Entity FAQs

You will need to declare all instances of individual and business prior conduct as part of the application process. We put the matter to our investigation team, which considers the impact of the conduct on your application for authorisation by CILEx Regulation.

There are certain sensitive words & expressions that cannot be used without prior approval; these include Charter and Chartered. In addition, there are also words and expressions controlled by other legislation, which includes Solicitor. The SRA have advised that as solicitor(s) can only be used in the title of a firm regulated by the SRA.

Companies House rules also cover if a company’s activities are misleading, then the company can be required to change their name after incorporation. This covers misleading indication of activities within a name.

Yes, you will be able to continue being regulated as a solicitor by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) but work for or deliver services through a CILEx Regulation Authorised Entity. We authorise individuals and entities by specialist area of practice. The same would apply to solicitors seeking regulation of their entity by CILEx Regulation. Your status will be mapped across so you will not have to apply for the practice right with us, but you will need to demonstrate your skills, knowledge and experience in the area that you are seek regulation of your entity for.

Whilst we do not regulate firms providing non-reserved activities, as a CILEX member you remain regulated as an individual by CILEx Regulation. You will need to comply with the CILEX Code of Conduct. We encourage members to refer to the rules and guidance provided to regulated entities to assist them in managing risk in their business.

Yes we can authorise alternative business structures (ABS), which allow non-lawyer ownership and investment. We suggest that you contact us at an early stage to discuss the proposed structure o your company.

We can only regulate firms owned by Authorised Persons as defined by s18 of the Legal Services Act. Persons who have OISC Level 3 status, have this under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Therefore, they are not classed as Authorised Persons.

Yes, you can register for this in the same way as a solicitor’s firm. You just need to enter your entity name exactly as it appears on the Authorised Entity Register, then add your entity number under Organisation Number. This will enable them to verify your details to our register.

CILEX continues to have discussions with representatives from lender panels to gain ‘in principle’ agreement that CILEX members with Conveyancing Practice Rights will be able to apply to such panels. However, access to the panel remains in the lenders’ control, so this cannot be guaranteed.

Whilst being able to apply to a lender panel is obviously vital, you will need to be able to satisfy the criteria set down by the individual lenders. These are likely to include qualifications, experience and prior conduct. You will need to demonstrate that you have been involved in a sufficient volume of transactions in the preceding twelve months to your application and that this volume of transactions is likely to continue in the new firm.

Lenders are reluctant to share the criteria for panel access for commercial confidentiality reasons. Any absence from active conveyancing work in the twelve months prior to applying to a lender panel will make it difficult to meet the threshold.

When a firm indicates to a lender that they are a sole practitioner, a lender will have an expectation that any transaction can continue in your temporary absence. The following would be expected.

• If you are a sole practitioner, please provide the name of your locum or qualified employee that may act as locum.
• Please confirm if your locum or qualified employee that can act as locum has been qualified for more than 3 years. (We will require a copy of your locums practicing certificate)

The above would be the minimum information that a lender may require to allow access to a panel, but some lenders also require a locum to be employed by a firm who are also on their panel. You will need to confirm this with the appropriate parties.

No, the Law Society accreditations are only available to firms regulated by the SRA.

CILEx is not a Designated Professional Body under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. This means that firms we regulate are not covered by the Part XX exemption under that Act and are therefore unable to arrange insurance on behalf of clients. We can put you in touch with a brokers who may be able to assist on a compliant basis.

The controls on who can instruct a barrister are contained in the Bar Standards Board Handbook. In particular:

• Rc21 – which sets out the circumstances in which barristers can accept instructions;
• Rc22 – which sets out what a barrister must do when accepting instructions and states that where a barrister receives instructions from a professional client, the confirmation of acceptance should be sent to the professional client; and
• Part 6 of the Handbook which defines a professional client as ‘any person authorised by another approved regulator or licensing authority’. This is just one of the many categories of clients that are listed under professional client in this part of the Handbook, but would include authorised CILEX Practitioners, CILEX Fellows and solicitors, working in firms regulated by CILEx Regulation, as they are all ‘Authorised Persons’ under section 18  of the Legal Services Act 2007.

So if you fall within the definition of professional client you will be able to instruct a barrister.

As the rules relating to the instruction of counsel are controlled by the Bar Standards Board (BSB), it is the reader’s responsibility to check that this information is up to date by referring to the information in the Bar Standards Board Handbook available on the BSB’s website.