Professional Conduct Revision Notes
SRA Principles
SRA Principles – The SRA Principles require individuals and firms to act:
o in a way that upholds the rule of law and proper administration of justice (Principle 1);
o in a way that upholds public trust and confidence in the solicitors’ profession and in legal
services provided by authorised persons (Principle 2);
o with independence (Principle 3);
o with honesty (Principle 4);
o with integrity (Principle 5);
o in a way that encourages equality, diversity and inclusion (Principle 6); and
o in the best interests of each client (Principle 7).
Conflicts – Should the Principles come into conflict, the Principles which safeguard the wider
public interest take priority over the interests of an individual client.
Scope – The Principles apply to legal professionals in their professional and personal lives.
Principles of Client Care
Conflicts Check
Conflict Checks – A firm must have effective governance structures, arrangements, systems and
controls in place that ensure it complies with all the SRA’s regulatory arrangements, as well as
other regulatory and legislative requirements which apply.
Extent – The duty to check conflicts extends to:
o any other work the firm is doing in other offices, both national and international; and
o a solicitor’s own interests.
Frequency – A conflict check should be carried out when taking new instructions from both
new and existing clients.
Substance of Conflict Check – A search should be carried out against:
o the client’s name, including any of its parent or subsidiary companies; and
o the client’s company number, including those of its parent or subsidiary companies.
Extension – A conflict check may also be extended to include:
o the company name and number of the company being acquired;
o the names of directors of the client, including any parent company and subsidiaries,
and of the counterparty; and
o the name of the matter.
Customer Due Diligence (“CDD”)
CDD – A solicitor / firm must carry out CDD when (a) establishing a business relationship, (b)
carrying out an occasional transaction, or (c) suspicions of money laundering or terrorist
financing arise.
Verification – Verification includes (a) obtaining original documents, (b) conducting
electronic verification, and (c) obtaining information from other regulated persons.
Client Care Letters
Client Care Letter – A letter sent to a client at the beginning of a matter setting out the terms on
which the solicitor will carry out work for that client (letter of engagement or retainer letter).
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, Ongoing Obligation – Client care letters create an ongoing obligation to keep a client informed
about all aspects of their matter as it progresses, including a duty to inform them if any
information in the client care letter becomes superseded.
Repeat Business – Where a client is an established client and a firm is carrying out repeat work
on agreed terms, it need not send a fresh client care letter. It is common to send annual client
care letters to established clients and shorter letters once they receive instructions on each new
matter.
Property Practice – It is common for a property developer to pay a fixed fee plus VAT and
disbursements per sale of each property in a development, meaning a lawyer need only
acknowledge receipt of instructions if the relevant standards have been achieved in the
annual client care letter.
Contents – A client care letter should:
o confirm the client’s instructions and explain the issues / options available to the client,
including agreements on next steps, the appropriate level of service, and how the client
will be kept informed;
o provide general information on the responsibilities of the solicitor / firm and the client,
including the right of the firm to a lien in respect of their files if there are any unpaid
costs;
o provide costs information;
o explain who will be dealing with the matter, including the name and status of the person
dealing with the matter and who is supervising them; and
o outline the complaints procedure, including how the client can complain, to whom they
should complain, and details of the firm’s complaints procedure.
Undesirable Content – It is undesirable for a client care letter to be:
o complicated, with legalistic language, terms and phrasing;
o too lengthy, with dense paragraphs and small font sizes, which makes finding key
information difficult; and
o focused on generic information rather than specifics relevant to that client.
Termination – There is no CSS or CCF guidance as to termination. It is good practice to terminate
a client care letter where:
o a solicitor / firm cannot obtain clear instructions or any instructions are conflicting;
o continuing to act would break the law or breach CCS or CCF; or
o the client has failed to pay its bills.
Self-Interest – A solicitor or firm cannot terminate a retainer on grounds of self-interest.
Accepting Instructions
Authorisation – A solicitor must only act for clients on instructions from the client or from
someone properly authorised to provide instructions on their behalf.
Suspicion – If a solicitor has reason to suspect that that instructions do not represent the
client’s wishes, the solicitor must not act unless they have satisfied themselves that they do.
Good Practice – It is good practice for a solicitor to:
o carry out identity checks and verify their client’s identity;
o exercise caution when accepting instructions from one spouse on behalf of the other and
require written confirmation from the other spouse that they are authorised instructions
from their spouse; and
o when acting for a company, ensure that instructions are coming from a validly appointed
director with authorisation to instruct.
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SRA Principles
SRA Principles – The SRA Principles require individuals and firms to act:
o in a way that upholds the rule of law and proper administration of justice (Principle 1);
o in a way that upholds public trust and confidence in the solicitors’ profession and in legal
services provided by authorised persons (Principle 2);
o with independence (Principle 3);
o with honesty (Principle 4);
o with integrity (Principle 5);
o in a way that encourages equality, diversity and inclusion (Principle 6); and
o in the best interests of each client (Principle 7).
Conflicts – Should the Principles come into conflict, the Principles which safeguard the wider
public interest take priority over the interests of an individual client.
Scope – The Principles apply to legal professionals in their professional and personal lives.
Principles of Client Care
Conflicts Check
Conflict Checks – A firm must have effective governance structures, arrangements, systems and
controls in place that ensure it complies with all the SRA’s regulatory arrangements, as well as
other regulatory and legislative requirements which apply.
Extent – The duty to check conflicts extends to:
o any other work the firm is doing in other offices, both national and international; and
o a solicitor’s own interests.
Frequency – A conflict check should be carried out when taking new instructions from both
new and existing clients.
Substance of Conflict Check – A search should be carried out against:
o the client’s name, including any of its parent or subsidiary companies; and
o the client’s company number, including those of its parent or subsidiary companies.
Extension – A conflict check may also be extended to include:
o the company name and number of the company being acquired;
o the names of directors of the client, including any parent company and subsidiaries,
and of the counterparty; and
o the name of the matter.
Customer Due Diligence (“CDD”)
CDD – A solicitor / firm must carry out CDD when (a) establishing a business relationship, (b)
carrying out an occasional transaction, or (c) suspicions of money laundering or terrorist
financing arise.
Verification – Verification includes (a) obtaining original documents, (b) conducting
electronic verification, and (c) obtaining information from other regulated persons.
Client Care Letters
Client Care Letter – A letter sent to a client at the beginning of a matter setting out the terms on
which the solicitor will carry out work for that client (letter of engagement or retainer letter).
1
, Ongoing Obligation – Client care letters create an ongoing obligation to keep a client informed
about all aspects of their matter as it progresses, including a duty to inform them if any
information in the client care letter becomes superseded.
Repeat Business – Where a client is an established client and a firm is carrying out repeat work
on agreed terms, it need not send a fresh client care letter. It is common to send annual client
care letters to established clients and shorter letters once they receive instructions on each new
matter.
Property Practice – It is common for a property developer to pay a fixed fee plus VAT and
disbursements per sale of each property in a development, meaning a lawyer need only
acknowledge receipt of instructions if the relevant standards have been achieved in the
annual client care letter.
Contents – A client care letter should:
o confirm the client’s instructions and explain the issues / options available to the client,
including agreements on next steps, the appropriate level of service, and how the client
will be kept informed;
o provide general information on the responsibilities of the solicitor / firm and the client,
including the right of the firm to a lien in respect of their files if there are any unpaid
costs;
o provide costs information;
o explain who will be dealing with the matter, including the name and status of the person
dealing with the matter and who is supervising them; and
o outline the complaints procedure, including how the client can complain, to whom they
should complain, and details of the firm’s complaints procedure.
Undesirable Content – It is undesirable for a client care letter to be:
o complicated, with legalistic language, terms and phrasing;
o too lengthy, with dense paragraphs and small font sizes, which makes finding key
information difficult; and
o focused on generic information rather than specifics relevant to that client.
Termination – There is no CSS or CCF guidance as to termination. It is good practice to terminate
a client care letter where:
o a solicitor / firm cannot obtain clear instructions or any instructions are conflicting;
o continuing to act would break the law or breach CCS or CCF; or
o the client has failed to pay its bills.
Self-Interest – A solicitor or firm cannot terminate a retainer on grounds of self-interest.
Accepting Instructions
Authorisation – A solicitor must only act for clients on instructions from the client or from
someone properly authorised to provide instructions on their behalf.
Suspicion – If a solicitor has reason to suspect that that instructions do not represent the
client’s wishes, the solicitor must not act unless they have satisfied themselves that they do.
Good Practice – It is good practice for a solicitor to:
o carry out identity checks and verify their client’s identity;
o exercise caution when accepting instructions from one spouse on behalf of the other and
require written confirmation from the other spouse that they are authorised instructions
from their spouse; and
o when acting for a company, ensure that instructions are coming from a validly appointed
director with authorisation to instruct.
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