Regulation & Compliance Conference 2026

Registration and refreshments

Chair’s Opening Remarks

Neil Rose, Editor, Legal Futures

Interview with Sarah Rapson

After a year at the helm of the SRA, Neil Rose talks to Sarah Rapson about the organisation she took over, the changes she has made, and what the future looks like for the regulation of solicitors.

Speaker:
Sarah Rapson, CEO, Solicitors Regulation Authority

AML supervision by the FCA

As the FCA prepares to take over the supervision of lawyers’ AML activities, this session will consider what the FCA will expect for them, how lawyers should prepare, and how the legal regulators will cope.

Speakers:
Colette Best, Director of Anti-Money Laundering, Kingsley Napley
Alex Roy, former Head of Strategy, FCA
More speakers to be confirmed

Networking break

Breakout Sessions: Delegates choose one of the following three sessions:

Session 1: Help! The SRA has come knocking

What do you do when the SRA launches an investigation into your firm? In this session, experts will explain how the process works, your rights and responsibilities, and the best way to approach it.

Speakers:
Paul Bennett, Partner, Bennett Briegal
More speakers to be confirmed

Session 2: From Christmas party to the SDT

A profession-wide focus on bullying, harassment and discrimination in the workplace has led to disciplinary action and some very bad headlines for law firms and chambers. This session will consider how best to ensure everyone in your workplace understands what is acceptable and how to deal with issues that occur.

Speakers:
Clare Murray, Managing Partner, CM Murray
Other speakers to be confirmed

Session 3: Keeping your data secure – and what happens if things go wrong

Law firms’ IT systems are under constant attack from outside and there have been some horror stories about breaches crippling practices for days and weeks on end – and even the Legal Aid Agency. We will hear from experts on the big risks and how to deal with them.

Speakers to be confirmed

How to be a compliance officer

An SRA thematic review last year found compliance officers have “poor” knowledge of SRA reporting and record-keeping rules, while less than half felt the role was acknowledged and/or valued by firms, and a majority felt stressed by it. At a time when the regulator is putting more rules around who can be one, we will look at what makes a good compliance officer.

Speakers to be confirmed

Networking Lunch

Where now for client account interest? 

As the government details the way forward for client account interest, how should law firms respond? As well as the practical elements of implementing the scheme, what structural changes could they consider?

Speakers:
Professor Linda Mulcahy, Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, Oxford University
More speakers to be confirmed

Breakout Sessions

Session 1: Your digital AML questions answered

Digital solutions have the potential to reduce AML headaches but lawyers are wary. This session will help answer questions like:

• What is the Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework?
• What is biometric identity verification?
• How can firms embed their AML policies embedded through technology into their ways of working?
• Can technology identify UBOs in offshore jurisdictions?
• What does open banking mean for source of funds processes?

Speakers:
Victoria Jordan, Risk & Compliance Partner, JMW Solicitors
More speakers to be confirmed

Session 2: The complaining client

With the number of clients complaining about their solicitor to both the Legal Ombudsman and the SRA in ever-greater numbers, and professional negligence risks as live as ever, this session will look at where lawyers go wrong – and how to reduce the risk of receiving a complaint or a claim.

Speakers:
Simon Williams, Senior Ombudsman, Legal Ombudsman
Marc Rowson, Partner, Lockton
Lucy Batten, Chief Risk & Operations Officer, Montpellier Legal

Session 3: Choosing and using AI

Every firm in the land is having to consider how they incorporate AI into their operations. For smaller firms in particular, this represents a major challenge. We will consider what you need to look for when choosing a system, or even building one yourself, and how to ensure your use of it is compliant.

Speakers to be confirmed

Networking Break

The future of regulation – reform, ethics and an ever-greater burden?

Change is in the air. As the conference has shown, from SRA reform to AML oversight, AI to client account interest, the sands are shifting underneath the legal profession. And then we have public scandals like the Post Office casting yet more doubt on lawyers. The session will discuss what regulation and compliance will look like in the years to come, how the profession can prepare for it, and what it means for clients.

Speakers:
Florence Brocklesby, Founder and Principal, Bellevue Law
Juliet Oliver, Director, Passmore & Oliver
More speakers to be confirmed