Firms pay penalties of £44,800 in latest round of AML sanctions
Summary
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has published a further round of anti-money laundering sanctions totalling £44,800 against several firms for failures in risk assessments, policies, controls and record-keeping. One firm, Gowlings Solicitors Limited, was also shut down through immediate regulatory intervention to protect clients and trust beneficiaries.
Why it matters
Residential property transactions are a common route for money laundering risk, so surveyors working alongside conveyancers should be aware of heightened AML scrutiny. Poor compliance by legal firms can delay transactions and increase the risk of reputational and operational disruption across the property chain.
Key points
- SRA imposed £44,800 in AML penalties across multiple firms.
- Breaches included failures in firm-wide risk assessments, client and matter risk assessments, and AML policies and procedures.
- One firm was intervened in and shut down by the SRA.
- The action follows desk-based reviews and AML supervision activity.
This is an RPSA summary of a publicly available article. The full content remains with the original publisher.
