Section five is the largest chapter within the Standards, and quite rightly so when you consider it covers risk management, which in effect impacts on all other parts of the Standards through the requirement for firms to have a compliance plan and risk register.
- Topic:
- Legal
Business continuity and resilience are essential considerations for all businesses, but particularly for UK conveyancers, who must ensure that they are able to continue operating in the face of potential risks and disruptions. In order to meet the requirements of the CQS Core Practice Management Standards, as well as follow the Law Society's guidance on key areas of risk, conveyancers must have a robust business continuity plan in place.
In this sector of the paper, we will explore the importance of business continuity planning and resilience for UK conveyancers, and provide practical guidance on how to develop and implement a plan that meets the requirements of the CQS and the Law Society.
- Topic:
- Legal
When working in such a high pressured and fast paced area as conveyancing, it can be easy to relegate learning and development to the bottom of the priority list. Whilst this may allow more time to focus on the job at hand, in the longer term it may prove to be a short sighted tactic with shortfalls in staff knowledge and competence leaving the firm open to a whole host of unwelcome outcomes, such as complaints, claims, increased PII premiums, regulatory focus, a failure to meet the requirements of the CQS Scheme and loss of membership on lender panels. It is also likely to impact staff retention rates as a failure to invest in an individual’s development often leads to dissatisfaction and disillusionment within their job role.
- Topic:
- Legal
There have been many goings-on in the world of menopause at work since our last blog on this topic.
We recently had the pleasure of attending the Henpicked: Menopause in the Workplace roadshow, ‘Developing a Menopause Friendly Strategy.’ The event was brimming with engaging and empowering sessions and plenty of practical tips on how employers can become more menopause friendly. It struck us that much of the advice given can be applied in law firms.
With this in mind, below we share an overview of the sessions and our key takeaways…
- Topic:
- Legal
The Access Legal team has many man-years of experience working with law firms. Some of our people have been in the sector for 3+ decades. Over the years, we have worked with all kinds of firms offering a wide range of legal services to private clients as well as commercial.
We have learned enough to know that no two firms’ needs are ever exactly the same, and that the complexities of different areas of law apply whether the firm is large or small. There is no carte blanche rule that says large firms handle high-volume caseloads that are all complex, and small firms handle fewer cases that are less complex. It simply doesn’t work like that. The importance of a robust and efficient case management is key for firms of all sizes. However, there are a few considerations for the larger firm should be looking for when searching for new legal case management software.
- Topic:
- Legal
A Book Review – ‘Tomorrow’s Lawyer’ by Professor Richard Susskind OBE
Third Edition, Published on 7-2-23
Reflecting on the new edition of Richard Susskind’s book “Tomorrow’s Lawyer” many of my colleagues at Access Legal and our law firm customers are debating and asking what the law firm of the future will look like, and particularly what role technology will play.
- Topic:
- Legal
At Access Legal, talking to law firms, we hear four phrases on a daily basis:
- Matter management
- Case management
- Practice management
- Document management
They are of course four distinct but highly-related concepts that are often used interchangeably, but there are subtle differences between the four. This blog sets out to define all four in the context of law firm management and the tools that solicitors’ practices use.
- Topic:
- Legal
As a leading team of law firm software specialists, we are often asked by our customers and prospects what the top technology trends are for the profession and what is coming next. In answer to this we have collated our list of top trending tech that we see making the greatest strides within the legal sector currently, as well as a few technologies we know are on the horizon for law firms.
- Topic:
- Legal
In our recent webinar, I discussed a number of key issues with Professor Stephen Mayson, a well known independent legal thought leader and the independent reviewer of legal services regulation.
- Topic:
- Legal
Learning and Development is a vital component of any successful law firm. Sections 4.2 and 4.3 of the SRA Code of Conduct for Firm provides that firms must ensure employees and managers are competent to carry out their role compliantly, ethically and legally.
But even without the regulatory requirement to maintain competence, it makes good business sense. Without an effective L&D programme in place, firms are at risk of non-compliance, delays in their matters and loss of talent to competitors. This puts the firm at risk of hefty fines, reputational damage and increased recruitment costs, each of which could lead to thousands of pounds in costs.
- Topic:
- Legal
