SRA Covid-19 Updates

Posted on27 March 2020

The COVID-19 situation is an enormously worrying time for everyone.

We understand that law firms and solicitors face uncertainty and difficult business conditions. These are exceptional circumstances and we are looking at what we can do to help and support the legal community, while continuing to protect the public.

We have already published a range of information to help with that. Please keep your queries coming in - we will continue to monitor the situation closely and will keep this information up to date as the situation develops.

Paul Philip
Chief Executive

Coronavirus information on our website

Information to help you deal with some of the issues coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic is now on our website.

We have summarised some of the key information below.

COVID-19: our services

We have contingency plans in place to make sure we can continue to provide a service to the public and profession. With staff now all homeworking, we are moving towards digital services. If you cannot find the answer to your query on our website, please get in touch by email.

Our Professional Ethics team can help with any compliance queries, and are offering a call back service if you email them.

COVID-19: our approach to compliance

We expect solicitors and firms to continue to meet the high standards the public expect. This means they must do everything to comply with our rules and Principles. This includes serving the best interests of their clients and upholding the rule of law.

We recognise, however, these are exceptional circumstances. We must all remain pragmatic. We will take a proportionate approach to enforcement. Consistent with our enforcement strategy, we will focus on serious misconduct, and clearly distinguishing between people who are trying to do the right thing, and those who are not.

Coronavirus: common questions

We have published some answers to common questions about our rules. Topics covered include client confidentiality, wills and our accounts rules. We will add to this as the situation develops.

Coronavirus: other helpful resources

The Law Society is providing advice and updates on coronavirus for the legal profession, including guidance, Q and A and links to useful resources.

We are liaising closely with the Law Society as the situation develops to help support the profession and help solicitors continue to work in their clients’ best interests.