VAT on CON29 searches to be applied from 4th July
HMRC have agreed to delay adding VAT to Local Authority CON 29 searches until 4th July. Today’s Conveyancer understands the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) have made a submission to HMRC with regards to keeping the searches VAT free with the decision expected by the 4th July implementation date. The new implementation […]
Conveyancing Association announce paralegal training
The Conveyancing Association (CA) have announced a course for paralegals available from today. The online course is being delivered online through CA’s “The Conveyancing Academy”. The association say its course has been designed to provide paralegals with “with a basic knowledge of property law and the procedures required to facilitate straightforward conveyancing transactions” and can […]
Conveyancing Foundation aims to raise £150,000 in 2016
The Conveyancing Foundation aims to raise £150,000 for charities in 2016 – triple what it raised last year. In 2015 the Foundation raised £50,000 for the south Wales children’s hospice Tŷ Hafan through the Matterhorn Challenge. This year the foundation has already completed a 200 mile “Ride to the Rugby” bike ride from Cardiff to […]
SRA claims majority of public support independent regulation
82% of adults in England Wales say solicitors should be regulated independently, according to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The survey of 1,810 conducted by ComRes found 86% of adults in England and Wales believe solicitors should be regulated with 68% also saying they would be more likely to trust a profession regulated independently. When […]
Consumer Panel calls for transparency on pricing
The Legal Services Consumer Panel have issued a report calling on regulators to “empower consumers with information” by requiring firms to publish more information on quality and pricing. In a report to the Legal Services Board (LSB) entitled “Opening up data in legal services” the panel have called on regulators to do more to empower […]
Land Registry's property fraud line receiving nearly 1,000 inquiries per year
The property fraud line set up three years ago by Land Registry have received “nearly 3,000 calls and emails” in order to help protect homes from criminals. The organisation say the service, launched on 5th February 2013 connects concerned members of the public to “specially trained staff for practical guidance on what to do next.” […]
SRA's Question of Trust campaign closes with "thousands of responses"
The Solicitor’s Regulation Authority (SRA) has closed what it says is one of its biggest consultations ever, having heard “thousands of responses” from members of the public and solicitors alike. The SRA say they received 2,350 online survey responses to their Question of Trust campaign with 3,000 attendees to events around England and Wales. The […]
Law Society of Scotland to launch e-conveyancing platform
Undeterred by the public failure of their southern colleagues with Veyo, the Law Society of Scotland have announced a partnership to develop an e-conveyancing platform. The platform has been in development since April last year and is due to go live this spring. The online system names Atlis has been developed with the Edinburgh Solicitors […]
Home Owners Alliance call for changes to "dangerously flawed" Stamp Duty reforms
The HomeOwners Alliance have called for Stamp Duty reforms to be changed, saying they are “dangerously flawed” and could well backfire. While the consumer group supports the policy in principle the group have pointed out that the complexity of the new regime could result in lost sales as the surcharge is applied for a number […]
CML lenders handbook updated
The Council of Mortgage Lenders have updated their handbook from 1st February. The update is to clause 10 of the Lenders’ Handbook is “designed to reflect the introduction of a requirement, as the result of the Mortgage Credit Directive, for mortgage customers to have a ‘reflection period’, of at least seven days before accepting a […]
tmgroup responds to The Law Society’s The Future of Legal Services report
The Law Society has predicted that law firms will be employing fewer solicitors by 2020, with the evolution & increased implementation of technology in the legal sector the driving force behind this change. This is just one of a series of predictions made by the Law Society in their new report on the future of […]
Payment Systems Regulator brings in new Head of Policy
The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has appointed economist Paul Smith as Head of Policy. Paul Smith has previously worked at Ofgas (Now Ofgem) beofre moving to Postcomm (Now Ofcom). He was recently Chief Executive of the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) having been promoted from the position of Senior Director, Strategy and Economic Analysis. He also […]
Conveyancing Association announces eight new affiliate members
The Conveyancing Association (CA) has announced eight new associate members. The CA say the firms are “specifically appointed by the Association as key firms which can work closely with the CA management and can offer a range of relevant services to the CA membership.” The new associate members are: Search providers Groundsure, PSG, Future Climate […]
