Indemnity Fund

means the fund maintained in accordance with the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules.

claim

means a demand for, or an assertion of a right to, civil compensation or civil damages or an intimation of an intention to seek such compensation or damages. For these purposes, an obligation on an insured firm and/or any insured to remedy a breach of the SRA Accounts Rules, or any rules which replace them in whole or in part, shall be treated as a claim, and the obligation to remedy such breach shall be treated as a civil liability for the purposes of clause 1 of the MTC, whether or not any person makes a demand for, or an assertion of a right to, civil compensation or civil damages or an intimation of an intention to seek such compensation or damages as a result of such breach, except where any such obligation may arise as a result of the insolvency of a bank (as defined in section 87 of the SA) or a building society which holds client money in a client account of the insured firm or the failure of such bank or building society generally to repay monies on demand

previous practice

means any practice which shall have ceased to exist as such for whatever reason, including by reason of:

(i)

any death, retirement or addition of principals; or

(ii)

any split or cession of the whole or part of its practice to another without any change of principals.

member

1. (unless (ii) below applies) means:
   1. in relation to a company, a person who has agreed to be a member of the company and whose name is entered in the company's register of members; and
   2. in relation to an LLP, a member of that LLP
2. for the purposes of the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules, means a member of a practice, being:
   1. any principal (including any principal) therein;
   2. any director or officer thereof, in the case of a recognised body or a licensed body which is a company;
   3. any member thereof in the case of a recognised body or a licensed body which is an LLP;
   4. any recognised body or a licensed body which is a partner or held out to be a partner therein and any officer of such recognised body or a licensed body which is a company, or any member of such recognised body or a licensed body which is an LLP;
   5. any person employed in connection therewith (including any trainee solicitor);
   6. any solicitor or REL who is a consultant to or associate in the practice;
   7. any foreign lawyer who is not an REL and who is a consultant or associate in the practice; and

   any solicitor or foreign lawyer who is working in the practice as an agent or locum tenens, whether he or she is so working under a
   contract of service or contract for services; and includes the estate and/or personal representative(s) of any such persons.

private legal practice

means (unless paragraph (ii) of this definition applies):

1. the provision of services in private practice as a solicitor or REL in an authorised body including, without limitation:
   1. providing such services in England, Wales or anywhere in the world in a recognised sole practice, a recognised body or a licensed body (in respect of an activity regulated by the SRA in accordance with the terms of the body's licence);
   2. the provision of such services as a secondee of the insured firm;
   3. any insured acting as a personal representative, trustee, attorney, notary, insolvency practitioner or in any other role in conjunction with a practice;
   4. the provision of such services by any employee; and
   5. the provision of such services pro bono;

   but does not include:

   1. discharging the functions of any of the following offices or appointments:
      1. judicial office;
      2. Under Sheriffs;
      3. members and clerks of such tribunals, committees, panels and boards as the Council may from time to time designate but including those subject to the Tribunals and Inquiries Act 1992, the Competition Commission, Legal Services Commission Review Panels, Legal Aid Agency Review Panels and Parole Boards;
      4. Justices' Clerks; or
      5. Superintendent Registrars and Deputy Superintendent Registrars of Births, Marriages and Deaths and Registrars of Local Crematoria
2. in the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules, means the provision of services in private practice as a solicitor or REL in an authorised body including, without limitation:
   1. providing such services in England, Wales or anywhere in the world in a recognised sole practice, a recognised body or a licensed body (in respect of an activity regulated by the SRA in accordance with the terms of the body's licence);
   2. the provision of such services as a secondee of the insured firm;
   3. any insured acting as a personal representative, trustee, attorney, notary, insolvency practitioner or in any other role in conjunction with a practice;
   4. the provision of such services by any employee; and
   5. the provision of such services pro bono;

   but does not include:

   1. discharging the functions of any of the following offices or appointments:
      1. judicial office;
      2. Under Sheriffs;
      3. members and clerks of such tribunals, committees, panels and boards as the Council may from time to time designate but including those subject to the Tribunals and Inquiries Act 1992, the Competition Commission, Legal Services Commission Review Panels, Legal Aid Agency Review Panels and Parole Boards;
      4. Justices' Clerks; or
      5. Superintendent Registrars and Deputy Superintendent Registrars of Births, Marriages and Deaths and Registrars of Local Crematoria
   2. practice to the extent that any fees or other income accruing do not accrue to the benefit of the practice carrying on such practice (except where a solicitor notary operates such notarial practice in conjunction with a solicitor's practice, whether or not the notarial fees accrue to the benefit of the solicitor's practice);
   3. practice by a solicitor or REL in the course of his or her employment with an employer other than a solicitor, REL, recognised body, licensed body or partnership such as is referred to in Rule 6.1(d) to 6.1(f) of the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules; in which connection and for the avoidance of doubt:
      1. any such solicitor or REL does not carry on private legal practice when he or she acts in the course of his or her employment for persons other than his or her employer;
      2. any such solicitor or REL does not carry on private legal practice merely because he or she uses in the course of his or her employment a style of stationery or description which appears to hold him or her out as a principal or solicitor or foreign lawyer in private legal practice; or
      3. any practice carried on by such a solicitor outside the course of his or her employment will constitute private legal practice.

partnership

means a body that is not a body corporate in which persons are, or are held out as, partners

principal

means (unless paragraph (c) of this definition applies):

1. where the authorised body is or was:
   1. a recognised sole practice - the sole practitioner;
   2. a partnership - each partner;
   3. a company with a share capital - each director of that company and any person who:
      1. is held out as a director; or
      2. beneficially owns the whole or any part of a share in the company; or
      3. is the ultimate beneficial owner of the whole or any part of a share in the company;
   4. a company without a share capital - each director of that company and any person who:
      1. is held out as a director; or
      2. is a member of the company; or
      3. is the ultimate owner of the whole or any part of a body corporate or other legal person which is a member of the company;
   5. an LLP - each member of that LLP, and any person who is the ultimate owner of the whole or any part of a body corporate or other legal person which is a member of the LLP;
2. where a body corporate or other legal person is a partner in the authorised body, any person who is within paragraph (a)(iii) of this definition (including sub-paragraphs (A) and (C)), paragraph (a)(iv) of this definition (including sub-paragraphs (A) and (C)), or paragraph (a)(v) of this definition
3. in the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules, means:
   1. a solicitor who is a partner or a sole solicitor within the meaning of section 87 of the SA, or an REL who is a partner, or who is a sole practitioner, or an RFL or non-registered European lawyer who is a partner, and includes any solicitor, REL, RFL or non-registered European lawyer held out as a principal; and
   2. additionally in relation to a practice carried on by a recognised body or a licensed body alone, or a practice in which a recognised body or a licensed body is or is held out to be a partner:
      1. a solicitor, REL, RFL or non-registered European lawyer (and in the case of a licensed body any other person) who:
         1. beneficially owns the whole or any part of a share in such recognised body or licensed body (in each case, where it is a company with a share capital); or
         2. is a member of such recognised body or licensed body (in each case, where it is a company without a share capital or an LLP or a partnership with legal personality); or
      2. a solicitor, REL, RFL or non-registered European lawyer (and in the case of a licensed body any other person) who is:
         1. the ultimate beneficial owner of the whole or any part of a share in such recognised body or licensed body (in each case, where the recognised body or licensed body is a company with a share capital); or
         2. the ultimate owner of a member or any part of a member of such recognised body or licensed body (in each case, where the recognised body or licensed body is a company without a share capital or an LLP or a partnership with legal personality).

person

includes a body of persons (corporate or unincorporated)

undertaking

means a statement, given orally or in writing, whether or not it includes the word "undertake" or "undertaking", to someone who reasonably places reliance on it, that you or a third party will do something or cause something to be done, or refrain from doing something

recognised body

means a body recognised by the SRA under section 9 of the AJA

licensed body

means a body licensed by the SRA under section 71(2) of the LSA in accordance with the SRA Authorisation of Firms Rules

overseas practice

1. means:
   1. a branch office of an authorised body;
   2. a subsidiary company of an authorised body;
   3. a subsidiary undertaking, within the meaning of section 1162 of the Companies Act 2006, of an authorised body;
   4. an entity whose business, management or ownership are otherwise in fact or law controlled by an authorised body;
   5. an individual acting as a representative (whether as an employee or agent) of an authorised body; or
   6. a sole principal whose business, management or ownership are otherwise in fact or law controlled by an authorised body,

   established outside England and Wales and providing legal services; and

2. in the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules means a practice carried on wholly from an overseas office or offices, including a practice deemed to be a separate practice by virtue of paragraph (ii) of the definition of separate practice.

overseas

means outside England and Wales

separate practice

means:

(i)

a practice in which the number and identity of the principals is not the same as the number and identity of the principals in any other practice. When the same principals in number and identity carry on practice under more than one name or style, there is only one practice;

(ii)

in the case of a practice of which more than 25% of the principals are foreign lawyers, any overseas offices shall be deemed to form a separate practice from the offices in England and Wales;

(iii)

in the case of an overseas office of a practice, the fact that a principal or a limited number of principals represent all the principals in the practice on a local basis shall not of itself cause that overseas office to be a separate practice provided that any fee or other income arising out of that office accrues to the benefit of the practice; and

(iv)

in the case of a recognised body or licensed body the fact that all of the shares in the recognised body or licensed body (as the case may be) are beneficially owned by only some of the principals in another practice, shall not, of itself, cause such a recognised body or licensed body (as the case may be) to be a separate practice provided that any fee or other income arising out of the recognised body or licensed body accrues to the benefit of that other practice.

contributions

master policy

Means a policy referred to in Rule 5 of the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules.

indemnity period

means:

1. in the SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules and the MTC, the period of one year starting on 1 September 2000, 2001 or 2002, the period of 13 calendar months starting on 1 September 2003, or the period of one year starting on 1 October in any subsequent calendar year
2. in the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules, the period of one year commencing on 1 September in any calendar year from 1987 to 2002 inclusive, the period of 13 calendar months commencing on 1 September 2003, and the period of one year commencing on 1 October in any subsequent calendar year.

expired run-off claim

means any claim made against the Indemnity Fund for indemnity under the SRA Indemnity Fund Rules in respect of which no preceding qualifying insurance remains in force to cover such claim, by reason only of:

1. the run-off cover provided or required to be provided under the policy having been activated; and
2. the sixth anniversary of the date on which cover under such qualifying insurance would have ended but for the activation of such run-off cover having passed; or
3. (in the case of a firm in default or a run-off firm) the period of run-off cove provided or required to be provided under arrangements made to cover such claim through the ARP having expired.