Recent regulatory news SRA takes privilege dispute to the Supreme Court The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is continuing its challenge following the High Court’s decision concerning its powers to require the production of material protected by legal professional privilege. We discussed that original outcome in our article, ‘High Court Rules…
Independence Is Built into the Regulatory Framework The CLC’s regulatory framework assumes that certain compliance functions will be carried out independently of the person responsible for the client work. In a larger practice with several qualified fee earners, a HoLP, a HoFA, and a management structure, that independence occurs naturally.…
Money Mules: The FCA Says Closing Suspicious Accounts Isn’t Enough The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has recently published the findings of its latest multi-firm review on money mules, highlighting some initially impressive figures. Regulated firms closed 238,396 suspected mule accounts in 2025, up from 184,935 in 2023 and 233,269 in…
238,000 Suspected Mule Accounts Closed, and It Is Still Not Working In a recent update, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published findings of its latest multi-firm review on money mules. The initial figures seem impressive: regulated firms closed 238,000 suspected mule accounts in 2025, up from 184,935 in 2023 and…
Understanding Your Obligations – It Is Not Just About Regulatory Breaches Two recent actions by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), taken weeks apart, make the same point from very different angles. In the first case, a former law firm owner has been banned from financial services after misappropriating more than…
Welcome to the Latest Roundup September proved to be one of the busiest months for regulatory news in recent memory. The SRA has paused the COLP and COFA separation, published a formal warning notice on AI misuse, and updated its Sectoral Risk Assessment. The Budget is approaching with two proposals…
SRA Confirms Pause on COLP and COFA Separation Rules On 30 September, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirmed it is pausing implementation of the COLP and COFA separation rules, which were due to take effect from January 2027. The plans were attracting growing criticism for the regulator’s proposal to prevent…
Two Proposals Firms Need to Watch On 28 October 2026, Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey will deliver the Autumn budget, and with that date fast approaching, two proposals affecting law firms’ finances are in circulation, and both could have a material impact on how firms manage their income. The…
The Requirement Is Confirmed, the Date Is Not If your firm files information at Companies House on behalf of clients, you will need to be registered as an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP). However, while that requirement has been confirmed, the exact date it becomes mandatory has not, and Companies…
What Regulated Firms Must Have in Place The FCA’s new rules and guidance on non-financial misconduct came into effect on 1 September 2026. If your firm operates under the Senior Managers and Certification Regime, these changes apply to you now. Non-financial misconduct (NFM) covers behaviour that is not of a…