Pictured above: Adam Watts
A Coventry law firm is backing a scheme that it says could weed
out 'conveyancing cowboys' and further improve industry
standards.
Experts at Button Legal, in Warwick Road, city centre, have
thrown their weight behind the new Law Society-administered
Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS).
The scheme is aimed at providing a recognised quality standard
for residential conveyancing practices, deterring fraud and
generally providing assurances to the industries other key
stakeholders, such as Lenders, Insurers and most of all the public.
All CQS member practices will be subject annual re-accreditation
with periodic reviews of their processes and procedures to ensure
that the quality standards are upheld.
Adam Watts, partner at Button Legal, said: "It's a legal
accreditation scheme which all law firms are invited to apply for
and they have to undergo rigorous scrutiny from the Law Society to
qualify. It's likely that it will either be a requirement or looked
on favorably by mortgage companies and other industry professionals
when assessing which conveyancing practices to deal with in
conveyancing matters.
"It also offers more protection for consumers by setting higher
standards in conveyancing practice which will benefit the public,
as if a firm is part of the CQS scheme then they can rest assured
that the matter will be dealt with diligently and safely.
Conveyancers will have to meet strict criteria in terms of how they
undertake conveyancing work such as practices employed when dealing
with clients and lenders and how a matter is managed and risks
assessed, which is to be welcomed.
"The scheme will also sift out the 'cowboys' and 'bogus' firms
within the industry with annual checks to ensure the highest
standards are maintained and risks of fraudulent activity taking
place are minimized. If your firm doesn't keep its standards up and
fails to comply with the scheme requirements, the firm will be
removed from the scheme. As such, the scheme offers a win, win
situation for clients looking to deal with reputable law firms and
for the law firms like ours which are committed to maintaining the
highest industry standards which ultimately translates to the
service we provide to our clients."
Button Legal has applied to become accredited under the scheme.
One hundred firms up and down the country have, so far, passed the
rigorous standards imposed by the Law Society with approximately
700 other firms waiting to hear.
Button Legal was set up in 1988 and offers a range of services
including conveyancing, commercial property, landlord and tenant
issues and debt recovery, family & matrimonial and Probate and
Administration of estates law. It now has eight lawyers and
seventeen support staff.