The Solicitors Regulation Authority has insisted it gives firms every opportunity to comply with the rules before handing out fixed fines.

The regulator yesterday published details of the latest cohort of firms to be issued with a fixed penalty notice for failing to comply with transparency requirements.

In total 11 firms have now been fined without going through the full disciplinary process, following reforms to the SRA’s powers last year.

The regulator denies it is picking on smaller firms who may not have the capacity or resources to deal with low-level compliance issues. Fixed fines can be levied for not supplying diversity data in time, failing to publish service information on websites or completing mandatory anti-money laundering paperwork.

The SRA says firms are sent notices of potential fines, with the opportunity to put the issue right before sanctions are issued. In many cases, the SRA believes, the threat of penalties is resulting in firms becoming compliant.

Speaking during the monthly media briefing yesterday, chief executive Paul Philip said the organisation takes a ‘conciliatory’ approach to dealing with firms. ‘We set out our requirements and what is mandatory,’ he added. ‘People for the most part know what is mandatory and give plenty of opportunity before we issue a fixed fine.’

The latest firms fined for breaching transparency rules are: Evans Harvey Limited from Plymouth, Johnsons Solicitors from Reading, Jury O’Shea headquartered in London, Adams Hetherington from Northumberland, Waugh & Musgrave from Cumbria, Fadiga & Co from London and Abbey Solicitors from Manchester.

Firms are initially fined £750 but if they continue to not comply they can be fined £1,500.

Philip said these were non-complex breaches that could be dealt with swiftly, but there was still an obligation on firms to ensure the rules were met.

‘We are here to promote the public interest and it’s essential firms comply with our transparency rules,’ he said. ‘They help people compare law firms’ services and make informed choices. Those firms that are publishing the correct information rightly expect that we will take action against those who don’t.

’Similarly, collecting diversity data helps everyone. A diverse, inclusive legal sector that represents the communities it serves is a strong legal sector. Firms’ diversity data not only helps us understand the progress the sector is making, but enables firms to benchmark themselves against others. Providing that data is not difficult to do, but it is a regulatory requirement.’

 

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