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You are reading current version in effect from 25 November 2019

Guidance

Guidance

Money laundering and terrorist financing - Warning notice

Warning notice: This Warning Notice reminds you of the warning signs of suspicious transactions.

Closing down your practice - Guidance

Guidance: To enable those who are closing down their practice to protect the interests of their clients and comply with our Standards and Regulations.

Money laundering - Case studies

Case studies: These case studies illustrate the importance of having a consistent approach to compliance with the money laundering regulations throughout your entire firm.

How we regulate non-authorised persons

This guidance is to help you understand your obligations and how to comply with them. We may have regard to it when exercising our regulatory functions.

Putting matters right when things go wrong, and own interest conflicts - Guidance

Guidance: To outline certain key considerations for putting matters right when you identify that things have gone wrong through the fault of you or your firm.

Money laundering and terrorist financing - Warning notice

Warning notice: This Warning Notice reminds you of the warning signs of suspicious transactions.

Reporting and notification obligations - Guidance

Guidance: To help you understand your reporting and notification obligations to us.

Bringing criminal proceedings

This guidance is to help you understand how and when we may bring criminal proceedings

How we gather evidence in our regulatory and disciplinary investigations

This guidance is to help you understand how we gather evidence, the investigatory powers we have to gather evidence and how we can use those powers.

On-site investigations (inspections)

This guidance is to help you how we make decisions to conduct an on-site inspection and your obligations in that regard. We may have regard to it when exercising our regulatory functions.

Firm closures due to financial difficulties - Guidance

Guidance: This guidance sets out our approach and the support we can provide to firms which are experiencing financial or other difficulties that threaten their ability to carry on trading.

Glossary terms

SRA

means the Solicitors Regulation Authority

client

means the person for whom you act and, where the context permits, includes prospective and former clients

in the SRA Financial Services (Scope) Rules, in relation to any regulated financial services activities carried on by an authorised body for a trust or the estate of a deceased person (including a controlled trust), means the trustees or personal representatives in their capacity as such and not any person who is a beneficiary under the trust or interested in the estate

relevant insolvency event

occurs in relation to a body if:

  1. a resolution for a voluntary winding up of the body is passed without a declaration of solvency under section 89 of the Insolvency Act 1986;
  2. the body enters administration within the meaning of paragraph 1(2)(b) of Schedule B1 to that Act;
  3. an administrative receiver within the meaning of section 251 of that Act is appointed;
  4. a meeting of creditors is held in relation to the body under section 95 of that Act (creditors' meeting which has the effect of converting a members' voluntary winding up into a creditors' voluntary winding up);
  5. an order for the winding up of the body is made;
  6. all of the managers in a body which is unincorporated have been adjudicated bankrupt; or
  7. the body is an overseas company or a societas Europaea registered outside England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and the body is subject to an event in its country of incorporation analogous to an event as set out in paragraphs (a) to (f) above

occurs in relation to an individual if:

  1. the individual is adjudged bankrupt;
  2. a debt relief order has been made under Part 7A of the Insolvency Act 1986 in respect of that individual; or
  3. the individual has entered into an individual voluntary arrangement or a partnership voluntary arrangement under the Insolvency Act 1986.
register

includes:

  1. the roll and the register of solicitors with practising certificates kept under Part I of the SA,
  2. the register of European lawyers;
  3. the register of foreign lawyers; and
  4. the register of authorised bodies kept under the AJA and the LSA
prescribed

means prescribed by the SRA from time to time

manager

means:

  1. the sole principal in a recognised sole practice;
  2. a member of a LLP;
  3. a director of a company;
  4. a partner in a partnership; or
  5. in relation to any other body, a member of its governing body
owner

means, in relation to a body, a person with any interest in the body, save that:

  1. in the SRA Authorisation of Firms Rules, and the SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, owner means any person who holds a material interest in an authorised body, and in the case of a partnership, any partner regardless of whether they hold a material interest in the partnership; and
  2. for the purposes of the SRA Principles and the SRA Code of Conduct for Firms means a person who holds a material interest in the body; and
  3. for the purposes of the SRA Assessment of Character and Suitability Rules includes owners who have no active role in the running of the business as well as owners who do,

and "own" and "owned" shall be construed accordingly

compliance officer

is a reference to a body's COLP or its COFA

approved regulator

means any body listed as an approved regulator in paragraph 1 of Schedule 4 to the LSA or designated as an approved regulator by an order under paragraph 17 of that Schedule

regulatory arrangements

has the meaning given to it by section 21 of the LSA

person

includes a body of persons (corporate or unincorporated)