Why Licensed Conveyancers need data to protect themselves

Guest article written by Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito

A quick glance at LinkedIn will show that 2025 has started off in much the same way as 2024 ended for Licensed Conveyancers. 

The unrelenting pressure has continued with days where everything feels like a battle, made worse by the fact that it is coming from a multitude of sources; clients, lenders, agents and other lawyers.

We know from history that fighting a battle on multiple fronts typically ends in defeat, and given the inexorable rise in the level of demands and expectations, data has a vital role to play in protecting  conveyancers from these challenges.

1. Speed to information

We must give conveyancers tools to reduce the time they waste on the simple things, such as finding case details.  It sounds obvious, but when someone wants an update or advice on a matter, not having the information to hand increases stress and reliance on the individual with knowledge of the case.

If case management systems are not setup with extensive search facilities, the conveyancers will be on the back foot if they can’t find the case immediately.  They must be able to search on different attributes such as reference, client surname, property address, postcode, other side law firm, estate agent or even mortgage reference number.  However, broadening search terms results in large numbers of responses, so a second, narrower search should be offered within that initial set of results.

Once the case is found, it’s useful to show as much salient information as possible, instead of burying it under sub-menus and pop-ups.  It a simple matter of deciding what is most important to someone who doesn’t know anything about the case and displaying it on one screen.  For example, the fee earner name, their assistant, status of property searches, the number of enquiries outstanding and details about timings.

If the case management system cannot be tailored to show this, a summary screen can be built quickly in Excel – the benefits of a single place to look outweigh the overheads of maintaining this data.

2. Make dates your friend

The most common frustrations with property transactions are the length of time involved and the lack of transparency.  The process is inefficient, but by not having accurate details of timings to hand, conveyancers leave themselves open to accusations of causing delays and deflecting these can be difficult.

For example, when clients complain that cases “drag on for months” they often over-estimate timings, such as the time elapsed since their offer was accepted.  The client may have taken weeks to return their paperwork, the buyer may not have received the contract pack for a month, and then not replied to enquiries for another month.  Conveyancers without this data to hand are an easy target.  Simply noting key dates and calculating the number of weeks between them gives them the confidence to explain to clients the source of delays and the authority to protect against future attacks.

Where case management systems don’t support such data, anyone with a basic grasp of Excel should be able to create a summary that calculates the difference between two dates in week format.

3. Identify specifics

One of most egregious myths about conveyancing is that it’s “just a tick-box exercise” which is why the time involved is so frustrating to clients.  The reality, of course, is that each case is annoyingly unique, so conveyancers must do more to help themselves by identifying particular characteristics associated with the transaction.

For example, lenders have different approaches to flying freeholds, so if conveyancers noted the lender at the start, they can avoid accusations further on in the case.  This applies to many factors such as the client getting divorced, it’s a buy-to-let transaction or that undertakings are required.

Creating and storing all these details in a “hazard grid” in one place, avoids the conveyancer having to dig through the file for the information, reduces the dependency on that individual as they can share it with colleagues and can be easily double checked as the file progresses.

Such “hazard grids” are not complicated with a simple “on/off” mechanism with notes, which can again be achieved easily with Excel and conditional formatting to highlight a cell based on its value.

Is this really necessary?

The demands on conveyancers has never been higher and will only continue to grow, with expectations of Amazon-style immediacy and the delivery of service extending beyond legal expertise.

Conveyancers must accept this includes delivering timely information, which realistically can only be achieved with further investment in technology-based information systems.

Unless licensed conveyancers take steps to exploit the support that technology provides, they will continue to experience the negativity and aggression that is part of society today, and we cannot allow them to be subjected to this.

The Author

Peter Ambrose is the CEO of The Partnership and Legalito – specialists in the delivery of transparent and ultra-efficient conveyancing software and services.

Peter Ambrose: [email protected], 01483 579978

Press enquiries: Tracy Holland, [email protected] 01483 579978

This article has been written by Peter Ambrose of The Partnership and Legalito and the opinions and views stated in this article are those of Peter Ambrose and not Howden Insurance Brokers Limited (“Howden”). Howden is an insurance broker and is not authorised or regulated to advise on why Licensed Conveyancers needs data to protect themselves. Howden shall not (i) owe or accept any duty, responsibility or liability to you or any other person; and (ii) be liable in respect of any loss, damage or expense caused by your or any other party’s reliance on this article.