Key Parts of the Code
Chapter 1 – ❖ Providing a Proper Standard of Client Care:
Client Care o O1.1: You must treat your clients fairly.
o O1.2: The services offered must protect the client’s interests in their matter.
o O1.5: Services must be competent, delivered in a timely manner, and take account of
a client’s needs and circumstances.
o O1.7: Clients should be told how the service is regulated (e.g. by the SRA).
❖ Clients Must be Able to Make Informed Decisions:
o O1.12: You must ensure clients are in a position to make informed decisions about
the services they need, how their matter will be handled, and the options available to
them.
o IB 1.1: You should agree an appropriate level of service with his clients e.g. type and
frequency of communication.
o IB 1.2: you should explain to a client their responsibilities e.g. to provide you with up-
to-date information to enable you to provide a proper standard of service.
❖ Personnel:
o IB1.3: A client should be told, in writing the name and status of the person dealing
with the matter, and the name of the person responsible for supervision.
❖ Costs and Fee Arrangements:
o O1.6: you may only enter into fee agreements which are legal, suit the client’s needs
and take account of the client’s best interests.
o O 1.13: Clients must receive the “best possible information” both at the time of
engagement and when appropriate as their matter progresses about the likely overall
cost of their matter. I.e. insufficient to provide the client just with details of the
solicitor’s hourly rate.
o IB 1.13: you should discuss whether the potential outcomes of the client’s matter are
likely to justify the expense or risk
o IB 1.14: you should clearly explain your fees and if and when they are likely to
change.
o IB 1.15: you should warn clients as to any payments for which they may be
responsible.
o IB 1.16: you should discuss how the client will pay including the availability of:
▪ Public funding.
▪ Insurance.
▪ Trade Union Funding.
o IB 1.17: you should give your client all relevant information relating to any fee
arrangement e.g. CFA.
o IB 1.19: you should provide the information in a clear and accessible form which is
appropriate to the needs and circumstances of the client.
o IB 1.21: you should ensure disbursements included in your bill reflect the actual
amount spent/to be spent.
❖ Receiving Financial Benefits:
o O1.15: You must account to clients for any financial benefits you receive
o IB 1.20: Where you receive a financial benefit as a result of acting for a client, you
may show that you have complied with the outcomes if you pay it to the client, offset
it against your fees, keep it only where you can justify keeping it, and you have told
the client the amount of the benefit.
❖ Complaints:
o O1.8: Must be dealt with promptly, fairly, openly and effectively.
, o O1.9: Clients must be informed IN WRITING at the outset of their right to complain
and how complaints can be made.
o O1.10: Clients must be informed IN WRITING at the time of engagement and at the
conclusion of the firm’s complaints procedure, of their right to complain to the Legal
Ombudsman, the time-frame for doing so and how to contact the Legal Ombudsman
❖ Requirement to have a Written Complaints Procedure:
o IB 1.22: The firm must have a written complaints procedure which is “brought to the
client’s attention” at the outset of the matter, is easy to understand and allows for
complaints to be made by any reasonable means, is responsive to the needs of
individual clients, enables complaints to be dealt with properly and fairly, provides
for appropriate remedies and does not involve any charge to clients.
o IB 1.23: The firm must provide the client with a copy of the written complaints
procedure “on request”. It is not necessary to give the client a copy of the firm’s
written complaints procedure at the outset unless the client requests this.
❖ Accepting/Refusing Instructions:
o O1.3: Solicitors do not have unfettered discretion to refuse instructions; they must
act in accordance with the law and the code.
o IB 1.28: acceptable not to act for a client when there is suspicion of duress or undue
influence without satisfying himself that the instructions represent the client’s
wishes.
o IB 1.7: acceptable not to act if you cannot act in a client’s best interests.
o IB 1.9: acceptable not to act where your client proposes to give you a gift of
“significant value” i.e. £500 or more.
o O1.3: if you cannot comply with the code is it acceptable to refuse to act e.g. if there
is a conflict of interest, where acting would result in a breach of confidentiality,
where the client seeks to deceive or mislead the court.
❖ Challenging bills:
o Clients must be informed of their right to challenge or complain about a bill, and the
amount of interest he may be liable to pay on an unpaid bill.
❖ Terminating the Retainer:
o IB 1.26: you cannot cease to act for a client without good reason.
Chapter 3 – ❖ Conflicts of Interest:
Conflicts of o Intro: Overriding consideration when considering whether to act under O3.6 and 3.7
Interest is clients’ best interests.
o O3.4: Do not act if there is an own interest conflict.
o O3.5: Do not act if there is a client conflict unless O3.6 or 3.7 apply.
❖ Exceptions where you can act when there is a Client Conflict:
o O3.6: You may act if the clients have a substantially common interest if paras (a) – (d)
apply.
o O3.7: You may act if the clients are competing for the same objective if paras (a) – (e)
apply.
o IB 3.2: Should decline to act where interests are in direct conflict e.g. opponents in
litigation.
o IB 3.3: should decline to act where you need to negotiate on matters of substance
e.g. price between a buyer and seller of property.
o IB 3.4: should decline to act where there is unequal bargaining power between
clients.
o IB 3.5: should decline to act under O3.6 or O3.7 where the clients cannot be
represented even-handedly or will be prejudiced by lack of separate representation.
o IB 3.6: should only act for clients under O3.7 where they are sophisticated users of
legal services.
, o IB 3.8: should not sell to/buy from/lend to/borrow from a client unless they have
obtained independent legal advice.
o IB 3.9: should not advise a client to invest in a business in which you have an interest
where this affects your ability to give impartial advice.
o IB 3.11: you should not act for two or more clients under O3.5 where their interest in
the end result are not the same e.g. partner buying out the interest of another
partner or a seller transferring property to a buyer.
o IB 3.12: you should not act for clients under O3.6 where it is unreasonable to act
because of unequal bargaining power.
o IB 3.13: you should decline to act for two buyers under O3.7 e.g. where they are
competing for a residential property.
o IB 3.13: you should decline to act for a buyer and seller in a transfer of land for value.
Chapter 4 – ❖ Duty of Confidentiality:
Confidentiality o O4.1: You must keep the affairs of your clients confidential unless disclosure is
and Disclosure required or permitted by law or the client consents.
❖ Duty of Disclosure:
o O4.2: You must make a client aware of all information material to their retainer.
❖ Exceptions to the Duty of Disclosure:
o IB 4.4: permissible NOT to disclose information to your client if client consents to
non-disclosure, serious physical or mental injury will be caused by disclosing, legal
restrictions prohibit you from disclosing (e.g. Money Laundering Regs), privileged
documents have been mistakenly disclosed or you come into possession of state
secrets.
❖ Conflict Between the Two Duties:
o O4.3: confidentiality takes precedence.
o O4.4: if we have confidential information in relation to a client which is material to a
prospective clients matter, and the prospective client as an interest adverse to the
current client, we can only act if the confidential information can be protected by the
use of safeguards, the prospective client consents, and either the existing client
consents or you put in place effective safeguards where you cannot obtain consent.
o I.e. must have appropriate safeguards – “Chinese Walls”.
❖ Duty of Confidentiality Continues After the End of the Retainer:
o Intro: duty continues despite the end of the retainer and even after the death of
the client”.
Chapter 5 – ❖ Misleading the Court:
Duties to the o O 5.1: Must not knowingly or recklessly mislead the court.
Court o O5.2: Must not be complicit in another person deceiving or misleading the court.
o IB 5.7: You must not construct facts to support your client’s case or draft documents
which contain a contention you do not consider to be properly arguable or an
allegation of fraud unless instructed to do so and you have material which reasonably
shows a case of fraud.
o IB 5.9: You should not call a witness whose evidence you know is untrue.
❖ If your opponent fails to cite a case/statute:
o IB 5.2: You should draw the court’s attention to relevant cases and statutory
provisions.
o Note: no duty to draw adverse facts to the court’s attention.
❖ If your client misleads the court during the trial:
, o IB 5.5: You should refuse to act if you become aware that a client has committed
perjury or misled or attempted to mislead the court UNLESS the client agrees to
disclose the truth to the court.
❖ If your client admits AFTER the trial that he has misled the court e.g. admits he was guilty:
o Do nothing. Because your retainer has been terminated you will not be in breach of
O5.1 or 5.2. However, your duty of confidentiality under O4.1 lasts beyond the end of
the retainer and would be breached by informing the police/the court etc. of your
client’s guilt.
❖ Coercing a Witness:
o IB 5.10: You should not attempt to influence a witness when drafting their
statement.
❖ IB 5.11: You should not tamper with evidence or seek to persuade a witness to change his
evidence.
Chapter 6 – ❖ Recommending Third Parties to Clients:
Recommending o O6.1: the recommendation must be in the best interests of the client and must not
Third Parties to compromise the solicitor’s independence.
Clients o O6.2: The client must be fully informed of any financial or other interest which the
solicitor has in referring the client to another person or business.
o O6.3: the client must be in a position to make informed decisions about how to
pursue the matter.
Chapter 9 – ❖ Referrals Must Not Prejudice Your Independence:
Where Third o O9.1: should not prejudice a solicitor’s independence and professional judgment.
Parties Refer o IB 9.11: allowing the introducer to influence advice will tend to show that the
Business to the Outcomes have not been achieved.
Firm
❖ Client’s Best interests Take Precedence:
o O9.2: a client’s interests must be protected regardless of the interests of an
introducer.
o O9.3: the client must still be in a position to make informed decisions about how to
pursue the matter.
o IB 9.1: You should only enter into arrangements with reputable third parties.
o IB 9.2: You should advise a client if an arrangement with an introducer is not in the
client’s best interests.
o IB 9.3: you should terminate any arrangement which causes a solicitor to breach the
Principles or any requirements of the Code.
o IB 9.4: you should be satisfied that any client referred by an introducer has not been
acquired as a result of activities which if done by a person regulated by the SRA
would be contrary to the code.
IB 9.12: accepting referrals where you have reason to believe that the client has been
o
pressurised or misled into instructing the firm may show the Outcomes have not
been achieved.
Chapter 11 – ❖ Undertakings
Undertakings and o Intro: no obligation to give one.
Duties to Third o O11.2: if given, must be completed within an agreed timescale or reasonable amount
Parties of time.
o IB 11.5 – Firm’s should maintain an effective system which records when
undertakings have been given and discharged.
, o IB 11.6 – You should notify the recipient of an undertaking which is dependent upon
a future event if it becomes apparent that that event will not occur.
❖ Contract Races:
o O11.3: seller’s solicitor must inform the buyer’s solicitor in the event that the seller
has the intention to deal with more than one buyer.
❖ Taking Advantage of Third Parties:
o O11.1: A solicitor must not use his position to take unfair advantage of anyone.
o IB 11.7 – this is particularly relevant when dealing with a litigant in person. You may
not achieve the outcomes if you take advantage of their lack of legal knowledge.
❖ Communicating with a Represented Party:
o IB 11.4: You should not communicate with another party who has lawyers instructed
except to:
▪ Request the name and address of their lawyer.
▪ The other party’s lawyer consents.
▪ There are exceptional circumstances.
Chapter 1 – ❖ Providing a Proper Standard of Client Care:
Client Care o O1.1: You must treat your clients fairly.
o O1.2: The services offered must protect the client’s interests in their matter.
o O1.5: Services must be competent, delivered in a timely manner, and take account of
a client’s needs and circumstances.
o O1.7: Clients should be told how the service is regulated (e.g. by the SRA).
❖ Clients Must be Able to Make Informed Decisions:
o O1.12: You must ensure clients are in a position to make informed decisions about
the services they need, how their matter will be handled, and the options available to
them.
o IB 1.1: You should agree an appropriate level of service with his clients e.g. type and
frequency of communication.
o IB 1.2: you should explain to a client their responsibilities e.g. to provide you with up-
to-date information to enable you to provide a proper standard of service.
❖ Personnel:
o IB1.3: A client should be told, in writing the name and status of the person dealing
with the matter, and the name of the person responsible for supervision.
❖ Costs and Fee Arrangements:
o O1.6: you may only enter into fee agreements which are legal, suit the client’s needs
and take account of the client’s best interests.
o O 1.13: Clients must receive the “best possible information” both at the time of
engagement and when appropriate as their matter progresses about the likely overall
cost of their matter. I.e. insufficient to provide the client just with details of the
solicitor’s hourly rate.
o IB 1.13: you should discuss whether the potential outcomes of the client’s matter are
likely to justify the expense or risk
o IB 1.14: you should clearly explain your fees and if and when they are likely to
change.
o IB 1.15: you should warn clients as to any payments for which they may be
responsible.
o IB 1.16: you should discuss how the client will pay including the availability of:
▪ Public funding.
▪ Insurance.
▪ Trade Union Funding.
o IB 1.17: you should give your client all relevant information relating to any fee
arrangement e.g. CFA.
o IB 1.19: you should provide the information in a clear and accessible form which is
appropriate to the needs and circumstances of the client.
o IB 1.21: you should ensure disbursements included in your bill reflect the actual
amount spent/to be spent.
❖ Receiving Financial Benefits:
o O1.15: You must account to clients for any financial benefits you receive
o IB 1.20: Where you receive a financial benefit as a result of acting for a client, you
may show that you have complied with the outcomes if you pay it to the client, offset
it against your fees, keep it only where you can justify keeping it, and you have told
the client the amount of the benefit.
❖ Complaints:
o O1.8: Must be dealt with promptly, fairly, openly and effectively.
, o O1.9: Clients must be informed IN WRITING at the outset of their right to complain
and how complaints can be made.
o O1.10: Clients must be informed IN WRITING at the time of engagement and at the
conclusion of the firm’s complaints procedure, of their right to complain to the Legal
Ombudsman, the time-frame for doing so and how to contact the Legal Ombudsman
❖ Requirement to have a Written Complaints Procedure:
o IB 1.22: The firm must have a written complaints procedure which is “brought to the
client’s attention” at the outset of the matter, is easy to understand and allows for
complaints to be made by any reasonable means, is responsive to the needs of
individual clients, enables complaints to be dealt with properly and fairly, provides
for appropriate remedies and does not involve any charge to clients.
o IB 1.23: The firm must provide the client with a copy of the written complaints
procedure “on request”. It is not necessary to give the client a copy of the firm’s
written complaints procedure at the outset unless the client requests this.
❖ Accepting/Refusing Instructions:
o O1.3: Solicitors do not have unfettered discretion to refuse instructions; they must
act in accordance with the law and the code.
o IB 1.28: acceptable not to act for a client when there is suspicion of duress or undue
influence without satisfying himself that the instructions represent the client’s
wishes.
o IB 1.7: acceptable not to act if you cannot act in a client’s best interests.
o IB 1.9: acceptable not to act where your client proposes to give you a gift of
“significant value” i.e. £500 or more.
o O1.3: if you cannot comply with the code is it acceptable to refuse to act e.g. if there
is a conflict of interest, where acting would result in a breach of confidentiality,
where the client seeks to deceive or mislead the court.
❖ Challenging bills:
o Clients must be informed of their right to challenge or complain about a bill, and the
amount of interest he may be liable to pay on an unpaid bill.
❖ Terminating the Retainer:
o IB 1.26: you cannot cease to act for a client without good reason.
Chapter 3 – ❖ Conflicts of Interest:
Conflicts of o Intro: Overriding consideration when considering whether to act under O3.6 and 3.7
Interest is clients’ best interests.
o O3.4: Do not act if there is an own interest conflict.
o O3.5: Do not act if there is a client conflict unless O3.6 or 3.7 apply.
❖ Exceptions where you can act when there is a Client Conflict:
o O3.6: You may act if the clients have a substantially common interest if paras (a) – (d)
apply.
o O3.7: You may act if the clients are competing for the same objective if paras (a) – (e)
apply.
o IB 3.2: Should decline to act where interests are in direct conflict e.g. opponents in
litigation.
o IB 3.3: should decline to act where you need to negotiate on matters of substance
e.g. price between a buyer and seller of property.
o IB 3.4: should decline to act where there is unequal bargaining power between
clients.
o IB 3.5: should decline to act under O3.6 or O3.7 where the clients cannot be
represented even-handedly or will be prejudiced by lack of separate representation.
o IB 3.6: should only act for clients under O3.7 where they are sophisticated users of
legal services.
, o IB 3.8: should not sell to/buy from/lend to/borrow from a client unless they have
obtained independent legal advice.
o IB 3.9: should not advise a client to invest in a business in which you have an interest
where this affects your ability to give impartial advice.
o IB 3.11: you should not act for two or more clients under O3.5 where their interest in
the end result are not the same e.g. partner buying out the interest of another
partner or a seller transferring property to a buyer.
o IB 3.12: you should not act for clients under O3.6 where it is unreasonable to act
because of unequal bargaining power.
o IB 3.13: you should decline to act for two buyers under O3.7 e.g. where they are
competing for a residential property.
o IB 3.13: you should decline to act for a buyer and seller in a transfer of land for value.
Chapter 4 – ❖ Duty of Confidentiality:
Confidentiality o O4.1: You must keep the affairs of your clients confidential unless disclosure is
and Disclosure required or permitted by law or the client consents.
❖ Duty of Disclosure:
o O4.2: You must make a client aware of all information material to their retainer.
❖ Exceptions to the Duty of Disclosure:
o IB 4.4: permissible NOT to disclose information to your client if client consents to
non-disclosure, serious physical or mental injury will be caused by disclosing, legal
restrictions prohibit you from disclosing (e.g. Money Laundering Regs), privileged
documents have been mistakenly disclosed or you come into possession of state
secrets.
❖ Conflict Between the Two Duties:
o O4.3: confidentiality takes precedence.
o O4.4: if we have confidential information in relation to a client which is material to a
prospective clients matter, and the prospective client as an interest adverse to the
current client, we can only act if the confidential information can be protected by the
use of safeguards, the prospective client consents, and either the existing client
consents or you put in place effective safeguards where you cannot obtain consent.
o I.e. must have appropriate safeguards – “Chinese Walls”.
❖ Duty of Confidentiality Continues After the End of the Retainer:
o Intro: duty continues despite the end of the retainer and even after the death of
the client”.
Chapter 5 – ❖ Misleading the Court:
Duties to the o O 5.1: Must not knowingly or recklessly mislead the court.
Court o O5.2: Must not be complicit in another person deceiving or misleading the court.
o IB 5.7: You must not construct facts to support your client’s case or draft documents
which contain a contention you do not consider to be properly arguable or an
allegation of fraud unless instructed to do so and you have material which reasonably
shows a case of fraud.
o IB 5.9: You should not call a witness whose evidence you know is untrue.
❖ If your opponent fails to cite a case/statute:
o IB 5.2: You should draw the court’s attention to relevant cases and statutory
provisions.
o Note: no duty to draw adverse facts to the court’s attention.
❖ If your client misleads the court during the trial:
, o IB 5.5: You should refuse to act if you become aware that a client has committed
perjury or misled or attempted to mislead the court UNLESS the client agrees to
disclose the truth to the court.
❖ If your client admits AFTER the trial that he has misled the court e.g. admits he was guilty:
o Do nothing. Because your retainer has been terminated you will not be in breach of
O5.1 or 5.2. However, your duty of confidentiality under O4.1 lasts beyond the end of
the retainer and would be breached by informing the police/the court etc. of your
client’s guilt.
❖ Coercing a Witness:
o IB 5.10: You should not attempt to influence a witness when drafting their
statement.
❖ IB 5.11: You should not tamper with evidence or seek to persuade a witness to change his
evidence.
Chapter 6 – ❖ Recommending Third Parties to Clients:
Recommending o O6.1: the recommendation must be in the best interests of the client and must not
Third Parties to compromise the solicitor’s independence.
Clients o O6.2: The client must be fully informed of any financial or other interest which the
solicitor has in referring the client to another person or business.
o O6.3: the client must be in a position to make informed decisions about how to
pursue the matter.
Chapter 9 – ❖ Referrals Must Not Prejudice Your Independence:
Where Third o O9.1: should not prejudice a solicitor’s independence and professional judgment.
Parties Refer o IB 9.11: allowing the introducer to influence advice will tend to show that the
Business to the Outcomes have not been achieved.
Firm
❖ Client’s Best interests Take Precedence:
o O9.2: a client’s interests must be protected regardless of the interests of an
introducer.
o O9.3: the client must still be in a position to make informed decisions about how to
pursue the matter.
o IB 9.1: You should only enter into arrangements with reputable third parties.
o IB 9.2: You should advise a client if an arrangement with an introducer is not in the
client’s best interests.
o IB 9.3: you should terminate any arrangement which causes a solicitor to breach the
Principles or any requirements of the Code.
o IB 9.4: you should be satisfied that any client referred by an introducer has not been
acquired as a result of activities which if done by a person regulated by the SRA
would be contrary to the code.
IB 9.12: accepting referrals where you have reason to believe that the client has been
o
pressurised or misled into instructing the firm may show the Outcomes have not
been achieved.
Chapter 11 – ❖ Undertakings
Undertakings and o Intro: no obligation to give one.
Duties to Third o O11.2: if given, must be completed within an agreed timescale or reasonable amount
Parties of time.
o IB 11.5 – Firm’s should maintain an effective system which records when
undertakings have been given and discharged.
, o IB 11.6 – You should notify the recipient of an undertaking which is dependent upon
a future event if it becomes apparent that that event will not occur.
❖ Contract Races:
o O11.3: seller’s solicitor must inform the buyer’s solicitor in the event that the seller
has the intention to deal with more than one buyer.
❖ Taking Advantage of Third Parties:
o O11.1: A solicitor must not use his position to take unfair advantage of anyone.
o IB 11.7 – this is particularly relevant when dealing with a litigant in person. You may
not achieve the outcomes if you take advantage of their lack of legal knowledge.
❖ Communicating with a Represented Party:
o IB 11.4: You should not communicate with another party who has lawyers instructed
except to:
▪ Request the name and address of their lawyer.
▪ The other party’s lawyer consents.
▪ There are exceptional circumstances.
