Property
Estate agency praised for dropping referral fee demands
An estate agency has been praised for publicly disavowing future demands for referral fees, describing them as “the quiet scandal” in the industry.
Digital property pack wins government data prize
A digital property pack which combines multiple sources of data into a “single source of truth” for conveyancers and others has won a government prize worth £50,000.
Conveyancers starting to cut down on ‘avoidable’ requisitions
Efforts to reduce the number of avoidable requisitions that the HM Land Registry has to make are working, new figures have shown.
CLC launches accelerated ‘experience’ route to qualification
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers has launched an accelerated route to qualification for fee-earners who have been working for at least four years in conveyancing or probate.
Conveyancer cleared after exchanging contracts on day of instruction
A solicitor has been cleared of misconduct when acting on the exchange of contracts for an elderly client’s property on the same day he was instructed.
Land Registry “will automate all simple requests” by 2035
HM Land Registry will have “automated almost all simple requests to change the register” by 2035, offering “a near-instant service” for home buying and selling.
Test shows ChatGPT still falling short in key areas, says conveyancer
The latest version of ChatGPT provides first-time buyers with better answers than it did two years ago but still falls short in crucial ways, conveyancing solicitors have warned.
Government awards £1.75m to conveyancing data projects
Two projects that aim to speed up the home-buying process have received £1.75m in government backing from the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund.
Reforms “will push conveyancing fees down by over 20%”
Conveyancing fees should fall by over 20% as a result of a streamlined process and other changes to the home-buying regime announced yesterday, the government has claimed.
Government unveils major home-buying reform plan
The government has unveiled a blueprint to reform the home-buying and selling system, including mandatory upfront property information and digitisation.
Solicitor fined for letting down clients over off-plan investments
A solicitor who failed to advise clients on the risks of off-plan, buyer-led investment schemes has been fined £17,000 by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
Conveyancing fees “vary by 150% for the same service”
Conveyancing fees vary by 150% or more for “essentially the same service”, according to new research, with just 5% of firms offering different service levels.
High Court: Solicitor “turned blind eye” to money laundering concerns
A partner at a London law firm “dishonestly assisted” in misappropriating a company’s funds by turning a blind eye to money laundering issues raised by property transactions, the High Court has ruled.
“Tough winter ahead for conveyancers,” research warns
Conveyancers are set to experience a “sharp decline” in transaction volumes this year amid further consolidation in the market, new research has shown.
Judge heavily criticises solicitor whose client “did not exist”
A tribunal has heavily criticised a solicitor who acted for a woman the judge decided did not actually exist, in a bid to stop a property sale, in a case he described as “quite extraordinary”.
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.
