Rise in SRA law firm sites’ audits - and fines

Rise in SRA law firm sites’ audits – and fines

Compliance Office highlights an increasingly demanding approach by the SRA

Recently, there has been a sharp rise in law firms having their websites audited by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), according to Compliance Office. That’s enough to make law firms start getting nervous. But what should be of real concern to law firms is that so many of these firms are being cited for wrongdoing by the agency.

In fact, reports Compliance Office, the SRA is adopting an increasingly fault finding approach – specifically to law firms’ pricing information. Indications point to a zero tolerance approach. The SRA does not appear to be open to a site inviting the client to contact the firm for more complex matters or for points of detail. They want the complete picture available clearly on the website.

What does this mean for law firms?

Take the time to ensure your website is compliant. It would help to refresh yourself with the SRA’s Transparency Rules or check out Compliance Office’s free checklist on the SRA’s price transparency website rules for law firms. It involves 16 points law firms should consider.

If you would like a quote for a website audit, please reply to this update email & we will be in touch. For those of you lucky enough to already be on a retainer with us, we are working feverishly behind the scenes to carry out renewed website checks on all retainer clients to ensure previous action points have been followed up and all is in keeping with the latest points the SRA seems to be focusing on. Your main point of contact will be in touch to discuss once we have completed yours.

We were warned

Last summer the SRA warned firms of their intention to start a rolling programme of checks on firm websites to ensure compliance with their transparency rules. At the time, we saw firms increasingly receiving notices from the regulator that they were breaching the rules.

The Transparency Rules came into force in December 2018 and require all regulated firms to display specified information on their websites, including their SRA number, the SRA digital badge, complaints information, costs for certain services, and the qualifications and experience of fee earners.

According to the SRA, the rules are designed to ensure people have accurate and relevant information about a solicitor or firm when they are considering purchasing legal services. The key aim was to help members of the public and small businesses make informed choices, whilst also improving competition in the legal market.

If you would like a quote for a website audit, please be in touch. If you are already on a retainer with us, we are working feverishly behind the scenes to carry out renewed website checks on all retainer clients to ensure previous action points have been followed up and all is in keeping with the latest points the SRA seems to be focusing on.

How are you managing your GDPR compliance requirements?

GDPR added a significant compliance burden on DPOs and data processors. Data breaches must be reported to the authorities within 72 hours, each new data processing activity needs to be documented and Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) must be carried out for processing that is likely to result in a high risk to individuals. Penalties for breaching GDPR can reach into the tens of millions of Euros.

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