Property
Stamp duty holiday sparks 85% surge in Land Registry complaints
HM Land Registry was hit by a surge of 85% in complaints over the past year in the wake of the property boom sparked by the stamp duty holiday, its annual report has revealed.
Take advantage of upfront information reform, conveyancers urged
Conveyancers have been urged to embrace the opportunities offered by new rules on the information that must be included in property listings.
Estate agents “discriminating” because of conveyancers’ referral fees
There are “too many instances” of estate agents only allowing potential buyers to view a property or make an offer if they use a recommended conveyancer and other service providers.
Solicitor who let one mistake “snowball” fined by tribunal
A solicitor who let one mistake on a property sale snowball so that it affected multiple transactions in a portfolio has been fined £10,000 – even though he preferred to be struck off.
Conveyancing boom brings hundreds of firms back into market
Conveyancers enjoyed their busiest year on record in 2021/22 – and hundreds of law firms came back into the market – with the average practice seeing a 60% rise in transactions.
Property search merger “lessens competition”, CMA says
The merger of two of the four big property search providers “substantially lessens competition” and the only remedy would be to break up the business, the CMA has provisionally found.
Solicitor who caused 25 claims on compensation fund struck off
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has struck off a solicitor whose conduct has led to 25 claims on the SRA Compensation Fund totalling £750,000 from conveyancing clients.
Conveyancing firms “must apply” for PII two months before deadline
Firms of licensed conveyancers will have to apply for professional indemnity insurance two months ahead of the renewal deadline and in return will receive a response within four weeks.
Law firm makes seven-figure investment in proptech business
Consumer law firm Taylor Rose MW has made a “seven-figure investment” in a proptech business which helps home movers change addresses, while PEXA is gearing up for its UK launch.
Conveyancers “should be able to use” IDs checked by estate agents
Conveyancers should be able to rely on digital IDs checked by estate agents and vice versa, the head of the Home Buying and Selling Group’s upfront information sub-group has said.
Property listing rules “will encourage earlier lawyer involvement”
New rules on the information that must be included in property listings will encourage sellers to instruct conveyancers earlier in the process, National Trading Standards has said.
Electronic signatures “largest area of change” for property industry
The use of electronic signatures has been the “single largest area of change” in technology for the property industry over the past 18 months, a survey has found.
Revolutionary Australian conveyancing platform to launch in the UK
Property Exchange Australia (PEXA), which processes 80% of conveyancing completions in Australia, has announced plans to launch in England and Wales this autumn.
“First collaborative conveyancing service” goes live
A pilot version of what its solicitor co-founder describes as the “first collaborative conveyancing service” has gone live. Eddie Goldsmith said it was about letting conveyancers “get on with the legal work”.
SRA outlines concerns over inadequate advice to leaseholders
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has spelt out its concerns that clients “are not receiving appropriate advice” on onerous clauses in leases, particularly around ground rents.
Blog
It’s time for law firms to ask tougher questions
For years, many law firms have treated ID verification as a box-ticking exercise. Run a liveness check, match a face to a document and move on. But that is no longer good enough.
Business fatigue to AI will risk job security
Whilst we know professional learning has always been part of career paths, to hire, retain and keep talent, AI needs to be embedded as a core part of this training.
On good authority? GenAI and the reputational risks to law firms
As GenAI’s influence grows, so do the risks which are already playing out in courtrooms across England and Wales, where some early adopters are setting precedents they would rather not.
