Today's Conveyancer Podcast

Running a busy conveyancing firm has its ups and down and you might have forgiven the latest guest on the Today's Conveyancer podcast if he had packed his bags and walked away when he sold his stake in his law firm in 2019 12 years after he set it up in 2007.
But Simon Thomas returned in May 2021 to set up Montpellier Legal, a conveyancing focused practice in Cheltenham, with the opportunity to do all the things he migth ave got wrong the first time, right this time.
"I missed the thrill, the variety and and the rush and tumble of conveyancing" he says in a refreshingly honest and open discussion about what it takes to run a conveyancing practice in 2023.
The discussion explores standards (and fostering a desire for continuous professional development), culture, fees, recruitment, technology, sourcing work, regulation, marketing and profit.
On technology Simon says: "a lot of firms make the mistake that technology will do the job for them, and maybe in the future it will, but for the next 2-5 years there is still a a place for quality lawyers handling clients and being very much available for them; there's always the need for the human element."
On culture her adds: "Culture is really important it's about the little things. We have to be thinking about the human touches that we would do in our own personal lives"
On fees: "Our fees are mid-level fees. We believe we're providing a strong value proposition. We stand by our reputation and are proud of our reviews which are there for people to see."
The discussion finishes with Simon's thoughts on the current state of the property market and also addresses his concerns about different regulatory approaches currently in place which create an opportunity for some firms to jointly represent buyers and seller, and others not to.
Simon provides some insight into the inner workings of a conveyancing practice without giving away too many trade secrets!
The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views.

"Houseful" is probably best known for the property portal Zoopla, but the technology giant is steadily building an array of property and data businesses and has under it's umbrella estate agent software Alto, new homes software Yourkeys and Hometrack, a UK provider of automated valuations and property insights.
Their latest venture, Movemnt, launched in July 2024 and through their relationship with LMS soon said it was working with 6 of the top 10 conveyancers by volume in the country; somewhat flying in under the radar.
In this latest Today's Conveyancer Podcast, host David Opie is joined by Houseful Product Director, Owen Rogers, tasked with developing their first foray into the conveyancing market.
Owen explains Movemnt is a network where conveyancers can connect with the Houseful ecosystem of estate agents and consumers. It will enable conveyancers to grow their business and provide an 'integration layer' for the exchange of data and communication.
Challenged on Movemnt being another panel management solution, Owen says distribution is a key component of the tool and there will be expectations on, for example, uniform onboarding but the solution is being pitched as a 'data exchange, a connectivity layer' integrating data from conveyancer's systems to other players in the home transaction.
Which leads on to material and up front information which Owen says is a 'catalyst event' for the industry driving the importance of conveyancers up the transaction. The other key driver for change is the Data (Use and Access) Bill which has been introduced into Parliament which seeks to enable data to be used and shared with relevant permissions. Owen sees it compelling the industry to share data, at the request of consumers and will remove much of the current duplication of effort. But, he warns, it will still be incumbent on technology providers like Houseful to work with insurers to support property professionals in their use and reliance on shared data.
Given there is much work going on silos around solving the current issues on material and up front information, reliance on third party data and duplication, is Houseful simply bringing another technology product to market that doesn't solve the fundamental issue that moving home is a hugely collaborative and complicated affair, bringing multiple parties together.
No, says Owen, through its relationships with estate agents, lenders, and consumers, in many ways conveyancing was a missing part of the jigsaw for the business; "I can't think of another business that is as well positioned with its product, distribution, development house, and partnerships as Houseful."
The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views.

Compliance business boss Tim Barnett joins the latest Today's Conveyancer Podcast to discuss the work being done to improve the process, and experience for consumers, of anti-money laundering, customer due diligence and know your client verification.
As CEO of ID and AML verification business Credas, Tim is well aware of the challenges this presents to firms and suppliers and reminds us about the SRA's warning notice at the end of 2023 which highlighted that up to 70% of firms were not fully compliance with anti-money laundering processes and procedures. And while he has sympathy with the idea that the burden of AML compliance falls heavily on conveyancers, he also points out the wider economic and societal role conveyancers and the wider property profession play in maintaining crime-free transactions. But he does acknowledge the administrative burden placed on the profession by legislation; something he and Credas are working hard to reduce.
He also provides some compliance pointers on how firms can ensure they remain the right side of AML compliance; warning that if firms are reliant upon ID document verification by email, or are not regularly re-running client verification checks, they will almost certainly not be compliant.
Credas are, like many organisations, looking at ways to harness artificial intelligence, but, warns Tim, they are now regularly coming up against documentation and supposed evidence submitted through their systems as part of AML verification, that has been created by AI; for the purposes of fraud and deception.
The discussion moves on to explore the work being done by government to introduce a legislative framework to enable the sharing of ID verification and client due diligence throughout the transaction; research conducted by Credas has identified a consumer will have to verify their identity 5.4 times during a typical housing transaction. The Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework (DIATF) creates the legislative environment to share this data, and provides a standard for digital identity providers to adhere to, to ensure their checks and reports can be relied upon.
The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views.

Hamza Hafesji, Group Product Manager at Advanced Legal, joins the latest Today's Conveyancer podcast to discuss the importance of implementing a culture of performance management in a business.
For years the only time most employees receive any sort of constructive feedback has been in an annual appraisal. For Hamza, something has to fundamentally change and feedback must be much more of an ongoing process
He cites research from PWC, LexisNexis, Thomson Reuters and their own client surveys which point to the challenges that face law firms from an HR point of view. Indeed 3 in 5 law firms are concerned about talent and shortage and churn, and are consider it a barrier to their success.
He discusses organisations described as "Stay Firms" and "Go Firms" - firms who retain, and lose, talent. While acknowledging that remuneration plays a part in the success "Stay Firms," the focus on their broader value proposition sees them not only retain staff, but makes them more efficient with higher billable hours and better staff mental health and wellbeing.
And lawyers themselves are more vocal about what they want from work. A staggering 44% of lawyers measure their stress levels at between 8-10 out of 10 in an Advanced Legal survey. That, and a lack of progression and professional development is often the cause of staff leaving.
"When we drill into this, we're looking at a lack of mentorship and career guidance, a lack of promotion opportunities and the desire for greater on the job assistance. All of which can be described as performance management," says Hamza.

This discussion covers a lot of ground around the value and importance of creating a culture of performance, normalising goal setting and providing a constant feedback loop between employees and managers. For Hamza, part of the success of implementing such a cultural change is in the adoption of technology to drive through the change and support managers to ask the right questions and enable those types of conversations.
The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views.

In this latest Today's Conveyancer podcast, host David Opie is joined by Emma Green, Managing Partner at Cyber Data Law Solicitors.
A regular commentator on national radio and television, Emma is an expert on cyber crime and alongside spending her time educating firms on the perils of cyber attack, has also spent time negotiating with criminal organisations on behalf of firms who have been attacked.
Emma lends her experience and insight to the Today's Conveyancer podcast where she discusses why the cyber risk message simply isn't getting through; We have seen a number of large legal organisations affected in just the last couple of months.
With experience dealing with insurance providers, Emma also discusses the merits of the various online security badges and marks avaiable (Cyber Essentials etc) and how they are viewed by insurers.
She also explains how a firm's greatest risk is its people and constant diligence is required to protect ourselves from the increasingly sophisticated efforts of cyber criminals. And alongside some top "prevention is better than cure" tips, Emma shares her thoughts on what firms need to do in the immediate aftermath of a cyber attack.
The Today's Conveyancer podcast can be found on your preferred podcast provider and also at www.todaysconveyancer.co.uk. Subscribe and listen in for all the latest conveyancing industry news and views.