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 Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has released its 2023-2024 annual report, highlighting significant progress in combating financial crime. Key...
Law360, London: The government ran a slow and 'troubling' process for approving the basic living expenses of sanctioned individuals that forced an...
MLex: The UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) would have a new obligation to report annually on its enforcement under an amendment to the...
MLex: Businesses developing and using artificial intelligence (AI) in the UK could see regulatory uncertainty reduced if there were one single set of...
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has initiated a comprehensive survey targeting 750 randomly selected law firms to assess their first-tier...
Latest Practice Compliance Practice Notes
Financial sanctions toolkitSanctions are non-permanent restrictions or prohibitions imposed by governments that regulate how its people and companies...
Failure to prevent bribery—the offenceThis Practice Note explains the corporate criminal offence of failing to prevent bribery under section 7 of the...
Data protection, privacy and confidential information case law trackerThis Practice Note tracks noteworthy High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme...
Development of sanctions regime in the UK during the Brexit transition period [Archived]ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not...
Practice Compliance forecast as at 21 January 2025This Practice Note is our monthly update of key actual and proposed regulatory or legislative...
Latest Practice Compliance Precedents
Recognising crime—red flags and warning signs for staff—law firmsYou must remain alert to the red flags and warning signs of crime potentially taking...
Personal data sharing clause—controller to controller—pro-receiving partyDefined terms: This Precedent clause uses the additional defined terms...
Message from CEO/Senior Member/Senior Partner to staff on publication of Anti-slavery and human trafficking statementFrom [insert name/job title]...
Meeting minutes—approval of the Anti-slavery and human trafficking statement1DocumentsThe Chair tabled the following documents:1.1Draft Anti-slavery...
Memorandum to board of directors/members/partners accompanying the draft Anti-slavery and human trafficking statement for approvalSummarySlavery and...
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
Interest policy
In accordance with the SRA Accounts Rules 2011, all firms must have an interest policy which provides for the payment of interest to a client when it is fair and reasonable to do so.
Make available
Funds/economic resources are made available for the benefit of a target only if they thereby obtain, or are able to obtain, a significant financial benefit. OFSI says it will apply the normal and everyday usage of those words. The provision of basic economic resources for personal consumption is not likely to be viewed by OFSI as having made them available directly or indirectly to or for the benefit of a designated person.
Qualifying subsidiary
a company (“the subsidiary”) is a qualifying subsidiary of another company (“the relevant company”) if the following conditions are met. The conditions are that— (a) the subsidiary is a 51% subsidiary of the relevant company, (b) no person other than the relevant company, or another of its subsidiaries, has control of the subsidiary, and (c) no arrangements are in existence by virtue of which either of the conditions in paragraphs (a) and (b) would cease to be met.
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