Today's Conveyancer Podcast

In a wide ranging interview Deputy Vice President of the Law Society Mark Evans talks to Today's Conveyancer podcast host David Opie about his experience of working in property law, and more recently his role as a Tutor at the University Of Law. 

In October Mark will transition from Deputy Vice President to the role of Vice-President, and ultimately President of the Law Society in 2025, and discusses his view of conveyancing and the challenges and opportunities facing the profession.

The Law Society's upcoming Property Law Conference in October will cover many of the topics conveyancers need to know about; including the next round of guidance on climate change, legislative updates, TA6 consultation and technology and Mark encourages practitioners to attend and stay up to date on the latest sector goings on.  

As a tutor at the University of Law, Mark is on the frontline of education and eulogises to his students about the importance having a home remains to the general public. We will always need conveyancers, says Mark, and goes on to defend students and newly-qualified conveyancers from some of the criticism levelled at them and their understanding of land law.

It is incumbent on firms to ensure they continually invest and train their staff and ultimately support them to be better at their jobs. 

The discussion finishes with a synopsis of the Law Society's current work on the TA6 consultation. With a timetable now in place, and having chaired the recent Special General Meeting personally, Mark says he is pleased to see the level of engagement from around the profession and is looking forward to being involved in the consolation in the coming months. 

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has recently requested law firms complete an anti-money laundering and sanctions data collection exercise. The SRA is required by Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS) to take a risk-based approach to supervision and is requesting firms complete the requested information as full as possible. 

It will, they say enable them to "see the distribution of risk across the legal profession, which in turn informs our programme of inspections and our guidance."

The latest Today's Conveyancer podcast welcomes Gavin Ball of HiveRisk to tackle the tricky topic of what firms need to be thinking about when it comes to completing the information, and wider considerations when it comes to firms' anti-money laundering policies, processes and procedures. 

In 2024 alone law firms have been fine £200,000 directly relating to failures in their anti-money laundering and sanctions processes. 

Gavin goes on to discuss the areas he sees firms failing on as a compliance specialist. He talks technology and how it can help firms with their compliance obligations but warns the key is understanding what the information is telling you... in their audits the SRA will challenge firms and staff to interpret reports provided through technology and how to interpret its content. 

Gavin also discusses politically exposed persons (PEPs), sanctions, and how to deal with reporting suspicious activity (SARs) to the National Crime Agency (NCA) in this informative and insightful podcast.  

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

A general election, interest rates, mortgage rates and the European Championships... a perfect storm of economic, political and social issues have come together to continue to strangle the property market according to the latest Landmark Property Trends Report for the second quarter of 2024.

The report tracks property listing volumes, Sold Subject to Contract (SSTC) numbers, searches ordered and completions and benchmark current numbers against 2019 data; the last time the property market was in a broadly "normal" cycle.

Podcast host David Opie is joined by Managing Director of Ochresoft Rob Gurney, and Managing Director of Landmark Estate Agency Services Ben Robinson to discuss the results of the latest report which identifies listings being 6% up on 2019, SSTC 32% down on 2019 levels, and completions some 40% down.

It all points to a disconnect between the start of the transaction, which is positive with more properties coming to market and more choice, and the end of the transaction.

"The property market is not like a waterfall flowing freely from top to bottom" says Rob Gurney. "Rather it's much more like a bottle of ketchup, needing intermittent taps to encourage progress, with a splurge of completions anticipated soon."

When exactly that will be remains up for debate.

"The Summer holidays has traditionally seen a slowdown in property activity before ramping up in the Autumn" adds Ben Robinson.

"Most of the reasons we've seen for the property market being held back seem to have been alleviated," concludes Rob Gurney.

Watch this space...

CLICK HERE to review the Landmark Property Trends Report Q2 2024

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

Movera CEO Nick Hale joins the latest Today's Conveyancer Podcast to discuss the his, and Movera's, progress since his last appearance on the podcast in July 2023.

Across its businesses Movera touch c.25% of all remortgage and sale and purchase transactions. Having been in the role for 2 years, Nick reflects on what he wishes he'd known when taking on the role, that he knows now.

He shares the objectives of Movera which is to improve the home moving experience for people, partners and clients, in a sector where none of those have been particularly well served. He describes how they have adopted a mantra of making the home moving experience "digital when it can be, and personal when it needs to be" recognising that people are at the heart of the business, and that they are one half of a legal system which has players "across the value chain."

It is clear, says Nick, change had started, and it will accelerate with the emergence of players who have the capacity and ability to make decisive change in the home moving process.

He explains how their own investment in artificial intelligence (AI) and automation is designed to help his team spend more time using their technical skills; and says over the past 12 months they have delivered over 500 remortgage transactions in less than 48 hours, and 1500 in less than 5 days. It is, he adds, their ambition to 'lead the market on merit' and points to their net promoter score (NPS) "high 60s early 70s."

Drawn on the criticisms levelled at volume conveyancing businesses Nick hits back at comments online and at a recent conference describing these organisations as "factory muppets."

He suggests that language is not acceptable, or professional and is indicative of a lack of understanding and respect for the larger organisations. Within his own he says they have created career pathways; introduced the Movera Academy which all staff go through and introduces learning interventions and upskilling across the business; improved their NPS scores; with a team who are committed according to their latest feedback

There is, he adds, a bigger story here, highlighting the frustration and tension in the sector. But we can use technology to release that tension. There is a growing group of people and businesses who want to make improvements to the sector.

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

A collaboration between conveyancing firm Simply Conveyancing and property technology business Orbital Witness is the topic of discussion in the latest Today's Conveyancer podcast .

Host David Opie is joined by Sue Bence, Chief Operating Officer at Simply Conveyancing, and Ed Boulle, co-founder of Orbital Witness to discuss the introduction of Orbital's title checking software, which uses large language model artificial intelligence to support and speed up the title investigation process.

The offering is currently aimed at leasehold transactions where it first digitises the documents before they are fed into the engine developed by Orbital Witness, which incorporates elements of AI, to answer standard form questions within a minute.
It's not a replacement for a conveyancer, says Ed Boulle, rather it significantly reduces the time it takes to triage a new matter; uncover any issues and roadblocks; enables you to communicate those with the client; allocate the most appropriate fee earner to the case; and importantly introduce greater consistency to the process.

The discussion outlines some of the process and metrics Simply Conveyancing used as part of its initial pilot to understand the potential impact on efficiency and quality improvement for the firm. Sue tackles the benefits of early identification of complex cases and issues, better and more consistent way of reporting, and the costs associated with pilots like this. There has to be a clear cost/benefit analysis and she encourages firms to look at capacity, time and productivity opportunities available to conveyancers.

Sue also explores the response of the staff which ranged from welcoming through to scepticism; and discusses how Simply identified change agents in their business who helped smoothe the transition and support the introduction of new technology. Far from replacing the skills of the conveyancer, the idea here is very much to support them, says Sue.

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

Do conveyancers get the credit they perhaps deserve for the progress they have made in adopting technology and new processes? Do they come under pressure to adopt change and technology and how can we improve the way we introduce process and change management in our businesses and bring people along with us on that journey?

How can we ensure our staff are both technically competent, and have the soft skills required for the role; conveyancing is an increasingly multi-faceted role with technology, legal expertise, stakeholder management, client experience and customer service skills all critical to an individual's success. 

All topics of conversation in the latest Today's Conveyancer Podcast with guest Gemma Fulbrook-Felstead, Operations Director at Collaborative Conveyancing. The discussion explores the challenges of change management and introducing new technologies and processes, encouraging firms to visualise what the short, medium and long term impact of change could be.  Gemma also discusses how we can support people with individuality and flair within process driven roles.

And on the topic of change management Gemma draws on her experience working in management consultancy in getting firms to draw out of staff their fears and concerns around change and drilling into the "why" of change so people can understand and challenge it.

But firms must also be cautious of process and technology change; conveyancers use an average of 3.7 technology systems in their roles and as Gemma says, what we don't want is to introduce changes that end up creating barriers, or clash... we need them to be cohesive and seamless. 

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

Nicola Ashley and Nicola Davies are former conveyancers and now founders of outsourced title investigation service N Title. They join podcast host David Opie on this latest Today's Conveyancer podcast to discuss their journey over the past 4 years, as well as exploring the opportunities outsourcing provides firms to flex up and down without adding significant overhead. 

By their own admission the business model has pivoted in the time they have been in business. Having set up anticipating they would be running an overflow service for the majority of their clients, they are now an integrated part of firms' processes up and down the country.

Nicola and Nicola explain how firms adapt their processes depending on the nature of the title, with increasingly complex investigations now being sent to them, instead of being dealt with in house.  They are also engaged to cover holidays and staff absence.

As a result of their expertise they are often called upon to provide training, and say their reports can be used as training tools. On the topic of enquiries they are clear; they will raise only relevant and necessary enquiries, borne out of the experience of their team. 

With a fragile market, and uncertainty around transaction volumes, especially with the upcoming election, there is merit, they say, in looking at employment vs outsourcing models and considering what works best for the law firm of the future. 

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

In a discussion which will no doubt elicit cries of empathy and a collective nod from compliance teams in law firms up and down the country, Lucy Batten joins the latest Today's Conveyancer Podcast to discuss her role as Executive Director and Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP) at Gloucestershire-based Montpellier Legal. Her role encompasses oversight of the full gamut of compliance and regulatory requirements placed on the modern law firm and she fulfils the role of Money Laundering Compliance Officer (MLCO) and Senior Reporting Officer (SRO) for the CQS regime. 

In a wide-ranging discussion on the extent of the role, the importance of empowerment and training, and the practicalities of keeping a team on the straight and narrow, Lucy articulates the challenges she faces, and the tools she adopts to ensure the firm remains compliant.

Lucy also goes into detail about a recent SRA AML audit the firm was the subject of; providing some insight into the expectations of the audit, and the firm's take-aways and learnings from the inspection. Critical, says Lucy, is the level of detail in firm's Practice Wide Risk Assessment (PWRA); it is also important that all staff understand the policies and procedures in place as they will be interviewed.

Lucy moves on the discuss the importance of training and explaining to staff why we do what, which will embed the learning and understanding. She reminds us of why we conduct money laundering checks; to protect the firm and more importantly, to protect the public. It cannot be seen as a tick-box exercise, says Lucy, and demonstrates the need for firms to dedicate more resource to compliance roles and responsibilities. 

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

In this specially recorded podcast, the Today's Conveyancer podcast joins forces with its sister podcasts from the Today's Wills and Probate and Today's Family Lawyer online news publications to discuss the topic of mental health and wellbeing ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, from 13th May 2024.

Podcast host David Opie welcomes Legal Director at Convey Law Laura Burkinshaw, Michael Culver (Culver Law) and Marc Etherington (Rayden Solicitors) to discuss the mental health and wellbeing of those working across residential conveyancing, private client and family law. The three guests identify some shared, and unique, challenges they face in their own roles, and discuss their own experiences of dealing with their mental health and wellbeing.

What is clear from the discussion is that legal services is taking mental health and wellbeing much more seriously than it ever has; with firms taking a more proactive approach to support for staff.

The podcast moves on to explore a range of skills and tools we can employ in our own mental health and wellbeing journeys to cope with the stresses and strains of modern legal life; with some fantastic ideas shared to help people exercise their bodies and minds, cope and deal with their roles, and get into what is described as their "flow state"; the experience of being so absorbed by an engaging, enjoyable task that your attention is completely held by it.

The podcast is being published as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2024. 

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack

In this latest episode of the Today's Conveyancer Podcast host David Opie discusses the challenges firms face with the Building Safety Act (BSA). Liz Ramsden and Hannah Page, Senior Associate and Associate respectively at law firm Knights who have immersed themselves in all things Building Safety Act and now act on behalf of Knights in matters where the BSA applies; and have also worked with other conveyancing and property law firms to support them.

Liz and Hannah explore what the key issues are, not least of which is whether the property actually comes under the scope of the act. It is, says Liz, a hugely complex piece of legislation. Every property is different and each transaction must be taken on its own merits. It can also be difficult to establish where liability sits with regards the landlord or developer.

Hannah concurs, adding that even determining the height of the building is a critical element that conveyancers should be seeking external advise on from surveyors.It is also common for leaseholder deed of certificates and and landlord certificates to be incorrectly completed; and some lenders won't lend on non-qualifying leases

The list of woes continues; the BSA is open to interpretation and getting it wrong could have catastrophic consequences for individuals and firms,  Advice in many cases is to obtain guidance from counsel but this tends to increase costs.

What is apparent is the attitude of professional indemnity insurers toward transactions involving the BSA, which has been understandably risk-averse.  Knights have actively engaged to demonstrate expertise, procedures, policies, disclaimers, enquiries and retainers which have been agreed between the firm and PI insurers to enable them to do their work on BSA. Critically, they have been clear on what they will, and will not, undertake as part of their work.

This wide ranging discussion explores the challenges presented by BSA, the interim updates which make the act more workable, and some practical advice on how firms can address BSA related issues with transactions.

The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views. 

Thank you to our podcast sponsors LEAP Legal Software and InfoTrack