Nobody Wants to Be a COLP – The Law Firm Role Nobody Competes For

Despite the COLP/COFA regime running for over a decade, the SRA had never conducted a thematic review until 2025.
The findings raise serious questions about risk, culture, sustainability, and client protection.

Among the most striking numbers:

• 0 candidates competing for COLP roles inside firms
• 800 COLP changes every year in active firms
• 75% of COLPs are firm owners
• 16% of COLPs believe they’re not the right person for the job
• Breaches going on for 6–15 years in some firms
• New COLPs often take the role blind, with no handover

This paints a worrying picture: compliance roles are being treated as a regulatory burden, not a strategic function.

Many lawyers and sometimes even the COLPs themselves, don't fully understand the breadth of the role. According to the SRA, a COLP must:

1. Ensure firm‑wide compliance with SRA authorisation requirements

If the firm breaches its terms of authorisation, the SRA can revoke it. This places huge responsibility on one person.

2. Oversee compliance across ALL roles: managers, employees, and interest holders

This includes junior staff and senior equity partners, creating built‑in cultural challenges.

3. Ensure breaches aren’t caused or contributed to by people inside the firm

A COLP has to understand and monitor processes across every practice area.

4. Report serious breaches to the SRA promptly

And critically, they must also report matters they reasonably believe may amount to a breach.
Even if they aren't sure.

This nuance is often misunderstood. Many COLPs don’t realise they must report potential breaches, not just confirmed ones.

The SRA review revealed an uncomfortable truth:
Firms appoint COLPs out of necessity, not strategy.

Why is nobody applying?

• High liability and regulatory exposure
• Conflicts of interest (especially for owner‑COLPs)
• No financial recognition for additional responsibilities
• Career risk for employed staff who challenge partners
• Perception of the role as “toxic”, a word used by several COLPs in the report

Many COLPs are press‑ganged into the role, simply because the firm needs someone - anyone - with a practising certificate to fill the slot.

When COLPs Leave: The Succession Crisis

Another major issue is succession planning:

• 16% of COLPs plan to retire imminently.
• Very few firms have successors lined up.
• Some exiting COLPs don’t provide any handover at all.

That means new COLPs inherit the role blind, often unaware of historic breaches, gaps in reporting, or missing systems. Yet from day one, they are legally accountable.

This lack of continuity creates significant regulatory risk.

Why COLPs Don’t Feel Valued

The SRA found:

• Only 44% of COLPs feel valued by their firms
• Only one COLP out of 36 received a pay rise
• Many see the role as a career dead end
• The title “Compliance Officer” lacks the authority of “Head of Legal Practice,” despite the Legal Services Act using the latter term

The cultural problem is clear:
compliance is seen as a barrier, not an enabler.

This mindset places both clients and firms at risk.

The Result? Regulatory Theatre

When compliance is:

• under‑resourced
• misunderstood
• undervalued
• and avoided…

…you don’t get a compliance system.
You get regulatory theatre. Compliance that looks good on paper but fails in practice.

Examples include:

• missing documentation
• incomplete breach logs
• inconsistent supervision
• unreported incidents
• outdated policies
• no training or meaningful oversight

This is a ticking time bomb for firms.

Running a modern law firm without strong compliance leadership is like driving without headlights. You may get away with it for a while, until you don’t.

Clients expect professionalism.
Regulators expect accountability.
Firms need resilience.

The SRA’s 2025 review shows that many firms are falling dangerously short.

The next article and video explore:

Episode 2: “The Knowledge Crisis - Only One COLP Knew Their Job”

We’ll look at:

• The training gap
• Misunderstood responsibilities
• Systemic failures in COLP preparation
• The risks of under‑informed compliance leadership

This is one of the most shocking findings in the entire SRA review.

“Nobody wants to be a COLP” isn’t a throwaway line, it’s a red flag for the entire sector. The SRA review exposes deep structural issues in how firms view, resource, and support compliance.

If the role remains undervalued, under‑resourced, and avoided, firms risk:

• regulatory sanctions
• loss of authorisation
• financial penalties
• reputational damage
• client harm

Change starts with recognising the importance of the role and supporting the people who take it on.