Property
Property search merger could lead to higher costs, warns watchdog
The merger of two of the four big property search providers faces an in-depth probe unless they can show it will not reduce competition and increase costs to conveyancers and others.
Law firm eyes group action against Simplify over cyber-attack
Group action law firm Keller Lenkner UK is planning a claim over the cyber-attack that continues to affect clients of conveyancing giant Simplify, it has emerged.
MPs call for inquiry into conveyancers who “mis-sold” leasehold advice
There should be an inquiry into the “mis-selling scandal” of housing developers pointing buyers to preferred conveyancers, who then did not advise on escalating ground rents, MPs said this week.
“We’re getting there,” says Simplify as client anger rages on
The majority of conveyancers at the Simplify group are now “back up and running on core systems, and actively working on cases”, it announced yesterday.
Pandemic has highlighted digital gaps, property lawyers say
Commercial property lawyers believe the pandemic has not only hastened the adoption of new technology but highlighted gaps where it could improve the conveyancing process.
Regulator presses Simplify to help clients change conveyancer
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers is pressing the Simplify group to reach a position where it can provide its files to clients who wish to change lawyer following the recent cyber-attack.
Clients’ desperation grows as impact of Simplify cyber-attack stretches on
Desperate consumers are looking at the feasibility of changing their lawyer as the impact of the cyber-attack on Simplify, the conveyancing giant, stretches into a second week.
Seller’s conveyancer calls police after harassment from buyers
A conveyancer has described how she ended up fearing for her safety and calling the police after harassment from the buyers on the other side.
Tech firm buys conveyancers to test products in “live environment”
A listed property technology firm has bought a firm of licensed conveyancers to help it test products in a “live environment” before they are launched.
Mortgage cryptocurrency “will lower cost of solicitors’ PII”
A company seeking to become a linchpin in the property market is to trial a crypto-currency to replace the traditional transfer of money between banks and conveyancers.
Blog
Why good governance matters when managing Law Society forms
Everyday legal transactions rely on Law Society forms. But they are often treated as static templates rather than what they really are: living documents that change over time.
A letter from the SRA? Your first reaction matters
An email from the SRA has a way of rearranging a working day. It arrives in the same inbox as everything else, often in the same measured tone, yet it carries a different weight.
Regulate sole practices on evidence, not turnover
For a sole practice, the SRA’s plan that I cannot hold a compliance role if my firm has more than £600,000 of turnover is not a measure of risk. It is a ceiling on growth.
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