Welcome to the latest issue of SRA Update. It is the start of the new legal year, which means there is always lots going on. Not least the window has now opened to renew your practising certificate.
The high-volume consumer claims sector continues to be a big focus for us. When done well, it can help many people access justice, but we are seeing significant issues in this area. We’d appreciate your thoughts on what could be done to make it work better - our discussion paper is open until 14 November. Firms who are involved in litigation will also be interested in our statement following the recent High Court Mazur judgment. And we have published new resources on reporting your ethnicity pay gap data. We publish ours, and there can be a range of benefits to doing so.
This will be my last SRA Update, before I retire at the end of the month. I would like to thank everyone in the profession who have worked with me, shared their thoughts and sharpened my thinking over the years. I look forward to seeing many of you at our Compliance Officers Conference later this month in Birmingham.
You can now renew your practising certificates and registrations. The deadline to apply is 31 October 2025. Visit our website to see the application questions and access supporting guidance – including helpful videos for both bulk renewal and individual applications. Don’t forget to download your authenticator app so you can access mySRA and apply.
Read more about: Practising certificate renewals window open
Read our recently published thematic review, which has identified significant concerns on how many firms are handling high-volume consumer claims. The findings suggest some firms could be failing in their duty to protect and promote clients' best interests, potentially leading to direct risk and harm to the public. The report reinforces concerns emerging from our wider proactive investigations.
Read more about: Concerns over how claims market is working
Should the term ‘no win, no fee’ be banned? Should we have different authorisation processes for firms working in high- volume claims? These are the types of questions we ask in a discussion paper inviting views on the way the market for high-volume claims operates. You can find out more by watching our webinar on our on-demand service, or signing up to one of our virtual roundtable events on 7 October or 6 November. The discussion paper is open for feedback until 14 November.
Read more about: High-volume claims work – what do you think?
All solicitors have a duty to act in a way that encourages equality, diversity and inclusion. To help explain what Principle 6 means in practice, we have expanded our guidance to cover examples of misconduct, terminating a retainer when faced with discriminatory behaviour by clients, and more detail on when and how we will take regulatory action.
Read more about: Updated guidance on encouraging equality, diversity and inclusion
We have published our view that the recent High Court judgment in the Mazur case does not change the position in law. Non-authorised individuals can support litigation, but only an authorised individual, such as a solicitor, should be conducting litigation. The onus is on firms to satisfy themselves that they are complying with the Legal Services Act.
Read more about: Statement on Mazur case and conducting litigation
For solicitors to represent clients in the higher courts in criminal or civil matters, they must pass the higher rights of audience (HRA) qualification. There is now a single assessments provider for the HRA, The University of Law. And while we do not prescribe how solicitors prepare for the assessments, we will publish details of organisations who offer training shortly.
Read more about: New assessment provider for higher rights of audience
It is essential that we have the most up-to-date information about the profession for us to support a diverse, inclusive legal sector. To allow this to happen we rely on you to check and update your personal diversity information in mySRA.
Read more about: Update your diversity details in mySRA
We’ve released new resources on using ethnicity pay gap reporting to help drive equality in the sector. Since 2017, employers with more than 250 employees have been legally required to report on their gender pay gaps. With the Government’s recent consultation on ethnicity and disability reporting, our resources highlight the benefits of ethnicity pay gap reporting. Case studies of how firms are using ethnicity pay gap reporting are also featured.
Read more about: Ethnicity pay gap reporting
Watch our recent webinar discussing how ethnicity pay gap reporting can be used to encourage better representation for Black, Asian and minority ethnic solicitors in firms at all levels. Hear from Bridget Tatham, from Browne Jacobson and Jenn Barnett, of Grant Thornton, on how they’re using their data to create fairer, more inclusive workplaces.
Read more about: Tune in: ethnicity pay gap reporting on-demand webinar
At the start of this year we consulted on potential reforms to better safeguard and protect client money. While some issues require longer term consideration, there are some elements we can progress sooner. Our immediate focus will be on making changes to better protect and safeguard client money under the current system. And we will be further consulting on this area later this year.
Read more about: Next steps on our client money in legal services consultation
