About Practice Compliance
Every law firm has a legal duty to comply with the SRA Handbook and a raft of other legislation and regulations. Get it wrong and you personally face investigation, disciplinary action, fines and prosecution (not to mention the damage to your reputation).
GDPR compliance
Practical guidance tools, registers, training aids and other templates to help you comply with data protection law and manage privacy risks
SRA Handbook
Every law firm has a legal duty to comply with the SRA Handbook and a raft of other legislation and regulations. Get it wrong and you personally face investigation, disciplinary action, fines and prosecution.
Topics We Cover
Our Practice Compliance Experts
Melanie O'Brien
David Gilmore
Sarah Mumford
Iain Miller
Susanna Heley
Latest Practice Compliance News
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) and the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) convened their annual technical exchange...
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has released a set of guidance materials, primarily aimed at the 34,500+ in-house solicitors across England...
Research from the Social Mobility Foundation shows that workers in higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations from working-class...
The Legal Services Board (LSB) has launched a consultation on draft guidance aimed at assisting legal services regulators in fulfilling their new...
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) has issued a new general licence, INT/2024/5297490 concerning permitted activities for Iran...
Latest Practice Compliance Practice Notes
Information security—encryptionEncryption is an example of a privacy enhancing technology and is a widely-available information security solution. It...
Practice Compliance forecast as at 20 November 2024This Practice Note is our monthly update of key actual and proposed regulatory or legislative...
Children and data protection law—the age appropriate design code (children’s code)The UK data protection authority, the Information Commissioner’s...
Brexit—implications for data protection [Archived]ARCHIVED: This archived Practice Note provides information on the Data Protection, Privacy and...
Development of sanctions regime in the UK during the Brexit transition period [Archived]ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not...
Latest Practice Compliance Precedents
Response to data subject request—all rights—requesting identity information or confirming authority[Name of individual making request][Address of...
Introductions to third parties—annual review1General informationDate of reviewPerson(s) conducting review[Insert date of review][Insert...
Data protection impact assessment—DPIA—surveillance cameras1Project summaryProject informationDetailsProject name[Insert name]Project owner[Insert...
Litigation, advocacy and ADR policy1Introduction1.1This document sets out our policy for dealing with litigation and advocacy before any court or...
Anti-bribery and corruption—briefing for external agents/intermediariesIntroductionCompliance with bribery and corruption laws is critical to [insert...
Latest Practice Compliance Q&As
Featured Practice Compliance content
SRA Code of Conduct for individuals and firms
SRA Code of Conduct for individuals and firmsThis Practice Note provides guidance on the SRA Codes of Conduct, contained in the SRA Standards and...
Duties of confidentiality and disclosure 2019
Duties of confidentiality and disclosure 2019The protection of confidential information is a fundamental feature of the solicitor-client relationship...
Conflicts of interest 2019
Conflicts of interest 2019Conflicts of interest can cause difficult and serious problems for solicitors and law firms, both from a compliance point of...
Working with foreign lawyers—the Registered Foreign Lawyer (RFL) regime
Working with foreign lawyers—the Registered Foreign Lawyer (RFL) regimeThe Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) operates a registration regime for...
Undertakings and the court
Undertakings and the courtThis Practice Note explains:•what powers the court has to enforce undertakings•when it is likely to exercise those...
Compliance officer for legal practice—COLP—title and duties 2011 [Archived]
Compliance officer for legal practice—COLP—title and duties 2011 [Archived]The compliance officer for legal practice (COLP) sits at the heart of the...
Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) practice management standards—Precedents content map
Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) practice management standards—Precedents content mapThe Law Society's Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) is a quality...
Acting for yourself, friends and family
Acting for yourself, friends and familyThis Practice Note covers considerations where a law firm wishes to act for one of its own partners or...
Money Laundering Regulations 2017—source of funds and source of wealth
Money Laundering Regulations 2017—source of funds and source of wealthSource of funds and wealth was a key focus of the SRA’s Preventing Money...
Pre-employment checks—law firms
Pre-employment checks—law firmsWhile the application form and interview process will give you some assurances as to a candidate's suitability for a...
What are the ramifications for a solicitor who does not comply with Law Society Formula B undertakings and/or did not hold their client's part of the contract at the point of exchange? If the contract later comes into dispute does an action lie with that solicitor or their firm?
When and how can I terminate my retainer?
Solicitors Regulation Authority
Solicitors Regulation AuthorityThe Solicitors Regulation authority (SRA) is the independent regulatory arm of the Law Society. It...
Risk management policy—law firms
Risk management policy—law firms1Introduction1.1Risk management is central to the regulatory regime under which we operate. [Insert name of firm] is...
Money laundering compliance officer—law firms
Money laundering compliance officer—law firmsThis Practice Note is intended for law firms that are subject to the Money Laundering, Terrorist...
Client conflicts in conveyancing or property matters—when can you act?
Client conflicts in conveyancing or property matters—when can you act?There are two types of conflict: own interest conflicts (sometimes called...
Closing a client matter—law firms
Closing a client matter—law firmsClosing a client matter properly is a basic client care, risk management and housekeeping requirement. There are also...
Dealing with freelance solicitors
Dealing with freelance solicitorsFrom 25 November 2019, the SRA Standards and Regulations introduced a new method of practising: the freelance...
Associated legal terms
Manager
This is a term which is defined in the SRA Code of Conduct [2011] for the purposes of the SRA Handbook [2011].
Relevant tax
“relevant tax” means— (a) income tax, (b) capital gains tax, (c) corporation tax, including any amount chargeable as if it were corporation tax or treated as if it were corporation tax, [(ca) apprenticeship levy,] (d) inheritance tax, (e) stamp duty land tax, and (f) annual tax on enveloped dwellings.
Separate business
Practising solicitors, and others involved in the provision of legal services through a regulated SRA firm, must comply with strict requirements about the types of services which they can provide through any business which is not regulated by the SRA or another approved regulator.
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