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One Region I One Profession I One Voice

A New yeAr, A New presideNt

May2013Birmingham

the Birmingham Law society’s Membership Magazine

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www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk | 3

Contents

president’s report, Martin Allsopp

Let there be light

1004

the latest news from the conveyancing world

CONVeyANCiNG | 14

University of Law in Birmingham Launches UK’s First two-year international Legal practice degree

GeNerAL News | 29

BLs AGM

06

May - July 2013

LeArNiNG ANd deVeLOpMeNt | 23

Changes to terms of Business & Update on COLps & COFAs

reGULAtiON repOrt | 22

president

4 | www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk

i cannot tell you how proud and humbled i am

to have been asked to be your president for the

coming year. whilst it is shakespeare’s birthday

and also, i understand, the day that he died, more

importantly it is st George’s day and i couldn’t

be more honoured as an englishman to be

presented with the president’s Chain on the day

that we honour our patron saint. i was only this

morning doing the daily grind along the motorway

from walsall, where i live, to solihull, where i

practise, when i looked across at the towering

buildings of our wonderful City and realised that

a Lawyer must have been involved somewhere

in negotiating a deal for the construction of every

single one of those impressive towers and you

have asked little old me to assume presidency

of the largest local Law society in the United

Kingdom. it is indeed a daunting task for a

partner of a High street firm and for those of you

that think it is simply an honour; i exhibit my to-do

list as evidence to the contrary.

the presidency is not a task that can be

handled individually. it requires a full team

effort. All of you here this evening will know

that we have Officers, Council and a Board,

consisting of some of the most intellectual

brainpower in the United Kingdom. the family

is completed by the staff at BLs and by you

yourselves ladies and gentlemen. we are all

in this together and i am simply your elected

representative for the next 12 months. we are

all colleagues and very many of you here i am

privileged to count as my friends. there are

too many of you for me to name individually for

your help and support that i have already been

offered and for that which i hope will continue

to be forthcoming over the next 12 months.

i am a High street solicitor and therefore ask

myself 4 rhetorical questions to save you asking

me the same questions later:

1. Am I apprehensive about taking on such a

substantial role?

yes. i was also apprehensive 50 years ago

when i took what was then known as my 11+.

i was apprehensive when taking my O Levels,

subsequently my A Level examinations and Law

society Qualifying examinations and meeting

my first client. there is nothing wrong, in my

opinion, in being apprehensive.

2. How would the new President cope with the

intervention of a major city firm?

the answer to that is exactly the same that

the last president has given to you. if it is an

intervention based on dishonesty, then there is

little we can do to help the partners involved in

that dishonesty. we would, however, wherever

possible seek to help innocent staff and clients.

if it was an intervention based on a viability

issue then i can assure you that i have already

written to richard Collins at the srA seeking

an urgent meeting to discuss how relations

with the srA might be improved. technically,

the intervention of Blakemores may well have

been correct but what about the staff that were

dismissed in tears and the bewilderment caused

to clients who were sent to seek advice from

a firm situate in wigan. i know speaking to our

new west Midlands representative, ravinder

Hothi, following the assignation of Clive Black

to London, that the Law society are tackling the

srA on this point nationally but what we need

here in Birmingham is to understand why when

the srA was set up to protect clients there

should be so much chaos. i shall report back to

everyone when i hear from the srA.

3. As a Partner of a small firm, how will I

satisfy my own clients’ needs?

simple. Most of my clients are very loyal and

have been with me for many years and are very

proud that i am taking up this position. they

understand that i will not be able to telephone

or ring them back necessarily within an hour, 2

hours or even on the same day. New clients are

being advised similarly and i have an excellent

partner, Commercial property Lawyer, a probate

Clerk and loyal support staff – not to mention a

practice Manager to whom i shall refer shortly,

so it is anticipated that we shall be able to handle

all practice issues that might arise over the next

12 months! My appointment as the president

and Head of your family seriously outweighs the

obligations of my day to day practice.

4. The final rhetorical question is how will I

deal without a PR & Media Department?

the answer to that is that we have a pr &

Media Committee at BLs and as far as my own

pr & Media department is concerned, i married

her. i have a spread sheet prepared by tracey,

my practice Manager, who is my wife and

whom many of you will know, which permits me

7 hours 45 minutes to sleep on a nightly basis

for the next 12 months.

But enough with the politics, you want to know

what the next year holds for you. Never will you

have received more for your subscriptions than

we have planned. to mention a few individuals,

professor Griffin, who is here sitting close by, is

shaking up education and training, with the help

of Liz at the BLs office. they will be producing

educational Courses that will both appeal to

you and be cost effective. A director of our

Board, sarah Kenyon, whom i often refer to as

our Liaison Officer, although she has a much

more important title than that, she is known as

our Liaison Membership director, will shortly be

producing a survey that will be sent through to

you all asking for your thoughts about BLs and

how you suggest we might improve our service

to you. the survey will contain reference to a

number of topics, details of which have to be

approved firstly by the Board, headed by the

excellent Chris Owen, then possibly by Council

and then sent through to you, in an approved

format, for you to consider. Next, with the help

of Andrew Beedham again on the Board, we

are discussing the setting up of a helpline. A

few days ago i was reading the past president’s

speech and noted the threat, 12 months ago, to

the profession of alternative business structures.

in practise i think the threat to the profession

at the moment is more regulatory compliance

and the introduction of COLps and COFAs and

their respective duties. Never will BLs condone

dishonesty. However, if you fear you might have

breached a regulation or are concerned or need

help about interpreting a regulation or consider

that there may be financial issues about which

you are not certain that you have a duty to report

etc. then, as i have said, we propose to set up a

helpline. i do not know, at the moment as i speak

to you, whether this will be a telephone line or an

email facility, we are in discussions about that,

but we will be setting up a helpline to assist you

all over the next 12 months or so. where there is

despair, let us bring hope! i think someone else

said that a few years ago. so on the technical

side, we are going to help you with educational

Courses, regulatory Breaches and we will even

send you a survey to check that you think we’ve

got it right.

presideNt’s AGM speeCHBy Martin Allsopp | president, Birmingham Law society

so what else will be covered by your

subscription? well let me briefly touch on

events. there will be more events this year

than ever before. BLs has been going since

1818, and no i wasn’t there at its inaugural

meeting, and i do not propose to tamper with

something that doesn’t need fixing. there will

be one or two little tweaks along the way, such

as Networking events; we shall continue with

Networking events but not necessarily solely

for the profession. i enjoy speaking to other

Lawyers immensely but when the subject of

Law comes up, after 15 minutes or so i become

bored with Law and want to talk about other

matters. For this reason i am going to change

our format a little so that Networking events

consist of not only inviting Lawyers but also

other professionals. As a property Lawyer

i intend that we should have an event with

Banks and possibly with surveyors and others.

For any of you who heard Michael Heseltine’s

speech over the weekend, you will have noted

that he felt, as i did, that relations with Banks

fell apart when we all lost our respective

relationship Managers. i was speaking to a

Bank director only the other day and suggested

that we might hold an event such as this during

my year and asked to whom i should write in

the City to coordinate the Banking invitations.

there isn’t anyone. i was advised that the local

institute was effectively abandoned years ago

and most Banks entertain their own clients

and professional connections rather than

mingle with other Banks, which is a bit of a

shame and although it isn’t for us to seek Bank

reconciliation (excuse the pun), i do consider

that an event with a representative from the

various Banks across the City wouldn’t do us

any harm at all as a Law society.

i intend to visit a number of town centres during

my 12 months on various saturday mornings

to encourage the local population to use their

local solicitors. the actual format is yet to be

agreed and as you will appreciate we shall need

licences from the Local Authorities for various

reasons. do keep an eye on the website.

i am equally aware of my responsibilities to

the major firms of this City. i have specifically

arranged to host the senior partner Lunch

much earlier in my presidential year than would

normally have been the case, where i shall sit

down with the partners and take heed of the

needs and concerns of the major firms going

forward.

i intend to bring levity and laughter to other

events. there will be a fun Golf day to be

held at Nailcote Hall in July but spaces will be

limited so when the event is advertised, please

do book early to avoid disappointment. with

the help again of sarah Kenyon we are jointly

with the BsG (the Birmingham solicitors Group)

and Btss (the Birmingham trainee solicitors

society) to host a summer event with the BsG

and Btss. it will probably involve the use of the

word “summer” but not ball, dance or disco, so

as to deal with the perceived ageism criteria.

we have other events planned, far too many to

mention. those of you who know me won’t be

surprised to learn that i have already engaged 2

speakers to attend at the president’s dinner to

be held this year at warwickshire Cricket Club

on 21st November. One is already contracted

and the other a well-known member of the

local Judiciary who i have contacted but not

yet contracted but who i am leaning on heavily

to attend. this event, i promise you, will be

entertaining and i want you all to fill the venue

and with that in mind i am asking the Board to

consider a price reduction for the cost of the

president’s dinner on the basis that you will

spread the word that this will be no ordinary

president’s dinner! i am conscious that the

event will be a legal event but assume that

many of you, including sponsors, want to bring

non-legal people to the event and they will

need to be entertained and sent home smiling –

watch this space!

BLs is blessed with wonderful, loyal

sponsors and i do thank you sponsors for

your continued support. we shall continue to

need sponsorship for our various networking

events that are planned and the Board and

the events Committee are currently working

on sponsorship deals and if anyone here has

any ideas as how to the networking events

might be sponsored or has a spare £500.00 in

their pocket and would like to be mentioned

in sponsoring an event, then please do talk to

the BLs office or send me personally a brown

envelope containing the cash and of course

a passport and utility bill – i am well aware of

compliance issues!

i am also aware of my legal limitations. i have

never dealt personally with legal aid issues

nor have i dealt with employment issues but

you can guess what the current hot topics are,

about which the press require information. i

have already spoken to steven Jonas about

criminal legal aid, Karen Bailey has drafted

a wonderful article on Legal Aid generally

and which we intend to use shortly and i

am very privileged to have as my right hand

lady an expert in employment Law, eileen

schofield, whom i shall shortly install as our

Vice president. in case you think my remarks

perhaps may be a little glib, i can tell you that

for press purposes these are checked over by

our excellent pr & Media department and by

dawn roberts of Headline Communications. i

am aware that we live in times of austerity and

as previous presidents have stipulated applaud

the bedrock of our society, which is to uphold

the rule of Law and to ensure that access to

justice is available to all.

Finally, ladies and gentlemen, i turn to the

question of my nominated Charity, which is st

Basils. st Basils deal with the homeless, hence

the property connection but is there not simply

to deal with the homeless. i recently visited a

bubbly lady at st Basils called Lucinda Hackett,

who explained to me that the Charity deals

principally with displaced teenagers as well as

adults, whose age ranges normally 16-25. the

Charity deals with displaced persons i suppose,

to put it in its proper context, which can involve

their finding alternative accommodation in

the severest case or hopefully mediating with

families where the dispute has arisen causing

the homelessness issue to arise. it involves

talking to the displaced persons, understanding

their problems, and advising them as to the

suitability of a training programme to help them

to rehabilitate. i am particularly concerned

that we should have a Charity looking after the

youth of this City, as i understand that there

resides in our City more 16-25 years olds than

any other City in western europe. i found this

to be a staggering statistic only to find out

that st Basils will shortly be opening a centre

in solihull, which is my workplace – where

apparently, notwithstanding its perceived

wealth, solihull has 1 for every 1,000 persons

who are displaced, another staggering statistic.

As with other Charities, whilst st Basils does

receive grants and rental income from some

of the properties it owns, it will struggle to

balance its books for the next year as there

is likely to be substantial charitable reduction

from the grant paid to st Basils by Birmingham

City Council. i have said that we will offer

whatever support we can to st Basils during

my presidential year. there may be a cardboard

box event – watch this space!

that’s all for now – thank you for listening to

me. n

president

Good evening everyone and welcome to our 194th AGM.

it has been a whirlwind year, full of challenges

and change, one which i have enjoyed

immensely.

i have, throughout the year, kept you informed

about my activities and those matters which

directly affect our membership in my Bulletin

reports. i have also written and spoken about

the need for the profession to stand together to

be inclusive and to react to change.

Many people have found it difficult to accept

the economic reality of being a lawyer today.

we, as a society, and i believe with national and

regional support and by working with the Law

society, must provide a vehicle whereby the

public are educated as to the integrity of lawyers

and we, as lawyers, must open our eyes to the

needs of those that use our services.

whether we like it or not, we will have to do this

in a different way. the increasing pressure to cut

the Legal Aid budget culminated in November

2010 when the Government issued proposals to

reform the Legal Aid system in order to cut the

Legal Aid bill by £350 million a year by 2015.

Make no mistake about it, reform was needed

and the writing was on the wall for some time.

On 1 May 2012 the Legal Aid sentencing and

punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (laspo)

received royal Asset and became law. the

Act made vast changes for the provision and

scope of Legal Aid. this has been fiercely

debated and criticised but it is here and its

implementation will fundamentally change the

Legal Aid landscape.

On Monday 1 April 2013 the Legal services

Commission was replaced by the Legal Aid

Agency. this is an executive agency of the Ministry

of Justice and for those of you who discussed

whether or not Chris Grayling was going to be a

friend to the profession on the basis that he was

not a lawyer, i said then and i say now, that is the

least of our worries. these changes exclude all but

the poorest from eligibility.

therefore the combination of lack of funding

together with the economic climate in which

we find ourselves due to financial constraints,

we, as a society, must find a way to support our

members in a proactive way.

with the Jackson reforms and the Ministry of

Justice currently seeking significant reductions

in criminal legal aid, this will significantly reduce

income to the profession. taking this together

with the decline in conveyancing i afraid that

the picture is not rosy.

Many other professions have had to face this

dilemma and wishing and hoping that we will

receive sympathy either from MoJ or the public

will not ensure our survival.

we need to offer to work in a more efficient and

cost effective way. this time last year, we all

thought that we would be gobbled up by ABss,

whilst some firms have taken this approach,

many more may have to consider if they are to

stay in business if this is a way forward.

what is certain is that there must be a business

mode which will ensure survival. does this mean

that we must turn our back on those needing to

access legal advice? Many firms already offer

advice through the pro bono scheme. this, of

course, cannot fill the huge gap that will be left

in our society following these changes. it will

no doubt mean that those who need justice will

not get it, but we cannot have it all ways. the

Courts are already full of litigants in person and

whilst lack of investment in the Court system

continues, we will also need to find a way in

which we can work with the judiciary to try and

deliver advice in a different way, either through

packages online or fixed fee. i am sure that our

insurers will be shuddering at the very thought

and everyone is still reeling from the shock of

those firms which have been intervened this

year, in particular Blakemores.

we have to sympathise with those brave

enough to try a different way to stay in business

and to provide legal advice but there is a

balance that needs to be struck between the

economic reality and the dream.

i touched briefly at the Legal Awards about

the need for the srA to work more closely

with Birmingham Law society and indeed

other societies to try and find a way that is

both the best for clients and cost efficient to

the profession. the cost of interventions is

increasing dramatically.

it surely must be a win/win for the srA to work

closely with Birmingham Law society, the Law

society and other societies to move forward

together to protect both the consumer and the

profession. these are the challenges that we

are facing.

i have regularly spoken about the need for

inclusivity and i am proud to say that i think

that we have achieved that in Birmingham

Law society. Barristers and solicitors, Legal

executives and paralegals and all of those

involved in the legal profession must stand

shoulder to shoulder to continue to ensure that

here in Birmingham we are a centre for legal

excellence.

we must look after each other. it is also

extremely important that we keep in touch with

the wider business community as i absolutely

believe that it is in all of our interests for work to

remain in Birmingham and in this region.

Many lawyers have expressed concern with

regard to the new proposals over Barristers

terms.

Of course, we must work these out together,

but it seems to me that it is not unreasonable

that Barristers wish to be paid and they face

the same threats that solicitors face and are

reacting in a positive way to ensure that they

can continue to deliver a service. we tend, as a

profession, to withdraw and become defensive.

perhaps that is the nature of who we are, but i

urge you to push ahead and work together.

you will find a précis of our business plan

with your papers today, which endeavours

to encompass all of those matters that are

needed to run a business such as Birmingham

Law society. it covers the governance of the

society, the business of the society to include

staff finance, marketing and sponsorship and

education and training and pr & Media.

presideNt’s AGM speeCHBy Mary Kaye | Outgoing president, Birmingham Law society

BLs AGM

Our financial position remains stable,

but sponsorship and income is always a

challenge. we, as any other business, must

be prepared to modernise, adapt and change.

the business plan goes someway to focusing

our business over the next three years.

sponsorship is vital and we are extremely

grateful to those sponsors who have been

loyal supporters for many years. this however

is a two way street and we must ensure that

our sponsors see the value in supporting

Birmingham Law society.

the property at temple row remains at the

forefront of our agenda and although i did not

get my wish to see it resolved this year, i am

pleased that we now have a strategy in place.

we have had some very successful events this

year, both in terms of those people we have

attracted to Birmingham, such as the Lord

Chief Justice and Baroness Helena Kennedy

QC. your continued support for these events is

crucial to ensure that the profile of Birmingham

Lawyers continues to receive national and

international recognition.

we support two charities this year, Birmingham

Law Centre and siFA Fireside. Our support of

Birmingham Law Centre was crucial not just

in terms of assisting with funds but raising the

profile of the plight of Birmingham Law Centre.

it shows that in Birmingham Law society we

can make a difference and did on this occasion.

the combination of Council, Board and Officers

is a dynamic combination which has changed

the governance of Birmingham Law society

for the better. we must not forget however

that Birmingham Law society is you, each and

everyone one of you contribute to its viability by

subscriptions, your involvement in Council, in

Committees and many of you who contribute in

other ways. For this i thank you all.

to Becky, Johanna, denise and Liz, you are the

ones that keep the wheels turning on a daily

basis.

Becky is the central coordinator, without whom

i am not entirely sure how the society would

function. i owe my you tube career to dean

parnell!

i could not have managed without the team this

year, or my own secretary, Carla, who has been

ready and willing to deal with all eventualities

with a sense of calm, not always exhibited by

me.

Once again, to my firm sGH Martineau, thank

you for the time given to me, much more than

i had envisaged at the beginning of the year,

to be the president of the largest and most

successful Law society in the country.

i hand over to the new president, Martin

Allsopp full of confidence that Martin will lead

and support you in the challenges ahead, with

eileen schofield at his side.

i am delighted i am that Mushtaq Khan is to join

the officers as deputy Vice president.

in 2018 the society will be 200 years old. it

will take a lot more than the MoJ or any other

government to bring the society down.

Onward, upward and forward we go together. n

BLs AGM

BLs AGM

Dean Parnell, BLS Past presidentSarah Dwight, Sarah Dwight Ass.Eileen Schofield, BLS Deputy Vice President Mushtaq Khan

Jeremy MacleodMary Kaye, BLS Past PresidentClive Reed, SGH MartineauZahra Pabani, SGH MartineauGerard Dufficy

Charlotte Fisher, SGH MartineauFiona Farrell, SGH MartineauKerri Gregory, SGH Martineau

Jon Lloyd, Anthoiny CollinsSarah Kenyon, Mills & ReeveBernard Shepherd, BLS Past President

Malcolm Peebles, Gateley WareingMartin Allsopp, BLS PresidentPeter Wiseman, Honorary Council Member Bham Law Society

Officers 2013/2014Martin Allsopp presidentsenior partner, Allsopp and Co

eileen schofield Vice presidentsole practitioner, schofield & Associates

Mushtaq Khan deputy Vice presidentpartner, Freeth Cartright

professor Bernardette Griffin Joint Honorary secretaryregional director, the University of Law

Ann HoughtonJoint Honorary secretaryAssistant solicitor,irwin Mitchell solicitors

Newly Elected Council Members

Richard AtkinsSt Philips Chambers

Professor Rosemary EvansUniversity of Birmingham

Martyn MorganQualitySolicitors Talbots

James TurnerTuckers Solicitors

Abdul Zaheed DBS Law Limited

Annual Award of PrizesThe Society has made the following awards:

Gold Prize Winner (book tokens to the

value of £250) to Fiona Claire Easton-

Lawrence who holds a training contract

with Mills & Reeve LLP, and whose

training supervisor is Caroline Foster.

Fiona achieved a distinction with The

University of Law.

Silver Prize Winner (book tokens to the

value of £150) to Michael James Norris

who holds a training contract with

Pinsent Masons, and whose training

supervisors are Theresa Adamson and

Sarah Campey. Michael achieved a

distinction with The University of Law.

Bronze Prize Winner (book tokens to

the value of £100) to Matthew Lee Dyer

who holds a training contract with DWF

LLP, and whose training supervisor is

Nichola Jenkins. Matthew achieved a

distinction with The University of Law.

The Herbert Willison Prize comprising

book tokens to the value of £50 has

been awarded to Saran Kaur Dulay from

The University of Law. Saran gained

a mark of 71% in her Criminal Law

examination, and has secured a training

contract with SGH Martineau.

The Peter Nicholls Prize comprising

book tokens to the value of £50 has

been awarded to Harriet Caroline Eales

of The University of Law. Harriet gained

a mark of 76% in her Equity and the

Law of Trusts examination and has

secured a training contract with Gateley.

50 years of service Awarded to Geoffrey Morris, McFaddens LLp

BLs AGM

Feature

it is a difficult balance for property owners

and developers when considering their rights

to light. On one side, there is a need to allow

development to take place, but on the other

side, there are the rights of existing home

owners who have always had the right to enjoy

natural light to their properties. the right to light

has an impact on any potential construction

work on neighbouring land, which could be

merely a neighbours’ extension but could be

a new development, whether houses, flats or

even offices.

the accepted view is that, in a home, just over

half the room should be lit by natural light,

and, in a commercial building, about half of the

room. the minimum standard is the equivalent

to the light from one candle, one foot away.

Accepted levelUntil recently, a person’s right to light was

protected in england and wales under common

law, adverse possession or by the prescription

Act 1832. if the amount of light coming into

a room is limited by a new building and that

amount of light is below the accepted level,

then this constitutes an obstruction and legal

action can be brought against the neighbour.

Any kind of ‘development’ can potentially

block or limit the amount of light coming into

a room. this includes a neighbour’s new shed,

garden walls, or an extension. presently, if the

developer hasn’t taken the right to light into

consideration, then there is a potential claim

for compensation or for negotiating changes

to the development – most claims involve

both. in serious cases, the court may issue an

injunction to prevent the development going

ahead, but this is unlikely to be the outcome if

the court can award compensation, especially if

it is only a minor matter. And in extreme cases

a court may award an injunction to have the

offending part of the building pulled down.

At the moment rights to light are civil matters

between neighbours and are independent of

the planning system.

even if planning permission has been

granted, care should be taken not to cause

an infringement to the rights to light enjoyed

by nearby buildings. in its recent consultation,

the Law Commission has proposed removing

the ‘right to light’ on the grounds that it has

become a “tool to extract money from a

neighbour who proposes to develop his or

her land” and warns that such rights have a

”disproportionately negative impact upon the

potential for the development of land”.

it believes that the right to light is now a

“serious concern” and acts as a major block on

development, especially in city centres.

powerless homeownersthe commission has made various proposals,

including the abolition of the acquisition of

rights of light by prescription (see box). But if

the right cannot be acquired by prescription,

what of all the new houses and developments

built within the last 20 years which will not

yet have acquired any rights to light by

prescription? it is important to remember

that the right to light can have an impact on

property values. removing the protection

could leave almost three million households

powerless to prevent large developments near

their homes, reducing their value and appeal.

Clive Betts, chairman of the Commons’

Communities and Local Government

committee, said there was “no merit” in

revising the laws and said that light “ makes an

enormous difference to people’s homes”. “Light

is actually very important,” he said. “if you

allow people to build large extensions and you

took away their right to light, essentially people

could have the enjoyment of their homes

substantially worsened.”

the challenge is to balance out the creation

of new housing, new offices and shops which

will have a positive impact on and hopefully

stimulate the economy, with the necessity to

protect existing property owners who will be

affected by such developments.

such development can often be very

detrimental to the amenity of existing properties

and by implication can affect property values.

Ask any estate agent and they will tell you how

much easier it is to sell a property with rooms

bathed in natural light compared to an identical

property dimly lit.

Homeowners’ rights could be seriously

affected by some of the commission’s

recommendations, so before we proceed

we should reflect on the possible adverse

consequences. n

sarah dwight is a sole

practitioner and chair of the

Birmingham Law society

property Committee

([email protected])

Let tHere Be LiGHtBefore rushing to abolish rights to light, we should considerthe position of homeowners, warns sarah dwight

rights to light revisitedthe Law Commission has proposed the

following changes:

• abolition of the right to be able to acquire

rights of light by prescription;

• introduction of a new statutory test aimed

at clarifying the current law as to when

courts may order a person to pay damages

instead of an order that the obstructing

building is to be demolished or construction

of it is to cease;

• new statutory notice procedure, which

requires those with the benefit of rights to

light to make clear whether they intend to

apply to the court for an injunction (ordering

a neighbouring landowner not to build in a

way that infringes their right to light), with

the aim of introducing greater certainty into

rights to light disputes; and

• Lands Chamber of the Upper tribunal

should be able to extinguish rights to light

that are obsolete or have no practical

benefit, with payment of compensation in

appropriate cases, as is available under

the present law in respect of restrictive

covenants.


Feature

March’s Budget was branded by Chancellor

George Osborne as one for an “aspiration

nation”. yet anyone harbouring aspirations

of an increase in the inheritance tax (iHt)

threshold will have been left feeling rather

short-changed. treasury papers released after

the Budget confirmed that the iHt nil rate

band (capped at £325,000 since 2009) was

officially being frozen for at least another five

years.

this is particularly bad news for those who had

been expecting the Chancellor to make good

on his 2007 pledge, when he sought to sound

the “death knell for death taxes”. that was, of

course, a long time ago, although as recently

as 2010, Mr Osborne was making pre-election

pledges that the Conservatives would raise

the nil rate band to £1 million. thanks to the

coalition Government’s austerity programme,

plans to ensure that iHt affects only the very

wealthy now feel very much as if they belong to

a bygone era. we’re all in it together now, and

this means you don’t have to own a large estate

in order to risk leaving behind an unpleasant

iHt bill.

Moreover, the issue shouldn’t be trivialised

just because iHt is a tax that only kicks in

after death. the burden of paying an iHt bill

falls on the family and loved ones left behind,

making what is already a very difficult time

even more difficult. For some families, the pain

of losing a loved one will be amplified greatly

by the discovery that their inheritance will be

significantly depleted after paying the taxman.

it’s no surprise then, that following the Budget

we’re starting to see greater numbers of people

coming to us, looking for more innovative

ways in which to reduce or minimise their iHt

liabilities. we discuss a couple (one widely

known about, one less well-known), in more

depth below.

discounted Gift trusts discounted Gift trusts (dGt) are highly

popular. there’s no limit on the amount that

a person can invest, and you don’t have

to ‘gift’ your money to family members or

organisations in order to obtain the tax breaks.

A dGt also allows investors to continue

to receive tax-deferred income from the

investment during their lifetime, at a pre-

determined level that suits them. what’s

more, part of the investment will be exempt

from iHt immediately.

However, dGts do have certain limitations.

Although there’s some immediate iHt relief,

part of the investment made into traditional

dGts does not fall outside of the taxable estate

for seven years and uses up the NrB in the

meantime. this means the investor will have

to live for at least another seven years to be

free of iHt, too long for many elderly people or

those with health concerns. Finally, some can

be put off by the complicated and expensive

legal structures surrounding a dGt.

Business property reliefBusiness property relief (Bpr) was introduced

to small family businesses to be passed

down through generations without incurring

an iHt liability. its scope has been widened

in subsequent years, making it significantly

more attractive to private investors looking

to address potential inheritance tax liabilities.

rather than having to wait a full seven years

for iHt exemption, any Bpr-qualifying

investments earn full iHt relief after just

two years. Qualifying investments include

unquoted shares in trading businesses, as well

as shares in trading companies quoted on the

Alternative investment Market (AiM).

iHt solutions using Bpr also deliver several

other benefits. For example, investors retain

access to their investment, allowing them to

build capital value, take a regular income, or

to dispose of their holding if circumstances

change. in addition, such Bpr-based products

have been structured to allow investment into a

portfolio of Bpr qualifying companies without

involving the type of complex legal structures,

client underwriting or medical surveys, required

for dGts. the ability to transfer between

spouses, following the death of the first spouse,

without ‘resetting the clock’ on the two-year

Bpr qualification period, is another key benefit.

For the foreseeable future at least, iHt remains

a stealth tax that millions of people continue to

get caught by, and there’s little point expecting

politicians to take measures to change this. But

with the help of solicitors, advisers and others

involved in estate planning, practically everyone

with an iHt liability should be able to reduce or

eliminate it, and pass on as much of their estate

to their families as possible. when it comes to

discovering ways to make sure that a person’s

wealth stays in the hands of their family, and

out of the hands of the taxman, there’s really no

better time than now. n

Mark williams is Business Line Manager for

iHt at Octopus investments. Octopus recently

hosted a series of iHt planning workshops for

financial advisers, solicitors and estate planners

across the UK. Another series of workshops will

be launched in september. More information on

these events can be found at

www.octopusinvestments.com

FOr iNVestMeNt prOFessiONALs ONLy.

issued by Octopus investments Ltd, 20

Old Bailey, London, eC4M 7AN. Octopus

investments Ltd is authorised and regulated in

the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority.

iNHeritANCe tAX pLANNiNGwhen it comes to inheritance tax planning, there’s no time like the present


From autumn 2013 Ombudsman

services will be publishing more

data about the complaints it handles.

the decision is the outcome of a

public consultation held between

17 september and 14 december

2012. the consultation sought the

views of companies, regulators and

consumer bodies on the types of

data they wanted to see published.

data will be published quarterly,

available in different formats

and will be held on the website

for three years. it will cover the

communications, energy and

property sectors; complaints data

for the energy sector will be by

named participating companies.

Chief Ombudsman Lewis shand

smith says: “We received some

thoughtful and supportive feedback

to our consultation, which was

very helpful. We noted the appetite

for more information about cases

we receive and have decided to

publish more data, more frequently,

and to make it easily available on

our website. The aim is to share

the learning, so everyone can see

information about the common

causes of complaints; we hope this

will ultimately help companies to

improve their customer service.”

Visit http://www.ombudsman-

services.org/downloads/

Oservicesdatapublishing

responsefinal090413.pdf to read

Ombudsman services consultation

on data publishing - response and

intentions. n

OMBUdsMAN serViCes tO pUBLisH MOre dAtA

Legal News


reseArCH reVeALs LOst CALLs speLL dANGer FOr LeGAL FirMs

Legal firms are at serious

risk of losing business by

leaving customers hanging on

the telephone for more than 40

seconds at a time, new research

has revealed.

A survey of 3,630 companies

by pH Media Group discovered

the legal services industry is

below par when it comes to call

handling, leaving callers on hold

for an average of 42.22 seconds.

the implications for profitability are

grave. previous research has shown

90 per cent of callers will hang up

within 40 seconds if forced to listen

to silence while on hold.

“These results represent a

significant challenge for the legal

services industry and could pose

a serious threat to profitability,”

said pH Media Group sales

and Marketing director Mark

williamson.

“Callers are simply unwilling to wait

on the end of the line while subjected

to silence, muzak or beeps so firms

are putting themselves at serious risk

of losing business.

“Good call handling is often

overlooked as a key sales and

marketing tool but the telephone

still acts as an important touchpoint

and first impressions count. If each

caller enjoys a positive experience,

customer service standards will go

through the roof.”

the average time legal firms

place customers on hold

compares unfavourably to the

UK average of 33.48 seconds.

Of all callers placed on hold,

34 per cent were subjected to

silence. A further 26 per cent

were made to listen to music,

while 26 per cent heard beeps.

signmakers came out worst from

the research, leaving their callers

on the line for 72.64 seconds

in an average call, while garden

centres performed best, logging

an average time of just 17.44

seconds.

But hold time isn’t the only

consideration for businesses

wanting to make a good first

impression on callers.

As part of the study, pH Media

Group also audited each

company, giving them a score

out of 100 based on overall call

handling practice. Legal firms

averaged just 33.

elements including the time

taken to answer a call, the

number of tiers a caller

experiences before reaching

the necessary department, use

of consistent voice and music,

professional and personalised

voicemail and out-of-hours

messaging were weighted to

reflect their importance.

“Legal firms strive to present a

professional, trustworthy image

so it is important to evaluate

all aspects of call handling to

ensure customers get the right

impression,” added Mark.

“Inevitably, not every call will

be answered within a matter of

seconds, so when callers do

need to be placed on hold for

any length of time, informative

and entertaining audio messages

can help to maintain their

attention and decrease perceived

waiting time.

“Brand congruent voice and

music are also vital in order

to present customers with a

consistent image of the company,

reinforcing brand values and

establishing a reassuring,

coherent presence.” n

Birmingham sFe members,

together with other key

professionals met with Andrew

parker, stakeholder relationship

Manager for the Office of the

public Guardian on 13th March

to discuss forthcoming changes

within the OpG and the impact

these changes may have on

specialist lawyers and their older

clients.

the Office of the public Guardian

(OpG), received over 200,000

applications to register Lasting

powers of Attorney (LpA) in

2012/13, and is now updating its

systems, introducing an online tool

this month, to improve processes.

As well as dealing with

registrations, the OpG, now based

in Birmingham, works to protect

people when they lack the mental

capacity to make decisions for

themselves. it helps attorneys

and deputies to carry out their

duties and works closely with

organisations when allegations of

abuse are made.

On wednesday 13th March,

Andrew parker met with 40

local members of solicitors for

the elderly to explore the new

processes and other issues

of concern to older client

practitioners.

Birmingham sFe Chair, Jon Lloyd,

of Anthony Collins solicitors, said,

“This was a great opportunity

for those of us in Birmingham

with a passion for promoting the

independence of clients with

mental capacity problems to meet

with Andrew and help shape OPG

policy”.

Andrew parker outlined the OpG

sOLiCitOrs FOr tHe eLderLy

Legal News


safeguarding Vulnerable Adults

policy and its role in investigating

allegations of financial abuse

by attorneys and deputies. the

practicalities and outcomes

of typical investigations were

highlighted by the use of case

studies, to reflect real-life

scenarios.

with regard to forthcoming

changes at the OpG, delegates

were informed of planned

reductions in statutory waiting

periods, shortening the time it

will take to register an LpA, and

of the new LpA forms, available

in print and on the OpG website

from 1st April*. in addition, Andrew

parker advised on new rules to

make it easier for court-appointed

deputies to change their security

bond provider, offering more

choice, flexibility and value to

deputies and the people they

represent.

Andrew parker confirmed that he

would be taking all comments

and suggestions made during his

presentation back to the relevant

teams at the OpG.

He said, “The OPG is keen to build

and support relationships with the

Solicitors for the Elderly for the

mutual benefit of all our customers.

As part of this relationship,

the event proved to be a great

opportunity to be able to speak to

an attentive and educated audience

about shared subject matter such

as workloads, restrictions and the

proposed changes to our forms.

From the contemporary nature of

the questions received I could see

that the audience was fully engaged

with the changes that the OPG is

planning to introduce from April.”

the next meeting of Birmingham

solicitors for the elderly is on

wednesday 5th June 2013 from

4pm to 6pm at the Birmingham

offices of Mills & reeve. professor

tony elliot, Clinical director for

Older people (Mental Health) from

shelton Hospital in shrewsbury will

be taking part in a panel discussion,

focusing on the challenges

professionals face in assessing the

mental capacity of their clients.

Any solicitor or other professional

with an interest in joining

Birmingham solicitors for the

elderly or requiring details of

future events should contact

Michelle Gavin, associate at sGH

Martineau LLp at michelle.gavin@

sghmartineau.com

*subject to parliamentary process


ConveyancingFeature

Not only are conveyancers required to be

expert in all aspects of property related law, but

they have a duty of care to (it seems) everyone

in the transaction. it can easily be the case that,

despite a firm’s intentions to act in their client’s

best interests, under Outcomes focussed

regulation, they can still be held liable for issues

that arise. this responsibility coupled with an

ever increasing regulation and compliance

requirements, downward pressure on fees

and on-going problems with access to Lender

panels, makes the conveyancing landscape

more than a little challenging!

so how dO conveyancers compete and

protect themselves and their clients in this

environment, whilst continuing to add value

to the conveyancing process? there have

been many attempts to evolve/improve the

conveyancing process over the last decade

with some success, but the reality remains

that it still takes approximately 2-3 months to

complete a process that could be achieved

in more like 3-4 weeks. One area constantly

under the spotlight is ensuring that the

Lender’s interest has been correctly recorded

and protected during the transaction. this

largely relates to the current drive in the

Lender community to reduce their exposure

to fraud. Charges being incorrectly recorded

against the title or addresses where there is

not an exact match, can prove challenging

for conveyancers when reviewing files at the

Lender’s request. with current market focus

firmly on running a profitable practice through

maximising efficiencies, conveyancers need

to employ a variety of measures in order to

continue to thrive.

Conveyancing protocols such as CQs and

sLC Quality Assured have been introduced

to help conveyancers standardise operations

and provide a recognised “Kite mark”. part of

the approach for these schemes is to ensure

greater information and transparency from

the seller right from the start, through an

obligation for disclosure. in recognition of the

shift towards standardisation and in an attempt

to increase efficiencies, mitigate risk and deal

with compliance requirements (both generally

and with any “Kite Mark” that may apply), the

market has evolved by creating a number of

platforms and products that work in harmony

with these protocols.

title investigation has always been a critical

part of the conveyancing process but attempts

to improve it have mostly fallen by the

wayside on the basis that they can be seen

as disintermediating the conveyancer from

the process. However, this does not have to

be the case and conveyancers can work with

their existing systems and incorporate time

saving efficiencies along with providing an

audit trail of activity, through making use of a

new generation of specialised reports such as

titleChecker® as part of their report on title.

titleChecker® is a new product that interrogates

official Land registry data to establish where

title issues may lie and reviews the CML

Lenders Handbook parts 1 & 2 to ascertain;

a) whether the transaction can proceed and b)

what areas should be looked at in more detail.

None of this takes away from the

Conveyancer’s professional skill and judgement

both of which are still to be applied to the

issues that are raised, but it does make the

application of those valuable qualities more

focused and more efficient.

Of course identifying the issues is only

the start and increasing reliance has been

placed on title insurance as a “transactional

warranty” to ensure that all party’s interests are

protected and ultimately that the transaction is

successful.

As the conveyancing industry becomes

increasingly competitive and the market evolves,

conveyancers will need to continue to adapt.

those who embrace technology and work

towards ever increasing efficiencies, thereby

preserving the value of their skills that actually

add value to the clients, will continue to thrive,

but a lack of desire for change may mean a

bleak outlook for those who choose not to. n

sam Cherry

director

CLs Ltd

streAMLiNiNG titLe iNVestiGAtiONthe conveyancing profession has always had to walk a difficult line in carrying out its day to day activities in property transactions.



ConveyancingFeature

As we have seen in recent years, flooding is

becoming ever more prevalent and widespread

throughout the UK and is striking in areas that

have never flooded before. 2012, for example,

started with warnings of drought but ended

as the wettest year in england since records

began. despite this however, the vast majority

of homeowners and potential homeowners may

be unaware of the risks they face.

there are clearly high levels of confusion

amongst homeowners regarding flood risk

and where responsibility for determining a

property’s risk lies. A Landmark-commissioned

survey revealed that only 42% of people

investigated their flood risk before buying

their home, whilst 55% of property owners

in the UK expect solicitors to automatically

investigate a property’s flood risk as part of the

conveyancing process.

it is vital that legal professionals provide the

most comprehensive information possible,

covering all types of flood risk, including pluvial

(ground water) flooding. this needn’t however,

be a difficult and arduous task. Landmark has

worked closely with the industry in developing

its range of products to help remove the burden

from solicitors and aid compliance.

Our environmental reports have benefited from

enhanced flood data sets and mapping, and we

have significantly enriched our comprehensive

range of stand-alone residential flood searches

(Homecheck professional Flood report and

Argyll’s FLOOdsOLUtiONs report) to provide

professionals with a quick and easy means

of advising a client on the level or risk to a

property, as well as the likelihood of obtaining

insurance at standard terms.

the expert professional Opinion within our

Flood reports removes the need for the

solicitor to try to interpret factors on behalf of

their client and also provides a means by which

solicitors can dispel some of the common

myths around flooding; for example many

people believe that a property needs to be near

the sea or a river to be at risk, however that is

not the case. surface water flooding (pluvial

flooding) is increasing as a result of a number

of factors, including more intense rainfall due to

climate change. 1.9 million properties are at risk

from surface water flooding, 50,000 of which

are at a 1 in 30 annual chance or greater.

to add further confusion, the statement of

principles, which commits insurers to continue

to provide flood insurance for most homes and

small business premises, comes to an end on

30th June this year. if a property is ‘at significant

risk’, it may prove extremely expensive, if

not impossible, to obtain flood insurance; if a

property cannot be insured, the solicitor will

be unable to provide the necessary Certificate

of Completion to the Lender to release the

mortgage funds and therefore the buyer will be

unable to complete the purchase. Buyers must

be made aware of any potential flood risks as

early as possible and have appropriate insurance

in place before contracts are exchanged and

they become fully responsible for the home. if

not, they may find themselves owning a property

for which they cannot obtain a mortgage.

dispeLLiNG tHe MytH OF FLOOd risK – dUe diLiGeNCe ANd COMpLiANCeBy Chris taylor, product development director at Landmark information Group

Clive read, partner at sGH Martineau LLp,

comments: “The changes in our climate

and increasingly wet summers have led to

an increase in clients and lenders who are

particularly concerned with a property’s

flood risk. They want to be in full knowledge

of a property’s risk in order that they may

make an informed decision about whether

or not to proceed with the purchase.

SGH Martineau LLP uses Homecheck

Professional Flood Report as it is the most

thorough and detailed of its kind; it drills

down to provide detailed information on

individual properties, not simply postcode

areas or streets. Given buying a property is

usually the most expensive item one will ever

buy, SGH Martineau LLP knows it is vital

purchasers get the best possible information

so they know exactly what it is they are

buying.” n



ConveyancingFeature

if a conductor falters, the

performance will suffer.

A beat out of time, an

allegro misplaced or a

forte too soon and even

the royal philharmonic

can sound like the worst

school orchestra. without

an effective conductor there is no unity and

harmony.

the best conveyancers and property lawyers

need to be much like the best conductors.

Understanding the risks associated with

property transactions in their region and

advising buyers on the potential for these

risks enables them to provide effective and

efficient due-diligence. Both conductors and

conveyancers also need to have impeccable

timing. if it isn’t, conductors face the

embarrassment of a disjointed piece, while

conveyancers face the jarring consequences

of buyers missing key information and the

potential fallout of negligence claims.

For conductors, experience and understanding

of the intricacies of the most complex pieces

of music allow them to do their job well. But

for many conveyancers, direct experience of

dealing with all the risks that could impact

properties in their region may not be in their

repertoire. this should not stop them from

being able to provide a thorough service to

buyers though.

Getting to grips with the risks in your region is

essential. For example, one in four properties in

the UK are at risk of flooding, but the prevailing

myth is that the biggest risk of flooding comes

from rivers breaking their banks. However,

surface water flooding only accounts for

around half of all flood risks. As the last few

years have shown, a freak deluge can happen

anywhere. And with the ground so saturated

from cumulative rainfall, groundwater flooding

is a growing issue.

even a modest amount of rainfall can lead to

flooding away from rivers, but many property

owners don’t realise the extent of the danger

they face. the situation is particularly serious in

wales. while only 11% of property transactions

in wales have included a flood search in the

conveyancing searches, the environment

Agency recently announced flood alerts for

eight areas saying flooding is expected, with a

further thirteen areas put on flood alert.

Heavy rainfall in recent years has also put

swathes of the country at risk of subsidence.

A dry summer in 2013 would cause large

amounts of damage to property in areas with

high levels of clay in the soil. in areas such as

the east Midlands and parts of London, large

numbers of properties are built in clay-heavy

soil and this increases their risk of shrink/swell

subsidence. Clay soils swell when saturated but

when dryer weather causes evaporation these

soils can shrink, crack and cause movement

in properties. with two years of heavy rainfall

behind us, a dry year could wreak havoc.

property buyers need to understand this risk

and take all the necessary precautions to avoid

unseen problems unfolding in the future.

we’ve also seen that large infrastructure

projects such as Hs2 and the Hs2 extension

can have a serious and slow-burning impact

on the properties in close proximity to the

planned works. Homebuyers in Hs2 areas face

uncertainty for the next decade and a half.

Only small sections of the route will utilise

existing railway lines and this will lead to

disruption on a huge scale. the majority of

the route will require new lines and associated

works such as tunnels, viaducts, and bridges.

However, the existing Local Authority search

“Con29” only has to identify whether homes

are within 200 metres of Hs2, placing

conveyancers at risk of fury from buyers

unwittingly purchasing blighted homes. Of the

22 Local Authorities, the route runs through,

currently only one has said it will be providing

any information above and beyond the 200

metres mark offered in Con29.

But if buyers are to avoid getting a nasty

shock when work begins, they will need to

know if their property is in the vicinity of Hs2

even if it isn’t within the 200-metre radius. the

government has already admitted that the

construction and operation of Hs2 will cause

significant disruption from noise, dust and

vibration, smell, fumes, smoke, and artificial

lighting.

Of course, Hs2 isn’t the only large-scale

infrastructure project in the pipeline. Other big

projects include Crossrail, Crossrail 2 and the

thames tideway scheme. if you include other

large-scale projects such as the proposed plans

to mine for shale gas in various parts of the

UK and potash in North yorkshire you can see

how conveyancers all over the country need to

fully get to grips with what developments might

impact their regions.

these examples provide a snapshot of

some of the risks, although they won’t apply

everywhere. Conveyancers need to be aware

of the risks that are relevant to their areas and

understand how these factors may change over

time and affect properties and sites in different

ways.

this understanding will allow conveyancers

to orchestrate their due-diligence much more

effectively and help them provide a service

so unified and smooth that even the best

conductors in charge of the most complex

symphonies would be proud. n

OrCHestrAtiNG yOUr dUe-diLiGeNCeBy Marshall King, CeO, searchFlow



ConveyancingFeature

“If the water bill says it’s connected why do I

need a search?”

“If I can flush the toilet and it goes somewhere

there’s no issue.”

“There’s a manhole outside of the property. It

must be connected”

you might think that establishing information

about a property’s water and drainage systems

is straightforward. the above quotes have

come out of the mouths of conveyancers who

believe that assessing the drainage and water

arrangements at a property is simple.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Our

years of experience have taught us that these

only give you part of the picture.

A Comprehensive pictureCompiled directly from severn trent water’s

records, the CON29dw drainage and water

enquiry shows the location of nearby public

sewer and water mains, and connection

information. in addition, it contains details

relating to charges and water meters, details of

legal agreements, information on water quality

and pressure and much more.

Any of these can have an effect on a property

- water companies will occasionally need to

access assets within property boundaries,

whereas low water pressure or close proximity

to a sewage treatment works can seriously

disrupt enjoyment of your home. water meters

may be costly to large families, or save money

for properties with few occupants. Assets

like pressurised mains can be disruptive, and

the presence (or otherwise) of build over or

adoption agreements can cause numerous

headaches. All of this information is important

to a homeowner, and little of it is easy to obtain

outside of the CON29dw.

peace of MindUnfortunately, even with access to severn

trent water’s records, a search can still be

incorrect. the age of many water and sewer

connections, coupled with the vast number of

properties covered by water companies – over

three million in the severn trent region - means

that unfortunately on occasion there can be

errors in the records, which will be reflected in

the search. this could potentially have costly

implications for homeowners.

Here’s one real life example that came to our

attention recently.

the house in question was located in Oswestry.

the new owner had moved in believing

everything to be normal. the property was

billed for drainage by severn trent water.

sewer records showed a public sewer nearby.

the previous owner had reported that they

believed it to be connected, and that the

property had no history of drainage problems.

it turned out that, unaware to both the new

and previous owners, as well as severn trent

water, that the property drained not to a public

sewer, but a cess pit located in the garden. the

issue came to light shortly after the new owner

moved in and a problem developed with the pit,

which began to overflow.

the property required a connection to the

public sewer, something that would cost several

thousand pounds. would the new owner be

responsible for the costs? would the previous

owner who was also unaware? Or would the

solicitor who’d informed the buyer there were

no drainage problems?

Fortunately, in this instance, the solicitor had

undertaken a CON29dw. As the connection

information in the search was based on water

company records, this had also incorrectly

stated that the property was connected to the

public sewer. However, when we get a search

wrong, we’ll do everything we can to put things

right. in this case, that meant that we arranged

for the property to be connected to the public

system, at our expense, avoiding a potentially

protracted process and a claim for negligence

against the solicitor.

Get the Full pictureNo other search offers the comprehensive

information and protection of the CON29dw.

Compiled directly from severn trent water’s

records, recommended by the Law society and

comprehensive liability cover, all for only £38

+ VAt. Visit www.severntrentsearches.com for

more information. n

Get tHe wHOLe piCtUresevern trent searches



CHANGes tO terMs OF BUsiNess & UpdAte ON COLps & COFAs

For most firms and practitioners, the standard

terms of business which tend to accompany

retainer or engagement letters are seldom checked

despite being in almost daily use. this can sometimes

mean that contents are included which are quite

remarkably out of date, with references to NCis

in relation to money laundering reports (replaced

by the serious Organised Crime Agency as of

April 2006) being one of the worst offenders.

An occasional check of all such documentation

is important, and the recent replacement of the

Financial services Authority (‘FsA’) by the newly

installed ‘Financial Conduct Authority’ (‘FCA’) and

‘prudential regulation Authority‘ (‘prA’) will require

changes to the contract documentation in use in the

great majority of firms. the change is of relevance

to most firms as a result of the requirement in the

srA Financial services (Conduct of Business)

rules (‘COBr’) which form part of the ‘specialist

services’ section at the end of the srA Handbook.

those firms that are required to provide notice to

clients on their authorisation to carry on ‘regulated

activities’ (such as disposing of shares in commercial

or family law work) or advice on insurance (‘insurance

mediation’) will need to update all references from the

FsA to – now – the FCA. this is most likely to appear

in the terms of business of most firms, in which case,

the new required wording for insurance mediation

is as follows (and as found at s.3.3 of the COBr):

“[This firm is]/[We are] not authorised by the

Financial Conduct Authority. However, we are

included on the register maintained by the Financial

Conduct Authority so that we can carry on

insurance mediation activity, which is broadly

the advising on, selling and administration of

insurance contracts. This part of our business,

including arrangements for complaints or

redress if something goes wrong, is regulated

by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The

register can be accessed via the Financial Conduct

Authority website at www.fca.org.uk/register.”

similar changes of reference to the FCA will

also be required in any accompanying change

to the similar wording in use advising on your

status with regard to regulated activities.

COLp and COFA nominationsAll concerned – both at the srA and within law

firms – would have hoped that the nomination

process for the required reporting officers – COLp

and COFA – would have died down by now. the srA

has reported, however, that it is pursuing almost 800

firms (roughly one in fifteen of all firms in england and

wales) for irregularities in the nomination process.

At the top of the srA’s list are a total of 21

firms who explained their persistent failure to

make the required nominations with a variety of

excuses ranging from having to care for elderly

relatives, being abroad for a significant period or

deadlock between the partners as to who should

be nominated. those who explained their failure

through “not bothering to read SRA e-mail” were

clearly not setting out to impress the regulator.

the greater number of outstanding enquiries relate to

the 300 firms which delayed in providing information

to the srA as part of the nomination process, and

545 firms or individuals which failed to disclose

information to some degree. since it is an underlying

principle of the Handbook that firms must deal with

the regulator in an “open, timely and co-operative

manner”, some form of enforcement action might

be expected against all or most of these. this might

range from a letter of advice to the closure of the firm

through an intervention. Others will no doubt face

referrals to the solicitors disciplinary tribunal (sdt),

especially if there has been an element of dishonesty

in failing to disclose significant information.

As a final comment on the COLp and COFA

nomination process, which has featured in this

column and elsewhere in the Bulletin frequently

over the last year or so, it might still be questioned

why different standards were needed for the two

reporting officers at all. if, as Lord Bingham once

famously stated, a solicitor must be capable of

being “trusted to the ends of the earth” then surely

anyone on the roll should have been capable of

fulfilling the required duties – subject, perhaps, to

knowledge of the srA Accounts rules for COFAs?

if the highest standards apply to all solicitors then

surely the srA could have made the last few months

much easier for all concerned had they confined

their investigations to the non-solicitors who were

nominated – more commonly for the COFA role? n

By Jayne willettssolicitor Advocate

Jayne willetts & Co - specialists in professional

regulation

Jayne willetts is also a director of Colpline Ltd – a compliance helpline service for law firms –

www.clt.co.uk/colpline

regulation report

Learning & DevelopmentProfessional Services

BIRMINGHAM LAW SOCIETY

Course List May - July 2013

Course Highlights

Full details of all our seminars are advertised on our website and regular emailers are sent out to our members. we are currently in the process of confirming further seminars, debates and conferences; if you have any specific training requirements or would like to suggest future topics, please do email me at [email protected]

date time Cpd Hrs Course title Area speakers Fees £ Members Non Members

07-May-13 12:00-14:00 1 Intermediate Accountancy Workshop for Lawyers Legal Accounts Felicity Barnard £20 + VAT £20 + VAT

Sundip Sangha

09-May-13 10:00-16:00 5 Property Conference Property Chair: Martin Allsopp £120 + VAT £150 + VAT

Postponed to September, Jonathan Smithers

date to be announced shortly John Hughes

Tony Verduyn

Charlie Gordon

Tony Rollason

Adam Turner

16-May-13 17:30-19:00 1.5 Employment seminar: Four difficult questions Employment Mugni Islam- £50 + VAT £70 + VAT

Choudhury

Jog Hundle

Sarah George

Jonathan Coley

21-May-13 13:00-17:00 3 Solicitors Accounts Rules: half day session Regulatory Linda Lambert £99 + VAT £120 + VAT

Support Staff: £55 + VAT Support Staff : £75 + VAT

04-Jun-13 14:00-15:00 1 NA Flood Risk in the Conveyancing Process Webinar Environmental Anthony Rollason FREE FREE

02-Jul-13 18:00-20:30 1.5 Accountancy workshop for Lawyers Legal Accounts Michael Wong £45 + vat £45 + vat

10-Jul-13 13:00-16:30 3 Conveyancing Update 2013 Property Richard Snape £99 + vat £115 + vat

please see our website for further seminars: www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uktelephone: elizabeth dziergas, professional services executive on 0121 230 1709email: [email protected]

Intermediate Accountancy for Lawyers

Date: tuesday 7 May 2013

Time: 12:00 registration and lunch 12:30 - 13:30 seminar

Venue: BdO, 125 Colmore row, Birmingham B3 3sd

CPD: 1 Hour Cpd Accredited by the srA

Fees: £20 + VAt

Speaker: Felicity Barnard & sundip sangha

this is the second part of the introduction to

accounting for lawyers seminar which was run

in January 2013. BdO forensic accountants, in

conjunction with the Birmingham Law society,

will discuss some of the accounting concepts introduced in part 1 in

greater detail, giving further insight into areas which lawyers commonly

come across as part of their casework.

this course is aimed at recently qualified solicitors who attended

introduction to accounting for lawyers part 1, or who have a basic

understanding of financial statements.

Speakers: Felicity Barnard, BDO LLP: Felicity qualified as a chartered

accountant in 2010, and has worked in forensic services for over

five years. she deals with all areas of forensic accountancy, with a

particular focus on company valuations and business interruption.

Sudip Sangha, BDO LLP: sudip has been part of BdO’s forensic

team since 2005 with his experience before this being primarily in

audit, where he gained experience of owner-managed businesses. He

specialises in pre and post-transaction services, and has been involved

in major investigations, including the dti investigation into MG rover

Group.


Course Highlights Continued

Property Law Conference 2013

Date: postponed to september, date to be announced shortly

Time: 9:30 registration & refreshments, seminar from 10:00 to 16:45

Venue: Birmingham Law society, 43 temple row, Birmingham, B2 5Ls

CPD: 5.5 hours Accredited by the srA

Fee: £120 + vat for members, £150 + vat for non-members

Birmingham Law society is pleased

to invite you to the property Law

Conference. we have selected a varied group of speakers in the hope

that we can provide ‘something for everyone’ who work in property

Law, ranging from an update on the new tA6 form, the Green deal

through to boundary disputes, flooding and an update on planning for

conveyancers. we also have a very interesting talk on subterranean

Land registration - a talk that was given to our committee by one of

our members and was so fascinating that we are letting others enjoy it!

9.30 registration and breakfast

10.00 Chair: Martin Allsopp (welcome)

10.00 “Conveyancing Quality scheme and new property

information Forms (tA6)” Jonathan smithers,

Chancery Lane.

10.45 “the National planning policy Framework”

John Hughes, the wilkes partnership.

11.30 Coffee break

11.45 “Beating the bounds: cautionary and other tales

of boundary disputes” Anthony Verduyn,

st philips Chambers

12.25 Lunch

13.25 “Legal Ombudsman and conveyancing”

Charlie Gordon, Legal Ombudsman.

14.10 “dispelling the myth of Flood risk – due diligence

and Compliance” tony rollason, Landmark.

15.05 Coffee break

15.15 “Aspects of subterranean Land registration”

Adam turner, sGH Martineau.

16.10 “Avoiding vendor conveyancer fraud”

Chris Harris, Lawyer Checker

16.45 Finish

Employment seminar: Four difficult questions

Date: thursday 16 May 2013

Time: 17:00 registration, 17:30 - 19:00 seminar

Venue: Birmingham Law society, 43 temple row, Birmingham B2 5Ls

CPD: 1.5 Hours Cpd Accredited by the srA

Fees: £50 + vat members, £70 + vat non-members

Speakers: Mugni islam-Choudhury, Jog Hundle, eileen schofield,

sarah George, Jonathan Coley

Why Attend? these are the questions that your clients are very likely

to ask you and the answers are not straightforward! the answers will

be given by members of Birmingham Law society’s employment Law

Committee. there will be an opportunity to ask our experienced panel

members supplemental questions and to amplify the answers if you

wish.

4 Topics:

• Custom and practice leading to contractual variation or implied terms

- Claire ward, Hr Business partner employee relations, Birmingham

City Council will introduce the variation question which will be

answered by Mugni islam-Choudhury, No5 Chambers.

• sickness Absence - Helen Hooper, MOHs will present the ill health

question answered by Jog Hundle, Mills & reeve and eileen schofield,

schofield & Associates.

• Valuing pensions loss - ian Hill, Broadstone (BdO group) will

introduce the pensions question which will be answered by sarah

George, st philips Chambers.

• tUpe and service provision change - a speaker from ACAs will

introduce the tUpe question which will be answered by Jonathan

Coley, pinsent Masons.

Advocacy Training *** limited spaces

Advocacy Training - Thursday 16 May 2013 – 1pm to 5pm

Birmingham Law society is running an advocacy

training program for those lawyers who have limited

experienced at attending district Judge appointments

in civil/commercial claims. the aim of this training is

to provide an introduction to advocacy in district Judge appointments

and to ensure that our local lawyers are meeting the minimum

standards of advocacy that are expected by the Courts.

the program for thursday’s advocacy training will consist of:

• an introduction to advocacy at No5 Chambers where resident senior

barrister (and others) will offer an interactive workshop covering the

basic elements of good advocacy.

• this will then be followed by a tour of the Birmingham district

registry and a meeting with one or two district Judges who will

discuss the “do’s and don’ts” of advocacy before district Judges.

we have limited spaces available for this event and so will be operating

a “first come, first serve” basis. the program will begin at 1pm and

should finish at around 5pm. the cost of this event has been limited

to £20 per person. if you are interested in attending please book your

place online.

Solicitors’ Accounts Rules Update - Half day session

Date: tuesday 21 May 2013

Time: 13:00 registration & lunch, 14:00 - 17:00 seminar

Venue: Birmingham Law society, 43 temple row, Birmingham, B2 5Ls

CPD: 3 Hours Cpd Accredited by the srA

Fees: Member Fee for Fee earners: £99 + VAt, Member Fee support

staff: £55 + VAt, Non-Member Fee for Fee earners: £120 + VAt, Non-

Member Fee support staff: £75 + VAt

Speaker: Linda Lambert

As you will know, the solicitors regulation Authority’s Accounts rules



have been substantially updated and these updates included new

rules, a new regime and new roles. the rules were applicable from

October 6th 2011and the new roles that also came into place, COLp

and COFA, are in place from January 1st 2013. this half day course

covers the main rules regarding the handling and recording of client

and office monies and includes the new rules. the aim of the course

is to ensure those attending are made aware of the current regulations

with regard to use of client’s monies for today’s Legal practice.

• Client Account and Client Money

• Use of Client Account

• withdrawals from Client Account

• interest rules

• Bank reconciliations

• what is a Bill?

• Office Monies and professional disbursements

• Accountant’s report

Speaker: Linda Lambert: Linda lives and works in the west Midlands

where she came to read Accountancy at Birmingham University. After

obtaining her degree she then worked in the banking and financial

sector and as a trainee chartered accountant before joining the legal

profession some 25+ years ago. Linda has in her career worked as a

sole Legal Cashier for a small city practice, a Finance Manager for a

14 partner provincial firm and as a practice Manager before working

freelance. she has experience of accounts systems from hand

written to computerised and has been responsible for introducing

new systems in the practices she has worked in, in particular dealing

with management information and credit control. Linda has trained

as a lecturer for further education and is currently the institute of

Legal Finance and Management (iLFM)’s lecturer in ‘the solicitors

regulation Authority’s Accounts rules’, the tutor for the iLFM’s

Associate Accounts Course, as well as working as a freelance Legal

Cashier, mainly in Birmingham. Linda has also acted as a consultant

for a two partner firm of solicitors in worcestershire and more recently

with a medium sized worcestershire practice (for maternity cover) with

special emphasis on risk and Compliance work.

Conveyancing Update 2013

Date: wednesday 10 July 2013

Time: 13:00 registration and lunch, 13:30 - 16:30 seminar

Venue: Birmingham Law society, 43 temple row, Birmingham B2 5Ls

CPD: 3 Hours Cpd Accredited by the srA

Fees: Member: £99 + VAt Non-Member: £115 + VAt

Speaker: richard snape

this course looks at fundamental changes in conveyancing in

particular in relation to the new srA Handbook and the implications for

the adoption of private sewers.

topics covered include:

• Adoption of private sewers; implications in relation to build over

agreements and drainage and water searches

• srA Handbook and Conflicts of interest

• the new part 3 of the CML Lenders Handbook in force July 2012

• Changes to planning under the Localism Act 2011 and planning

enforcement changes

• solar panel issues

• Changes to tenancy deposits

• recent case law

• stamp duty Land tax and the Finance Act 2012

• the Green deal and conveyancing implications

• permitted development Changes as of spring 2013

Speaker: richard snape has worked as a Consultant and professional

support Lawyer for davitt Jones Bould solicitors since 2002. He was

formerly a senior lecturer in law at the University of west of england,

Bristol, and was head of Land Law. He and has done numerous

courses for local law societies all over the country, various public

courses throughout england and wales, in-house seminars within

solicitors firms, and has also talked extensively to local authorities and

central government bodies such as the Ministry of defence, National

Health service and HM revenue and Customs. He has also lectured

within the Land registry and has written various articles for the legal

press. His areas of specialism include both commercial and residential

property, in particular in relation to local government law, domestic

conveyancing issues, development land, commercial property and

incumbrances in relation to land.

Members’ News

Legal firm Higgs & sons is

expanding its specialist

clinical negligence team with the

appointment of a new solicitor.

Kate Campbell-Gunn joins the

Black Country firm from Hull-based

Neil Hudgell solicitors, working

within its satellite office in solihull,

where she handled predominantly

high-value personal injury claims.

she began her career in 2003 at

a personal injury firm, Forum Law

solicitors as a paralegal, training

with the firm and qualifying in 2007.

speaking of her move to Higgs,

Kate said: “I’m joining Higgs so

that I can specialise in clinical

negligence within a firm which

attracts quality work and is highly

respected both regionally and

nationally for its work in this field.”

Kate will work alongside Clare

Langford, a highly experienced

partner in the clinical negligence

department. Clare said: “The team

is an extremely busy one and we

work hard to give our clients the

very best legal advice as well as

care and support with their legal

claims, which can often run over

the course of several years.

“The addition of Kate to the team

will enable us to take on even more

work and help us to continue to give

our clients the same high level of

support they expect from Higgs.” n

HiGGs eXpANds speCiAList CLiNiCAL NeGLiGeNCe teAM

in 1988, the licensing laws

changed to allow pubs to stay

open all day, the pound note

ceased to be legal tender and

davies and partners solicitors

opened its first office.

25 years later, davies and

partners now has offices in city

centre Birmingham, Bristol and

Gloucester. it has continued

its programme of expansion,

opening its latest office in 2012

in west end London.

the firm employs over 120

staff and although it offers a

full range of legal services for

commercial and private clients,

approximately half of its work

is in commercial property

including land acquisition and

development. it has one of the

largest commercial property

teams in the region which has

achieved a strong national

reputation in the commercial

property sector.

in recent years the firm has also

developed a national specialism

in clinical negligence, which

now accounts for more than

20% of the firm’s business. its

12 strong, specialist clinical

negligence team contains a

number of the UK’s leading

clinical negligence lawyers.

Commenting on the celebrations

Birmingham’s Managing partner

david stokes said, “I am proud to

have been one of the first trainees


FirM CeLeBrAtes 25 yeArs OF LeGAL speCiALisM

L to R: Kate Campbell-Gunn and Clare Langford

taken on by Davies and Partners

in its early years and later be able

to develop Birmingham into a full

service office. We have seen many

developments over the 25 years

and there have been many peaks

and troughs in the economy over

that period, but we are delighted

that we have retained such a

strong and loyal client base across

the Midlands and South West.

This has enabled us to continue

to develop and expand. We are

very proud to be able to offer our

clients some of the region’s finest

legal talent and we look forward to

continuing to do so for at least the

next 25 years!” n

Birmingham-based intellectual

property specialists Forresters

are going back to their roots.

the firm – formed in the city almost

130 years ago – are moving into

fully-refurbished offices at the heart

of Birmingham’s business district.

Birmingham office partner Matt

shaw said the move to rutland

House marked a “new chapter” in

the firm’s history.

Forresters was based in rutland

House during the 1970s before

moving to Chamberlain House, on

paradise Circus. “Though we have

always been based in Birmingham,

our move to Rutland House puts

us at the beating heart of the city,”

said Mr shaw.

MOViNG BACK tO tHeir rOOts FOr ip speCiALists FOrresters

KJCS O L I C I T O R S

Mediation Services

Experienced Solicitor and qualified

Mediator offers competitive rates for

Mediation to take place at St Paul’s

Club, Birmingham or other venues in

the West Midlands.

Please contact Mr Kevin Conroy of K J Conroy & Co Ltd, 38 George Street,

Birmingham, B3 1QA on 0121 212 1575 or visit our website

www.kjconroy.co.uk and also visit www.stpaulsclub.co.uk

Personal Injury

Commercial Law

Debt Collection

Employment Law

Landlord & Tenant

Disputes

Family Law

Road Traffic Law


Members’ News

“The move really does feel like

we’re going back to our roots as this

was our home in the ’70s. We have

gone through a sustained period of

growth and so therefore the move

makes perfect sense from a strategic

as well as a practical perspective.”

Forresters handles all aspects of

intellectual property, working with

companies to protect their innovation

from a commercial perspective.

Mr shaw added: “We have always

made the most of our link with

the city and the region, and there

is an enormous amount of pride

and excitement at what is a new

chapter in our history.

“From a practical view, we pride

ourselves on being accurate,

proficient, helpful and always set the

highest standards, as well as being as

accessible as we possibly can be, so

the new offices fit the bill perfectly.

“All our staff are enormously

proud of what we continue to

achieve and our ethos remains to

give clients and the international

community ‘clear direction’ in

all their intellectual property

matters.” n

Manchester office will continue

to be based at 1 New york street

with a total of 16 partners and 89

other staff.

Nationally Mills & reeve will

have 112 partners and 870 staff

operating from six offices in

Birmingham, Cambridge, Leeds,

London, Manchester and Norwich.

Guy Hinchley, Mills & reeve

managing partner, said: “this

merger will enable us to grow

our presence in the North

substantially and to progress our

strategy of providing a full range

of legal services to clients in our

key sectors.

“we are very excited about the

potential that our increased

scale gives us in the North and

the further career opportunities

that it creates for the talented

lawyers and business support

professionals in our enlarged firm.”

Mark Hovell, George davies

managing partner, said: “As

a well established, profitable,

Manchester firm we have

had regular approaches from

firms looking to establish or

strengthen their presence in the

Manchester marketplace.

“we chose to merge with Mills

& reeve as we have a lot of

synergy with them and their

culture closely reflects ours. this

merger will enable us to offer our

clients access to a wider range

of legal services and specialist

sector advice from the Mills &

reeve national practice and

international networks and also

to pursue new clients who have

previously been beyond our

reach.” n

UK law firm Mills & reeve

has announced that it will

merge with Manchester firm

George davies on 1 June 2013

after partners at both firms voted

in favour of the move.

the enlarged Mills & reeve

MiLLs & reeVe tO eXpANd preseNCe iN NOrtH witH GeOrGe dAVies MerGer

General News


UNiVersity OF LAw iN BirMiNGHAM LAUNCHes UK’s First twO-yeAr iNterNAtiONAL LeGAL prACtiCe deGree

the University of Law in

Birmingham is to launch the UK’s

first two-year specialist undergraduate

degree in international legal practice

in 2014 in response to increased

demand from law firms for lawyers

with international specialisms.

the LL.B (Hons) Law with

international Legal practice is being

introduced alongside the University’s

existing LL.B (Hons) Law and will

address the predominance of

english law in international business,

the increasingly international

needs of clients and the cross-

border dimensions of many legal

transactions.

it is the first international LL.B

in the UK to be available as an

accelerated two-year programme

allowing aspiring international lawyers

to graduate a full-year ahead of their

peers. it will also run at the University’s

centres in Guildford, London

Bloomsbury and Manchester.

professor Bernardette Griffin,

director of the University of Law

in Birmingham, said: “A high

proportion of UK and all global

law firms carry out a significant

amount of international work and

therefore it’s becoming increasingly

important for future lawyers to have

an understanding of operating in a

cross-border environment.

the growing importance of

knowledge of international legal

practice was illustrated in a recent

report by pwC - ‘Law Firms

survey 2012’, which found that

half of the UK’s top 25 firms now

source more than 40 per cent

of fee income from international

operations and 50 per cent of top

10 firms anticipate merging with

or acquiring an international firm

in the next three years, up from 17

per cent in 2011.

Law students themselves are

also becoming increasingly aware

of the importance of international

knowledge. in a survey of all

University of Law students, 94 per

cent of LL.B students said they

thought learning about international

legal practice while at law school

was important. eighty seven

per cent expected to deal with

overseas organisations and clients

during their future legal career and

82 per cent expected to participate

in cross border transactions

involving international law.

in addition to the new

international LL.B, the University

of Law in Birmingham will offer a

series of MLaw programmes from

2014, including an international

MLaw, which will combine the

LL.B with the institution’s unique

LL.M Legal practice Course (LL.M

LpC). these will incorporate a

Masters-level LL.M qualification

and offer students a seamless

transition from the undergraduate

to the postgraduate qualification

stage of professional training.

the LL.B degrees will be

available as both two- and three-

year courses and in total eight

different law degree programmes

will be offered at the University of

Law in Birmingham from 2014.

previously known as the

College of Law, the institution

was awarded university title

in November. it entered the

undergraduate market in

september 2012 with the launch

of its two-year LL.B (Hons) Law,

the first undergraduate law degree

to be grounded on practice-based

learning and have the teaching

of essential professional and

employability skills at its heart.

the 2014 LL.B prospectus is now

available. More information is available

at: www.law.ac.uk/degree. n


events

dAtes FOr yOUr diAryNetworking Event Date: thursday, 6 June 2013

Time: 6pm - 8pm

Venue: Mapleton House, 150 Corporation

street, Birmingham.

Golf Event Date: thursday, 11 July 2013

Time: 12.30pm till evening time

Venue: Nailcote Hall, Basall Common

Cricket - BLS v’s WMPDate: tuesday, 16 July 2013

Time: 6pm - late

Venue: tally Ho sports & Conference Centre

Summer Event - Save the DateDate: Friday, 19 July 2013

Time: 7pm till late

Venue: tBC

Networking event Date: thursday, 19 september 2013

Time: 6pm - 8pm

Venue: tBC

Pro Bono Networking eventDate: Monday, 14 October 2013

Time: 6pm - 8pm

Venue: tBC

Newly Qualified CelebrationDate: thursday, 24 October 2013

Time: 6pm - 8pm

Venue: Hyatt regency Birmingham

Past President LunchDate: Friday, 8 November 2013

Time: 12.30pm

Venue: tBC

President’s DinnerDate: thursday, 21 November 2013

Time: 7pm - 12am

Venue: edgbaston Cricket Ground

Legal Awards 2014Date: thursday, 20 March 2014

Time: 7pm - 12am

Venue: the iCC

if you require any further information or if you would like to book onto any of these

events please visit www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk

Birmingham Law society now accepts payment by card so if you

would like to pay for any of the events by card please call: 0121

222 4190 with your card details or request a booking form by

emailing [email protected]

mPW Media & Publishing

GET YOUR BUSINESS NOTICED

If YOU wOUlD lIkE TO

aDvERTISE IN THE BUllETIN

plEaSE CONTaCT

alISON JONES ON:

TEl: 01905 727907 [email protected]

expert witnesses


translations

Classified

to advertise in the Bulletin please contact Alison Jones:

tel: 01905 727907 [email protected]

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