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
This week's edition of Practice Compliance weekly highlights includes new Russia sanctions regulations, alongside fresh DBT general trade licences for...
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has issued two general trade licences permitting certain activities otherwise prohibited under the Russia...
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has warned that businesses have one month remaining to implement data protection complaints processes...
HMRC has updated various guidance notes on mandatory registration, including to reflect the legal requirement for tax advisers who interact with HMRC...
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) has imposed a £165,000 monetary penalty on Deutsche Bank AG London Branch under section 146 of...
Latest Practice Compliance Practice Notes
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note tracks news and analysis published across Lexis+® UK since 24...
ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note tracked news and analysis published across Lexis+® UK in 2023...
This Practice Note is intended for in-house lawyers and privacy and compliance professionals in private sector commercial organisations. It provides...
This Practice Note explains the regulatory requirement to implement systems and controls to mitigate and manage effectively the risks of money...
This Practice Note sets out the scope and application of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer)...
Latest Practice Compliance Precedents
We have reached a stage in your matter where we believe it would be in your best interests to consider buying [insert type of insurance]. This is...
PlanningNote 1The risk assessment should produce detailed recommendations for any required remediation of the organisation’s compliance program.See...
1Introduction1.1We have performed an organisation-wide assessment of the areas where we are most at risk of either offering or accepting bribes.1.2We...
1Introduction1.1Bribery and corruption remain major issues in world trade, despite the many dedicated efforts to prevent them. They are very damaging...
1Background informationName and position of person(s) conducting assessment [Insert name]Date of assessment[Insert date]2Proposed processingDescribe...
Latest Practice Compliance Q&As
Featured Practice Compliance content
What is a solicitor's undertaking?
What is a solicitor's undertaking?An undertaking is a commitment by a solicitor to do something. It can be enforced against the solicitor by the...
In what circumstances might a solicitor be able to contact another lawyer's client directly?
SRA Codes 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...
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...
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...
Duties of confidentiality and disclosure
Duties of confidentiality and disclosure 2019The protection of confidential information is a fundamental feature of the solicitor-client relationship...
What is a legal entity identifier (LEI) and does my law firm need one?
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...
Solicitors Regulation Authority
Solicitors Regulation AuthorityThe Solicitors Regulation authority (SRA) is the independent regulatory arm of the Law Society. It...
When and how can I terminate my retainer?
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...
Client care letter—law firms
Client care letter—law firmsDear [Insert client’s name][Insert heading, eg matter description]Thank you for your instructions to act on your behalf in...
Conflicts of interest—law firms and solicitors
Conflicts of interest 2019Conflicts of interest can cause difficult and serious problems for solicitors and law firms, both from a compliance point of...
If an email is sent to you in error by an opposing party’s solicitor, what obligations does one have to notify the client of its contents? If there is no duty to disclose the contents to the client, is there a duty to let them know that the email has been received but deleted?
SRA Accounts Rules—law firms
SRA Accounts Rules 2019This Practice Note sets out the requirements of the SRA Accounts rules 2019 (the 2019 Rules), in force from 25 November 2019,...
Who owns the matter file—law firms?
Risk management—key risks—law firms
Risk management—key risks—law firmsEffective risk management is fundamental to the commercial success of law firms. To manage risk effectively you...
How to close 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...
Associated legal terms
Fixed odds
(1) A bet is at fixed odds for the purposes of this Part only if, when making the bet, each of the persons making it knows or can know the amount the person will win, except in so far as that amount is to depend on— (a) the result of the event or events betted on, (b) any such event taking place or producing a result, (c) the numbers taking part in any such event, (d) the starting prices or totalisator odds for any such event, or (e) the time when the person's bet is received by any person with or through whom it is made. (2) A bet made with or through a person carrying on a business of receiving or negotiating bets and made in the course of that business is not a bet at fixed odds for the purposes of this Part if the winnings of the person by whom it is made consist or may consist wholly or in part of something other than money.
Indicative behaviours
These are in the SRA Code of Conduct and are examples of the type of behaviour which will either demonstrate compliance with, or breach of, the outcomes.
SRA Practicing Regulations 2011
These Rules are in the SRA Handbook and regulate applications for practising certificates by solicitors and registration by European lawyers and foreign lawyers.
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