up the process, an industry leader said last week.
Conveyancers “refusing to handle high-rise transactions”
Conveyancing firms are refusing to handle transactions involving flats in blocks with five or more storeys because of concerns about their liabilities under the Building Safety Act 2022.
Cyber-attack cost conveyancing giant £7m plus lost business
The November 2021 cyber-attack on the Simplify Group – the country’s largest conveyancing business – cost it £6.8m and also suppressed fee income, its annual report has shown.
Australian giant eyes further expansion in UK conveyancing market
PEXA, the Australian conveyancing technology giant that last year bought a UK law firm, could expand its operation here yet further by acquiring listed company Smoove, which also owns one.
All-digital trial sounds death knell for paper-based conveyancing
A project to build a digital settlement prototype that speeds up payments in conveyancing by linking banks, conveyancers and HM Land Registry has ended successfully.
Partner suspended for trying to “trick” farmer out of tenancy
A partner in a large Midlands law firm, who tried to “trick” an elderly farmer out of part of his protected tenancy in the way he sent notices to quit, has been suspended for a year.
Home sellers “would pay more for faster conveyancing”
Almost nine in 10 vendors would pay more to have a faster conveyancing process, new research has revealed. as we report too on the latest BASPI iteration and proptech investment.
Blog
Change in regulator shouldn’t make AML less of a priority
While SRA fines for AML have been climbing, many in the profession aren’t confident they will get any relief from the FCA, a body used to dealing with a highly regulated industry.
There are 17 million wills waiting to be written
The main reason cited by people who do not have a will was a lack of awareness as to how to arrange one. As a professional community, we seem to be failing to get our message across.
The case for a single legal services regulator: why the current system is failing
From catastrophic firm collapses to endemic compliance failures, the evidence is mounting that the current multi-regulator model is fundamentally broken.
