Today's Conveyancer Podcast

Kate Burt joins this latest episode of the Today's Conveyancer podcast. Kate is a solicitor and compliance consultant, running specialist consultancy Hive Risk. The topic of discussion is compliance and the way external organisations can support firms, before moving on to specifically talk about complaints handling.
As Kate says, compliance is not just the SRA handbook. It touches on a myriad of other issues compliance professionals must manage including data protection, anti-money laundering, professional indemnity insurance, cyber issues, conflicts of interest... the list goes on. And the challenge for firms and compliance professionals working in them is having that lLength and breadth of knowledge.
Discussing what often lands on the desk of compliance professionals Kate says that all to often one complaint will highlight failures across a range of compliance issues, pointing to a recent complaint she was was instructed to deal with which identified further work to be done around conduct, negligence, notification to insurers and more;
"that's fairly typical" says Kate.
Alongside dealing with specific issues, which in conveyancing often revolve around timescales, delays, communication and fees, Kate says firms must be better at capturing complaints data to enable them to drill into trends and root cause analysis; it can be a failure of process, rather than an individual fee earner which is causing the issue suggests Kate.
It can be the case that firms become too emotionally involved when it comes to complaints handling and in the discussion Kate provides her insight into complaints best practice, sharing her experience working with firms up and down the country; a very useful listen for compliance professionals and law firms.
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 shortened edition of the Today's Conveyancer Podcast host David Opie is joined by Ben Robinson (Managing Director, Landmark Estate Agency Services) and Rob Gurney (Managing Director, Ochresoft) to discuss the latest Landmark Property Trends Report covering April, May and June 2022.
The report considers data at 4 key stages in the transaction cycle; listings, properties sold subject to contract, search volumes, and completions; compiled using information from HM Land Registry and Landmark's own business.
Since the Q1 report was released, economic uncertainty fuelled by inflation and significant rises in the Bank of England's interest rates has prevailed. If the statistics in April 2023 indicated there may be a turning of the tide, Q2 has brought us back down to earth with a bump, with a downward trend in completions.
And while the front end of the transaction appears healthy, with listing volumes remaining broadly steady, there are anomalies around demand, and the flow of instructions through to completions.
Stability is the key, as both Ben and Rob explain the numbers and their own views and analysis in this latest discussion. Listen in to hear their thoughts in full.
The next Property Trends Report will be published at the end of Q3 2023 when we'll revisit the topic for further discussion and analysis.
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 the latest Today's Conveyancer podcast host David Opie is joined by Nick Hale, CEO of ONP Group.
In a wide-ranging interview Nick discusses his introduction in to the conveyancing world since his appointment in April 2022, and the journey he and ONP Group have been on.
The opening part of the discussion explores the make up of the ONP senior leadership teams. Over the past few years, ONP have made a number of appointments both from within, and external to, the conveyancing sector. For Nick it's the right blend of industry experience and wider skills needed to move the business forward.
"We're very deliberate and happy that we have assembled a team who understand the sector, have a proven track record, are great people leaders, have technical knowledge, and understand the regulatory requirements; blended with people who bring skills and experience that is not prevalent in the sector, and that has held us back as a sector." Adds Nick.
Nick shares his first experiences of joining the conveyancing profession, and discusses how his work history has shaped his approach at ONP. Throughout the podcast Nick references the importance of the vision at ONP and a personal drive to genuinely make a difference in the home moving process.
Sharing a story about managing 26m emergency calls each year, all answered in an average of less than 0.4 seconds, Nick reveals his obsession for making things better; "If you can make something better, why wouldn't you want to" he adds.
The conversation explores technology, client service, the future of conveyancing and 'that' Times article in February 2023.
Finishing the podcast, Nick and David explore the impact that external investment has had on ONP and the appetite for further private equity investment in legal services.
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.

Planning expert Paul Addison joins the latest Today's Conveyancer podcast to discuss his experiences helping conveyancers and homeowners uncover planning risk and hidden development opportunities.
Founder and Managing Director of DevAssist, Paul shares his background as a land buyer and planner for developers and how he now brings his extensive experience to the business to educate conveyancers and home movers on potential, and planned, development in the area; enabling would be purchasers to make a more informed decision about whether to press ahead with their transaction.
The discussion is full of anecdotes and examples of Paul's work; from ransom strips in cul-de-sacs, to beachfront views at risk of blight by new build flats.
As Paul says, you cannot guarantee a view... and often this is point where firms are at risk of claims, particularly when a property purchaser finds out that about a development that might blight a view, access or enjoyment of the property.
"That's when people will become very emotional post-purchase and start looking to the solicitor and saying why didn't you tell me about this." And with plenty of examples of successful claims it's hard to argue against the point.
Despite the recent scrapping of government new build targets there is an acknowledgement that we simply do not build enough homes and that the issues around planning, NIMBY-ism, greenbelt development and the associated risk to would-be home movers is not likely to go away.
Paul suggests 80-90% of DevAssist reports identify a planning opportunity, whether hypothetical or real, of some description; with around 30% of reports identifying a guaranteed development site within 75m of the purchaser's property.
Whether or not the development impacts the decision to purchase the property is not the point, says Paul. The point is they have the interpretation of the data to make an informed decision.
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.

Love it or loathe it, climate change appears to be here to stay following the release of guidance from The Law Society on the role of legal services in providing consumers with information.
And it is the subject of this latest Today's Conveyancer podcast as host David Opie is joined by Groundsure CEO Dan Montagnani, Bold Legal Group CEO Rob Hailstone, and Head of Property at Dutton Gregory Paul Sams.
Through the course of the discussion each of the contributors shares their thoughts on what the climate change guidance means for conveyancers in the absence of sector specific guidance which we await, and/or a practice note.
Alongside the discussion, Today's Conveyancer ran a survey to find out what the sentiment is amongst conveyancers around the guidance and their role in supporting home movers better understand the longer term risks brought about by climate change. There were over 100 responses to the question "what will be your approach as a firm or practitioner with regard to how you engage your clients?" revealing;

• 35% of respondents will proactively report on any climate risks identified in search reports and use tools including standard clauses to help explain the risk to clients
• 9% will report to clients on climate risk only when a risk is identified by a search report
• 18% will let the client decide on whether this is a material risk to the property transaction and evidence this to reduce risk to the practice
• 25% do not intend to report on climate change issues to clients

The issue seems to hinge on the qualification of lawyers to provide such advice to clients and both Paul and Rob acknowledge there is yet another element of scope or mission creep with the issue as responsibility for reporting on it, which should be in everyone's interests and remit, falls squarely on the conveyancer's shoulders.
In an entertaining discussion the three discuss whether climate change is something that the conveyancing community should be pushing back on, or whether it's part of the new breed of conveyancer whose role it is to be a conduit for this sort of information and hand hold home movers much more.

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.