Chancellor considers caps on lifetime gifting to plug budget black hole
It has been reported Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considering capping lifetime gifts in an attempt to plug the £50bn hole in the public finances. First reported in the Guardian, the proposals could see the current rules around lifetime gifting, which enable unlimited amounts of money and assets to be gifted to friends and relatives without […]
No holiday for AML enforcement as SRA shares details of penalties totalling £275,000 in July
Decisions shared by the Solicitors Regulation Authority in July reveal 13 firms have been fined a total of £275,170 for AML breaches dating back to 2011 – with one firm fined £114,006. Amphlett Lissimore Bagshaws in London received the hefty sanction for failing to implement adequate policies, controls and procedures (PCPs) and failing to conduct […]
Legal Ombudsman shares enhanced guidance on remedies for earlier complaint resolution
The Legal Ombudsman (LeO) has published enhanced guidance on remedies that sets out five questions to assess whether a remedy is appropriate. The updated guidance is aimed at supporting service providers to identify and apply appropriate resolutions at an earlier stage and has been issued in response to findings from the 2024/2025 financial year. Many […]
SRA awards £360,000 for disadvantaged candidates to take SQE
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has awarded £360,000 to 11 organisations to support people from disadvantaged backgrounds with the cost of sitting the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). The organisations provide a range of legal, educational and social mobility services across England and Wales, ranging from making the legal industry more accessible to people from underrepresented […]
Solicitor loses bid to be restored to roll after ‘systemic’ failures led to £1.2 million fraud
The Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal has refused to restore a solicitor to the roll after he was struck off in 2021 for a series of regulatory and supervision breaches that resulted in a £1.2 million fraud. Charles James Ete, sole equity partner and owner of Charles Ete & Co Solicitors and sole principal and owner of […]
Law Society ‘disappointed’ with HM Treasury’s money laundering consultation response
As the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s AML enforcement team continues its crackdown on regulation breaches, the Law Society of England and Wales has said it is ‘disappointed’ with the government’s response to the 2024 consultation on Money Laundering Regulations. In the foreword to the response – published last month – economic secretary to the Treasury Emma […]
Changes to first-tier complaints requirements risks ‘over-regulation’ – The Law Society
Proposed changes to first-tier complaints handling, which could include requirements to publish complaints information to clients in a ‘clear, accessible and prominent place’ on firms’ websites, have been criticised by The Law Society. Responding to the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s ‘Changing our requirements on first-tier complaints’ consultation which runs until 1st August, Law Society president Richard […]
Inquiry into access to justice launched by Justice Committee
The Justice Committee has launched an inquiry into how advice and legal services are adapting to secure access to justice across civil, criminal, and family law. MPs on the cross-party Committee, which is chaired by Labour MP Andy Slaughter, will examine the current state of the legal services and representation market, and access to justice. […]
‘High risk’ legal services NRA classification not proportionate, Law Society claims
The newly published UK National Risk Assessment (NRA) of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing has been greeted with disappointment by the Law Society of England and Wales, with president Richard Atkinson pointing out the lack of prosecutions in the so-called ‘high risk’ legal sector. The 2025 NRA, produced by HM Treasury and the Home Office, […]
No timeline for unclaimed Estates list to be re-published
The Government Legal Department have said there is no timeline on when the Bona Vacantia list will be available again online on GOV.UK after it was taken down earlier this week. On Monday, the unclaimed Estates list published by the government was taken down following an expose detailing how fraudsters are exploiting gaps in the […]
Ombudsman to publish more examples of complaints failings in drive for greater transparency
Efforts to help the legal sector better understand the role of the Legal Ombudsman (LeO) and provide insight into their decisions are to be redoubled under a ‘renewed commitment to using statutory powers to publish final decisions where it is in the public interest to do so.’ The Legal Ombudsman, established in the wake of […]
LSCP urges regulators to act on unbundling as Tracker Survey finds numbers at record high
More people than ever are ‘unbundling’ legal services, with one in five consumers dividing the tasks that need to be carried with their solicitors. The highest incidences of the practice were found in probate, trademarks, employment and immigration law, where more than a third of consumers took on some of the legal work. The figures […]
Supreme Court rules tax planning asset transfer was not a matrimonial asset
The Supreme Court has ruled on a case concerning the transfer of assets for the purposes of estate planning in a landmark divorce case. Standish v Standish has been through the courts system with a decision this week at the Supreme Court ruling in favour of the husband who contended a transfer of assets pre-divorce, […]
New SRA chief confirmed to replace departing Philip
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) have appointed a new Chief Executive Officer to replace the departing Paul Philip, who leaves after nearly a decade in the role. Philip retires later this year and will be replaced by Sarah Rapson, who currently serves as Executive Director Supervision at the Financial Reporting Council, and has an extensive […]
HMRC tax avoidance consultation risks impacting work of legitimate tax advisers
The Law Society has slammed HMRC’s consultation into tackling tax avoidance schemes as ‘disproportionate and potentially ineffective’, affecting the work of legitimate tax advisers and introducing onerous levels of compliance and cost. The consultation, launched in March of this year, aims to tackle the promotion of schemes which actively promote tax avoidance. HMRC estimate they […]
LSB survey finds higher prices, but availability of remote services offers greater choice
New research from the Legal Services Board (LSB) reveals the price of legal services is rising, but the transparency of the prices offered is improving and consumers are benefitting from more services being made available remotely. The Prices of Individual Legal Services in England and Wales looks at five commonly used legal services: conveyancing, divorce, power […]
Law Society ‘supports SRA’s focus on core responsibilities’ following Axiom Ince review
The Law Society of England and Wales has announced that it supports the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) reprioritisation of work and the emphasis placed on investing in its core functions in the 2025-2026 business plan and budget consultation. The SRA’s consultation, launched in May, aims to address the shortcomings highlighted in the independent review of […]
‘Urgent need’ for enhanced accountability and responsiveness when it comes to complaints – LSCP
There is an ‘urgent need’ for enhanced accountability and responsiveness across the legal services sector when it comes to providing clients with both information about redress and complaint, and handling complaints about services provided. A survey conducted by the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP) has identified 46% of the Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO) investigations found poor […]
Experts divided over landmark case that sets out binary test to protect vulnerable borrowers
The Supreme Court has ruled a bank had a duty to investigate whether a woman was acting under the influence of her partner when the couple took out a remortgage, in a landmark case that extends protection for vulnerable people at risk of economic abuse by their partners. The ruling has divided experts, with some […]
Interview: Professor Nick Hopkins, Modernising Wills Law
The project to modernise wills law book-ends the career of Professor Nick Hopkins in his role as the Commissioner for Property, Family and Trust Law at The Law Commission as he departs in the coming months following the end of his tenure. Included in the 12th programme of law reform in 2014, the work has […]