The Solicitors Regulation Authority has intervened to close Gowlings Solicitors Limited, a Preston-based conveyancing and family law firm, citing the need to protect clients and beneficiaries. The action follows a prior rebuke over a conveyancing undertaking relating to mortgage redemption, where the firm failed to obtain a redemption statement and the sale proceeds were insufficient to clear the mortgage in full.
The article discusses the Law Society’s draft updated Conveyancing Protocol and argues that it should go further in addressing the shift from paper-based conveyancing to digitally shared property information. It highlights three consultation questions firms should raise: how verifiable property information should be structured, who can rely on shared data and on what terms, and what an AI-generated output must contain before a solicitor can approve it.
The Law Society is urging government, regulators and local authorities to provide stronger support for small law firms and sole practitioners, citing recruitment difficulties, rising costs and regulatory burdens. Its research suggests smaller firms are under particular pressure from professional indemnity insurance, wage inflation and compliance demands, and may struggle to keep pace with larger firms investing in technology and AI.
The article argues that residential conveyancing firms are facing a capacity shortage rather than a simple recruitment shortage, with practitioner numbers falling while transaction volumes recover. It says rising compliance and administrative burdens are leaving fee earners overstretched, and that firms need to improve support structures, technology and caseload management to retain staff and maintain service levels.
LEASE’s latest Shared Ownership Insight Report identifies recurring problems reported by shared owners, including poor communication, landlord non-compliance with lease terms, and difficulties with repairs, service charges and resale or staircasing processes. The report also highlights concerns around building insurance costs, redress routes and uncertainty linked to the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024.
The article examines how the Law Society’s draft Conveyancing Protocol would affect AI-generated additional enquiries in conveyancing. It argues that the real control on machine-written enquiries is not the AI clause itself, but the protocol’s rules on whether an enquiry is specific, necessary, and not already answerable from publicly available or supplied information.
HM Land Registry reports a substantial reduction in avoidable requisitions between 2022 and 2025, with the number of error points falling from 839,000 to 439,000. The agency attributes the improvement to better data use, stronger pre-submission checks and more targeted training, while the Council for Licensed Conveyancers says post-completion accuracy remains under close scrutiny.
Landmark’s Q3 2026 market overview says the housing market in England and Wales remains subdued but steady, with healthy stock levels and asking-price reductions not translating into stronger buyer activity. Rising borrowing costs, wider uncertainty and speculation ahead of the Autumn Budget are contributing to lower SSTC volumes, weaker search orders and fewer completions year-on-year.
Land Data has confirmed that Elan Technology Group will become a licensed NLIS Hub channel in October 2026, with a direct transition to Next Gen NLIS planned for March 2027. The move is intended to support more secure, streamlined access to official conveyancing search data and align with the forthcoming Land Data Trust Framework.
The article argues that residential property transactions remain too slow and prone to fall-throughs, with delays driven by avoidable friction between agents, conveyancers, lenders and other parties. It introduces the Conveyancing Improvement Collective (CIC) as a collaborative forum aimed at identifying practical process improvements rather than assigning blame.
The article explains that a title register entry referring to mines and minerals does not necessarily reveal who owns the mineral rights, what rights are attached to them, or who would be liable if ground instability occurs. It stresses the need to review historic deeds and supporting evidence, particularly where past extraction or complex liability issues may be involved.
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers’ Risk Agenda 2026 says post-completion work, including HM Land Registry applications, must be treated as a core professional responsibility rather than an administrative task. It also highlights ongoing scrutiny of undertakings, the risks and governance issues around AI adoption, and emerging probate risks linked to inheritance tax changes and estate funding.
