ICAEW Regulatory Board appoints new Chair: Following an open and competitive recruitment process conducted by the Regulatory and Conduct Appointments Committee, Jenny Watson CBE has been appointed as the new lay chair of the ICAEW Regulatory Board.

What good looks like – going concern: The audit of going concern is often a challenge. Find out what a good audit file looks like in the context of going concern.

A cradle to grave service - applying for probate accreditation: In the latest in our series on moving into new regulated areas, we look at what your firm needs to do to start working in probate in England and Wales.

Probate regulation - transparency and engagement top the agenda: ICAEW has recently been consulting on its new reserved legal services strategy, and on plans to make service and price transparency mandatory for probate-accredited firms. We talk to the IRB’s alternate chair for legal services, Steve Barrow, and ICAEW’s head of regulatory policy, Peter James, about the importance of transparency and how best to engage stakeholders.

The MLRO in practice - uncovering economic crime: Being a money laundering reporting officer (MLRO) is about much more than meeting regulatory requirements. We talk to some experienced MLROs and their deputies about what it takes to succeed in the role, how they make a difference, and being brave.

Listen again - Customer Due Diligence webinar: Watch the recording of our third live anti-money laundering webinar or share it with your staff. Members of ICAEW’s AML supervisory team were joined by AML professionals and MLROs to discuss how CDD operates in practice. 

Results of the 2021 probate diversity survey

The results of ICAEW’s fourth biennial diversity survey of firms regulated for probate is now available to download. We hope this report continues to support the evolution of ICAEW’s diversity strategy and help direct its commitment to better diversity within the profession.

The engagement by firms with the monitoring exercise has been excellent. Over 98% of them had responded within the required timeframe compared with 87% in 2019. The data accordingly covers a total of 332 firms involving around 8,500 staff. We are grateful to the firms and their staff who have contributed to this review.

The results indicate a greater confidence in the monitoring exercise itself and better authenticity as 'prefer not to answer' responses fell.

The data is intended to help practices identify new areas for growth in the delivery of their accountancy and legal services and to allow benchmarking with similar practices and the wider marketplace.

Latest insolvency updates

There have been several recent updates including new legislation and the latest bulletins from HMRC. Visit Talk Insolvency to find out more.

The Joint Insolvency Committee consultation regarding changes to Statement of Insolvency Practice 3.1 remains open until 5 November.

Listen again: The recent Insolvency and Restructuring roadshow sessions are available to watch on demand via the Restructuring and Insolvency community.

Disciplinary update - October 2021: Read about the latest disciplinary cases, consent orders and fixed penalties.