Financial Compliance for Law Firms - 2026 Virtual Conference

Introduction

In an increasingly regulated environment, law firms must ensure their financial compliance processes are both robust and responsive. This virtual conference brings together expert insights on key compliance challenges facing the legal sector, from understanding the distinctions in due diligence requirements to meeting audit obligations and maintaining financial viability.

With practical guidance and real-world examples, the sessions are designed to help firms strengthen internal controls, reduce risk, and align with regulatory expectations.

Conference Agenda

This live and interactive 5-hour conference will cover the following:

10am-11am: AML CDD: Latest on Sources of Wealth & Funds Enquiries

Trevor Hellawell, Solicitor & Legal Training & Management Consultant

One of the key elements of Customer Due Diligence is the line of enquiry that we are bound to make into the client’s financial background and life circumstances. This is a separate duty from that of enquiring as to the source of the funds for any particular transaction.

Often there is confusion about these two separate lines of investigation. What is the difference between them? How do we differentiate between them? This session will provide a best practice update on the following:

• Latest expectations around source of wealth enquiries?
• How these differ from source of funds enquiries
• When must we undertake these enquiries under the current AML framework?
• What evidence do you need?
• When enquiries can be concluded

Morning Break

11:10am-12:10pm: Benefits of an AML Regulation 21 Independent

Joanna Morris, AML & Compliance Product Development

Regulation 21, also referred to as the internal control regulation, came into force with the introduction of the MLR2017.

This regulation covers the need to have a Money Laundering Compliance Officer (MLCO), the importance of screening relevant employees and, lastly, the requirement to undertake an independent audit function.

As Regulation 21 states at the beginning ‘with the regard to the size and nature of your business …….’, lots of firms felt that they didn’t need the independent audit either because of the size of their firm or the type of work that they did but, these days, the SRA expect the majority of us to have one. Lack of the independent audit has also been a reason why some firms have been fined.

So, what is the Regulation 21 audit all about? Can it be done internally or should it be completed by an external person? How long does it take? What documentation will you need to produce?

This session will cover the following:

• Why is the Regulation 21 so important?
• What are the benefits of this independent audit?
• What does it cover?
• Who can complete the audit - internal or external person?
• How long will it take?
• What documentation will be required?
• Will you get a formal report from the person conducting the audit?
• How often do we need to have one?

12:10pm-1:10pm: 6 Reasons Why Financial Compliance Programmes Fail & How to Prevent It

Amy Bell, Compliance Consultant

Having spent 28 years working in the legal sector, Amy Bell explains why most compliance programmes, including those designed to meet financial obligations like AML, client money handling and fraud prevention fail in practice.

This session will explore the 6 main factors why compliance initiatives breakdown and how to build a programme that will actually work.

By the end of this session, you will:

• Identify why financial compliance behaviours often breakdown and why some people won’t do what you ask them to when it comes to compliance
• Understand the drivers within your firm which undermine financial compliance activities
• A checklist of practical steps to take to rebuild your compliance programme, so it works

Break for lunch

2-3pm: The SRA Accounts Rules 5 Years on

Luke Dickinson, Hazlewoods LLP

Five years on from the introduction of the streamlined SRA Accounts Rules, the legal sector continues to adapt to a more principle-based approach to managing client money. This session explores the practical challenges that remain and what the evolving regulatory landscape means for compliance today:

• A brief receipt on the rationale behind the 2019 overhaul of the SRA Accounts Rules and the shift to principle-based regulation
• Identify common compliance challenges firms have faced under the new framework
• Explore practical strategies for maintaining robust financial controls
• Review recent updates and guidance from the SRA and their implications for day-to-day operations
• Anticipate future developments in the regulatory landscape and how firms can prepare

Afternoon break

3:15-4:15pm: Financial Viability & COFA Duties

Trevor Hellawell, Solicitor & Legal Training and Management Consultant

The duties of the COFA have been well enunciated over the years; yet, still some officers are not fulfilling their duties as best they should. This session will outline the duties of the COFA in relation to the Accounts Rules but will also examine the parameters of the other duty - that of monitoring the financial viability of the firm as a whole.

You will learn:

• The role and duties of the COFA generally
• The requirements in relation to reconciliations
• The obligation to record all breaches in a Breaches register
• The obligation to report significant breaches to the SRA
• Checklists and benchmarking tests to be applied

Recording of live sessions: Soon after the Learn Live session has taken place you will be able to go back and access the recording - should you wish to revisit the material discussed.