Advisory Working Group launches conveyancing forum to explore i… forum

A benchmark report outlining the digital maturity of conveyancing departments and firms has been published for the third time, with a near 10% improvement in scores across the sector says its authors. The Digital Conveyancing Maturity Index, published by InfoTrack and launched at the Digital Conveyancing Summit hosted in London, sets out to measure the level of technology adoption and maturity amongst conveyancers. First launched in 2022, the report looks at five key areas of conveyancing; client onboarding, pre-completion, post-completion, new business, and integration and digital records. In 2026 a new sixth section on AI usage and governance has been added. The average score for firms participating in 2026 was 59.8%. In 2024 that figure was 54.4%. At first glance, explained InfoTrack, it suggests little has changed. However the technology provider said the bar had moved “considerably higher.” “AI is changing digital conveyancing in two ways. Firms are beginning to use it directly in their day to day work, while technology providers are using it to develop and improve software more quickly. Together, these changes are raising expectations of what effective digital delivery looks like. “Put simply, a firm that had stood still since 2024 could now score up to 10% lower. Against a moving benchmark, maintaining an average score in the mid-forties is more impressive than the headline alone suggests.” Top of the pile in 2026 was Bell Lamb & Joynson who retained their title from t

Research among over 2000 people and the Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO) own case files has revealed the growing influence of AI on complaints with more than half of people who have made, or considered making, a formal complaint about a regulated service in the last year using AI as part of their complaints journey, A newly published report by the LeO AI and complaints: removing barriers, reinforcing divides?, suggests AI is becoming an increasingly important part of the complaints journey. 79% of those who used AI to help decide whether to complain said it influenced their decision, although more were influenced not to complain than to proceed. 51% of the Legal Ombudsman complaint files reviewed showed indicators of AI use. AI appeared to have a positive impact in 33% of those cases, but a negative impact in 35%. 70% of under-35s who had made or considered a complaint had used AI, compared with only 16% of 55 to 75-year-olds. The report is accompanied by two new Spotlight articles one for service providers on responding effectively to AI-assisted complaints and another which is consumer-focused and has issued a AI prompt template to help clients articulate concerns clearly. The LeO said the research suggests some consumers may decide not to pursue a complaint based on the information or advice generated by AI, with the findings raising “important questions about how consumers access information and support, and how technology may influence access to justice and redress in the future.

The average UK home costs the equivalent of 7.3 times average earnings, down from 7.6 a year ago and the lowest level since 2015. Nationally, the average property price increased by +0.5% over the last year, to £299,131, while average earnings rose by +4.5% to £40,790, narrowing the gap between average house prices and earnings leading to hopes of an uplift in market activity. For first-time buyers (FTB) the house price to earnings ratio fell from 6.1 to 5.9 after a 0.3% rise in average FTB property prices. Commenting on the figures, drawn from an Affordability Review by Lloyds, Andrew Asaam, mortgages director at Lloyds said they should provide encouragement, adding affordability remained stretched with mortgage rates higher than they were a year ago. Meanwhile Nationwide’s latest house price index reports house price growth has halved to 0.8% in September, the “weakest rate of growth” since December 2025. Commenting, Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist said due to house price growth being “well below earnings growth for some time” underlying affordability is improving. Earlier this week the Bank of England’s Money and Credit data revealed net mortgage approvals for house purchases decreased to 54,900 in August, below an average of around 60,100 over the previous 6 months. Mortgage borrowing increased to £4.4 billion in August, from £4.1 billion in July, but remained below the previous 6-month average of £5.2 billion. Approvals for remortgaging decreased to 34,000 i

Consumers asking AI to recommend a trusted solicitor are being directed to firms that have been fined or shut down by the Solicitors Regulations Authority (SRA), according to a new study from an access to justice charity. Blind Justice UK’s AI’s Blind Spot report highlights how AI tools could be steering people unknowingly towards using solicitors’ firms the regulator has intervened in, or closed down. The research, conducted in September of this year, directed questions clients would typically ask about solicitors to three leading AI assistants, ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude. The study found when asked thirty times for the best conveyancing solicitors in Doncaster, all three chatbots listed first a firm the SRA had recently fined. ChatGPT and Claude chose a firm fined £23,549 in 2025; Gemini chose one fined £30,540 in 2020. None of the AI tools flagged this information to the user. When asked ten times for the best conveyancing solicitors in Maidenhead, Claude named the same firm among the best every time, despite the SRA having shut that firm down nearly seven months prior. The report said, “in every direct check we ran, ChatGPT found the fine” however when asking the client questions, the assistants turned to Google listings and review sites which showed the regulator’s badge on its profiles but featured none of its decisions. The research also found the SRA removes most decisions from its website after three years; in the charity’s sample, every fine older than that period h

Charity Breast Cancer Now has called on law firms and chambers to sign up for the legal sector’s annual charity static bike race, Tour de Law. Taking place on Wednesday 14 October and Thursday 15 October, the event will see barristers and solicitors across the UK compete head-to-head in a virtual cycling competition to race from the Royal Courts of Justice in London to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, raising funds for Breast Cancer Now. Since its inception in 2012, Tour de Law has raised over £1.6 million for breast cancer research and support, with last year’s event cycling 12,000 km and raising approximately £150,000. The event will take place between 8am and 5.15pm on Wednesday 14 October and between 8am and 4pm on Thursday 15 October, with Breast Cancer Now providing each office with two static bikes and everything needed for fundraising. Participating firms and chambers will have 100 slots of 15 minutes each to cycle as many kilometres as they can, following a route of 20 virtual landmarks. The winning team will have the highest combined distance in kilometres and fundraising total in pounds, and will claim the title of Tour de Law Champion 2026. The registration deadline is Friday 2nd October. Law firms and chambers can sign up at https://tourdelaw.breastcancernow.org/

Kate Burt, solicitor and founder of legal risk and compliance consultancy HiveRisk, says the SRA’s decision to pause its controversial COLP and COFA separation plans gives firms welcome breathing space – but continued engagement will be essential if the eventual solution is to be proportionate and workable. The SRA has now confirmed it will pause the planned changes following pushback from across the profession. That is a significant and welcome development, particularly for sole practitioners and small owner-managed firms already reviewing their governance arrangements ahead of the phased introduction from January 2027. But a pause is not a resolution. The regulatory concerns behind the proposal remain – and so do the profession’s questions about whether Rule 8.4 was the right way to address them. A welcome breathing space The breaking news came through while I was leading a roundtable on AI and ethics for law firms in Sheffield. With representatives from a number of SME and boutique practices in the room, the immediate relief when the news broke was telling. The potential operational impact of Rule 8.4 had become very real. This was never simply a debate about regulatory oversight. Firms were having to consider changes to established governance structures, reconsider existing COLP and COFA appointments and, in some cases, potentially recruit additional senior people. Those decisions carry significant commercial and operational consequences. The concerns have never been abou

Over 12 months Project 28 has grown from 23 founding organisations to around 60 members, all aligned to the goal of reducing the average time from sale agreed to exchange from 112 days to 28. Here Anthony Rollason discusses the need for evidence that members are committed to improving transaction times at scale. As the Charter enters its second year, the challenge is no longer building support but demonstrating measurable results through transparent data, governance and accountability. Launched in September 2025, Project 28 promised to reduce the average time from sale agreed to exchange from 112 days to 28. Twenty-three organisations committed to eight practical steps aimed at solving what’s now an £400 million annual problem for home movers, plus an estimated £1 billion in wasted professional effort. Today, membership stands at around 60 organisations. But the question remains, what has actually moved? Where Progress Stands Project 28 has sustained momentum in a sector not famous for collective action. Membership opened to the wider industry in March 2026, and uptake has been swift spanning agents, conveyancers, lenders, brokers, and technology partners. For a voluntary charter with no regulatory backing, that is a notable recruitment achievement. The initiative won ‘Corporate & Brand Campaign of the Year’ at the 2026 PRCA Public Affairs Awards, demonstrating significant industry engagement. However, the baseline data has not visibly moved. Landmark’s own materials still ci

Tishka Chapman has been a partner in Wolferstans’ Residential Conveyancing team for 16 years. She’s seen the job change: the compliance, the technology, the pace clients now expect. Some of the waiting she can remove. The rest she can’t – so she’s built her team around making sure no client is ever left in the dark about their matter. A firm you can walk into Wolferstans has served the South West since 1812. Today it runs two offices in North Hill and Plympton, with over 200 staff covering every area of law except criminal. But ask Tishka Chapman what kind of firm it is, and the answer isn’t about practice areas or headcount. “ We have lots of clients who attend the office to drop documents off, or want a quick conversation with you over something. We open from 8.30am to 5.30pm – I saw clients at half eight this morning before they went into work.” It’s a small detail that says a lot. In an industry increasingly defined by portals, apps, and national conveyancing chains, personal care, including the ability to choose an early appointment, is of a piece with everything else the firm does to shorten the distance between client expectations and firm delivery. Local staff, no client distance Wolferstans’ local identity isn’t incidental; it’s structural. All 200+ staff are employed directly by the firm, with no consultants. Most staff work from the office regularly, including Tishka herself. Her trainee, Keeva Fitzgerald, is in four days a week, with the fifth being her training d

Cautions against first registration (PG3) Page summary: Lodging a caution against first registration and dealing with caution titles (practice guide 3). Change made: Section 2.2 has been amended as the Chancery Division of the High Court has been replaced by the Business and Property Division. Time updated: 6:00am, 1 October 2026

Minerva, the intelligent onboarding platform for modern law firms, will sponsor the Customer Service Champion category at this year’s British Wills and Probate Awards. The partnership reflects Minerva’s growing commitment to the wills, probate and trusts sector. The awards take place on 8 October at the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel in Manchester, bringing together professionals from across the industry to recognise excellence, innovation and outstanding service. For Minerva, the Customer Service Champion award is a particularly fitting one to support. Wills and probate professionals often work with people at some of the most important and sensitive moments in their lives. Providing a clear, supportive, and efficient client experience is therefore essential to delivering an excellent legal service. Minerva helps law firms deliver that experience from the very beginning of the client relationship. Its full-service onboarding solution integrates into firms’ existing workflows, reducing friction and administrative pressure while helping clients move through the onboarding process as smoothly as possible. In practice, Minerva eases the pressure of onboarding, giving legal professionals more time to focus on their clients and the work that requires their expertise and personal attention. Ben Mills, commercial director at Minerva said: “We’re delighted to be supporting the British Wills and Probate Awards for the first time and to recognise the firms and individuals setting such a high