Questions answered
Small law firm admin: 30 questions on client updates, AML reviews, probate dates, price transparency and AI, answered
Short answers for high-street solicitors: conveyancing updates, the SRA's AML desk-based review, probate deadlines, price transparency and AI rules.
How often should a conveyancer update a client?
On a fixed day each week, even when nothing has changed. The Legal Ombudsman took 647 residential conveyancing complaints in the third quarter of 2025/26, up 18% on the year and 36% of everything it handled, and its advice to firms was short, predictable updates. The average purchase now takes about 17 weeks, which is a long time to hear nothing.
Source: Legal Ombudsman quarterly data and guidance, read 1 October 2026
How long does a firm have to respond to an SRA AML desk-based review?
Ten calendar days from the letter, to send the firm-wide risk assessment, the proliferation financing assessment, policies, controls and procedures, template client and matter risk assessments, the list of in-scope fee earners and the open and closed matter lists. The SRA then reads 10 to 12 files. Ten calendar days can include two weekends.
Source: SRA guidance on AML desk-based reviews
When is inheritance tax due after a death?
By the end of the sixth month after the month of death; interest runs from then. The IHT400 account is due within 12 months of the end of the month of death. For a death on 15 March 2026, tax is due by 30 September 2026 and the account by 31 March 2027.
Source: HMRC inheritance tax guidance
How soon after sending the IHT400 can I apply for probate?
After 20 working days, the time HMRC asks applicants to allow before the probate application is made. An IHT400 sent on 1 June 2026 means the earliest application is 29 June. The probate application fee is £526 where the estate is over £5,000.
Source: GOV.UK applying for probate
What price information must a law firm publish on its website?
For the services the SRA Transparency Rules name (six for individuals, including residential conveyancing and probate, and three for businesses), the seven items of rule 1.5: total cost or a range; the basis of charging; the experience and qualifications of who does the work; disbursements; VAT; what is included, with key stages and likely timescales; and, if conditional fee or damages-based agreements are used, when the client may have to pay. Complaints information and the SRA digital badge are also required.
Source: SRA Transparency Rules
What has to happen before chargeable work starts on a new matter?
For an individual client instructing by email, seven checks: client care letter, costs information, identity and AML checks, source of funds, conflict check, complaints information and the Consumer Contracts Regulations cancellation notice. The last is the one most often missed; without it the 14-day cooling-off period can run for up to a year and fees for work done in it may not be recoverable.
Source: SRA Code of Conduct; Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013
What does the SRA say about law firms using AI?
The warning notice of 17 August 2026 puts the duty on the supervisor, not the tool. The firm remains accountable for work done through AI, every citation and assertion must be verified, and client information may only go into an AI system with contractual, technical and organisational safeguards. A firm needs a short written AI policy that says which tools, for what, checked by whom.
Source: SRA warning notice, 17 August 2026; SRA Code of Conduct 2.4 and 3.5
Does a small firm have to separate the COLP and COFA roles from its managers?
Not now. The proposed rule would have barred a manager with unilateral decision-making power from being COLP or COFA in a firm with turnover over £600,000 or holding more than £2 million of client money, from January 2027. It was paused. A sole owner-manager can still hold both roles.
Source: SRA and Legal Services Board announcements, read 1 October 2026
How much fee-earner time goes on chasing in conveyancing?
A large share, and it has two halves that feed each other: the fee earner chases the other side because the client is chasing the fee earner. Predictable client updates cut the inbound half, which frees time for the outbound half. A weekly update day and a dated chase list are the two changes small firms report as working.
What does legal case management software cost?
On 1 October 2026 three of five suppliers checked showed a UK per-user price: Clio Manage from £79 a user a month, Osprey Approach at £110 or £140 a licence on a 36-month term with a three-licence minimum, and Hoowla at £48 plus VAT. LEAP's page says price on request. For a seven-user firm that is £4,032 to £11,760 a year on the published figures.
Source: Each supplier's pricing page, read 1 October 2026
What are the key dates in a probate matter?
Inheritance tax by the end of the sixth month after death; the IHT400 within 12 months; 20 working days after the IHT400 before applying for the grant; six months from the grant for an Inheritance Act claim; and the executor's year, twelve months from death, after which interest can run on unpaid legacies. A deed of variation must be made within two years of death.
Source: HMRC; Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975; Administration of Estates Act 1925
Can AI do admin in a law firm without breaching SRA rules?
Yes, if it drafts and a solicitor decides. Client updates, chasing, file-opening checks and date tracking are administrative; advice, undertakings and anything sent in the firm's name need a solicitor's review. Overlyft can set up an AI assistant that drafts and files, and every output waits for a supervising solicitor's approval.
How much does it cost to renew a solicitor's practising certificate for 2026/27, and when is the deadline?
£552 for each solicitor: a £382 practising certificate fee, which includes a £48 administration fee, plus a £170 compensation fund contribution. The 2025/26 total was £396. Renewal runs from 1 to 31 October 2026 in mySRA. The SRA's fee page, dated 1 September 2026, says the figures are subject to Legal Services Board approval.
Source: SRA Fee policy 2026/27 and Fee policy 2025/26, read 1 October 2026
What does a small law firm pay the SRA in total at renewal for 2026/27?
Three charges: £552 for each practising certificate, a periodic fee set by turnover band, and £2,170 for the compensation fund if the firm held client money. A firm with three solicitors and £450,000 of turnover pays £1,656 plus £2,476 plus £2,170, which is £6,302, against £5,404 on the 2025/26 rates.
Source: SRA Fee policy 2026/27 and 2025/26; our arithmetic on the SRA's fee bands
When does a solicitor have to carry out a source of funds check?
Always for a politically exposed person and where a party is established in a high-risk third country, and otherwise "where necessary" under regulation 28(11)(a) of the Money Laundering Regulations 2017. The SRA treats that as a risk-based test, expects checks on conveyancing, and expects a written reason on the file where a firm decides no check is needed.
Source: Money Laundering Regulations 2017 regs 28(11)(a), 33 and 35; SRA thematic review, 5 November 2025
Does an estate pay income tax on bank interest earned after the death?
Only if the estate's income in a tax year is more than £500. Since 6 April 2024 income of £500 or less in a tax year is not taxed; above that, tax is due on the whole amount, at 20% for interest. An estate with £1,320 of interest in a year pays £264, and one that meets HMRC's three tests for informal arrangements pays by writing to HMRC.
Source: GOV.UK, Register your client's estate (updated 10 April 2025); HMRC manual TSEM7356 and TSEM7410
What happens if a law firm cannot renew its professional indemnity insurance?
Its last insurer keeps it covered for 30 days, the extended policy period, in which it can practise as normal. A 60-day cessation period follows with no new instructions, and then the firm must close. For a policy that expired on 30 September 2026 those periods end on 30 October and 29 December 2026. The SRA must be told within five business days of entering each.
Source: SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules 2.3, 2.4 and 8.1 and Minimum Terms and Conditions
What can a law firm do with a small balance left in client account when the client cannot be found?
If the balance is £500 or less on that matter, the firm can pay it to a charity without asking the SRA, provided it has taken reasonable steps to return the money, recorded them, kept the records for six years and entered the payment in a central register. Above £500 it needs the SRA's written authority first.
Source: SRA Accounts Rules 5.1(c) and the SRA's statement on prescribed circumstances
How much does the Legal Ombudsman charge a law firm for a complaint, and is the fee going up?
The Legal Ombudsman's case fee is £400 for each chargeable complaint. Proposals consulted on until 2 September 2026 would replace it with £200, £750 or £1,500 depending on the stage a complaint reaches, plus £400 where the firm gave no final response within eight weeks, from 1 April 2027 if approved. No decision had been published by 1 October 2026.
Source: Legal Ombudsman Scheme Rules; Office for Legal Complaints consultation, June 2026
How long do I have to reply to a Land Registry requisition before the application is cancelled?
HM Land Registry allows 60 working days for most applications, although the rule sets a minimum of 20. A warning of cancellation is normally sent after 40 working days, and a written request showing the matter is being actively pursued normally gets 20 more. A requisition dated 5 October 2026 reaches day 60 on 30 December 2026.
Source: HM Land Registry practice guide 50, updated 16 March 2026; Land Registration Rules 2003 rule 16
How much is the Land Registry fee to register a house purchase in 2026?
For a transfer of the whole of a registered title lodged through the portal, the fee is £100 for a price of £100,001 to £200,000, £150 for £200,001 to £500,000 and £295 for £500,001 to £1,000,000. A new lease, a transfer of part, a first registration or a postal application costs £230, £330 and £655. A mortgage lodged with the purchase is free.
Source: GOV.UK, HM Land Registry: Registration Services fees, read 1 October 2026
When is the tax return for an estate in administration due for the 2025 to 2026 tax year?
An estate that has to register with HMRC must do so by 5 October 2026. Its SA900 return is due on paper by 31 October 2026, or by 31 January 2027 if filed through commercial software, and the tax is due by 31 January 2027. A late return costs £100 at once. Estates below HMRC's three registration thresholds do not file one.
Source: GOV.UK, Register your client's estate; Self Assessment tax returns: deadlines and penalties
What is the minimum professional indemnity insurance cover a solicitors' firm must have?
The SRA's minimum terms require cover of £3 million for any one claim for an LLP or limited company and £2 million for other firms. When a firm closes without a successor practice, its last policy must also give six years of run-off cover on the minimum terms.
Source: SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules and Minimum Terms and Conditions
What records does a law firm need when it pays an old client balance to charity?
The SRA expects a central register showing the rightful owner, the amount, the charity and its charity number, and the date of payment, with receipts and any indemnity kept alongside. The steps taken to return the money must be recorded and the records kept for at least six years. A balance over £500 needs the SRA's written authority first.
Source: SRA Accounts Rules 5.1(c) and the SRA statement on prescribed circumstances
How much is the court fee to issue a money claim in England and Wales in 2026?
It depends on the amount claimed with interest added: £35 up to £300, £50 up to £500, £70 up to £1,000, £80 up to £1,500, £115 up to £3,000, £205 up to £5,000 and £455 up to £10,000. Above that it is 5% of the claim up to £200,000, then a flat £10,000. The fee list was last updated on 13 July 2026.
Source: HM Courts and Tribunals Service, Civil court fees (EX50), updated 13 July 2026, read 1 October 2026
How long does a law firm have to keep a client's file after the matter ends?
No rule sets one period for the whole file. SRA Accounts Rule 13.1 requires accounting records to be kept for at least six years. The rest is kept against claims: six years for contract and tort under the Limitation Act 1980, with a 15-year long stop for negligence found late. The Law Society says the client care letter should state the firm's period.
Source: SRA Accounts Rules 13.1; Limitation Act 1980 sections 2, 5 and 14B; Law Society Practice Advice Service, 22 November 2023
How long must a solicitor keep a client's ID and source of funds documents?
Five years, beginning on the date the firm knows the business relationship has ended or a one-off transaction is complete, under regulation 40 of the Money Laundering Regulations 2017. After that the personal data must be deleted unless another law, court proceedings or the person's consent allows it to be kept. For a file closed on 30 November 2026 the period ends on 29 November 2031.
Source: Money Laundering Regulations 2017, regulation 40(3) and (5); our count of the dates
How much do the business plans of ChatGPT, Claude and Microsoft Copilot cost a small law firm?
On 1 October 2026 a standard seat cost £15 a month on ChatGPT Business and £18 including VAT on Claude Team, both billed annually. Microsoft 365 Copilot Business, added to an existing Microsoft 365 plan, was £13.80 before VAT on a first-year offer. For five users that is £900, £1,080 and £828 a year. Each vendor's page says business-plan content is not used to train its models by default.
Source: Each vendor's UK pricing page and data terms, read 1 October 2026; our arithmetic
How quickly should a law firm acknowledge a client's complaint?
Within five working days, with a copy of the complaints procedure, under the Legal Ombudsman's model procedure published on 29 July 2026. The model is voluntary and also allows ten working days for early resolution. The eight weeks for a final response are not voluntary. A complaint made on Thursday 1 October 2026 is acknowledged by Thursday 8 October.
Source: Legal Ombudsman Model Complaints Resolution Procedure, 29 July 2026
How long does a conveyancer have to send the Stamp Duty Land Tax return after completion?
Fourteen days from completion in England, for both the return and the tax, with penalties and interest after that. For land in Wales the Land Transaction Tax return and payment are due within 30 days of the day after completion. A missing land transaction return certificate is one of the common reasons HM Land Registry raises a requisition on the application to register.
Source: GOV.UK, Stamp Duty Land Tax: how and when to pay; GOV.WALES, Land Transaction Tax: overview; HM Land Registry practice guide 50
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