Headlines
2025 Consultation: Proposed changes to the ICAEW Legal Services Regulations
- 23 Jan 2025
The ICAEW Regulatory Board is consulting on proposed changes to ICAEW’s Legal Services Regulations. These changes incorporate new provisions relating to the reserved legal service of the administration of oaths and requirements relating to first tier complaints introduced by the Legal Services Board (LSB) in May 2024.
Complaints handling in probate-accredited firms: improving consumer trust
- 21 Jan 2025
ICAEW is consulting on proposals aimed at improving consumer confidence in how probate-accredited firms handle complaints. Rachel Clements, Regulatory Policy Manager at ICAEW, tells us why the changes are necessary and explains what they mean for firms.
Probate diversity data collection and reporting
- 17 Dec 2024
Find out more about the diversity reporting requirements for probate accredited firms. The survey will launch in February 2025, and the next reporting deadline is 30 April 2025.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service Update: timeliness, digital improvements and upcoming webinars
- 08 Jan 2025
In December, ICAEW and other regulators attended a quarterly update meeting with HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). Rachel Clements, Regulatory Policy Manager, provides practitioners with the latest developments and key insights from the session.
Resolving challenges from banks and financial institutions
- 08 Oct 2024
ICAEW is working to build awareness among UK financial institutions that ICAEW-accredited probate firms are able to provide probate services and that access to deceased person’s assets isn’t limited to solicitors. Find out what actions are being taken and what resources are being put in place.
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation: Changes to the Legal Services General Licence
- 05 Nov 2024
The OFSI has made three specific amendments regarding increases to fee caps, a new permission for payments into non-UK bank accounts in a limited number of countries and clarifies how caps apply to in-house lawyers and directly instructed counsel. View the licence and updated FAQs.
Resources for firms
2024 Legal Services Regulatory update
- 03 Sep 2024
ICAEW's Quality Assurance Department took listeners through the recent common issues we are seeing on quality assurance monitoring reviews. We also heard from the Chair of the ICAEW Legal Services Committee, Miranda Winram, on the role of the committee and the committee's perspective on some of these common issues. The webinar concluded with a look at the current regulatory landscape, presented by the Regulatory Policy team.
CPD Regulations: what firms can expect one year on
- 01 Oct 2024
ICAEW’s revised CPD Regulations, which came into effect on 1 November 2023, place new responsibilities on firms. A year on, as CPD monitoring visits are about to begin, we offer some timely reminders of the requirements and highlight some frequently asked questions, outlining what reviewers will be focusing on.
Resources to share with clients of probate services
Consumer hub to support ICAEW probate firms and their clients
- Hub page
- 23 Jan 2025
Share our consumer hub with your clients. Resources include: how Chartered Accountants can help, a glossary of legal terms, guides for beneficiaries and executors, and links to bereavement support and government sites. ICAEW is promoting the hub to raise awareness of this service on behalf of firms, and firms are encouraged to use it as a resource.
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Further resources
ICAEW as a probate regulator
Find out more about our responsibilities as a probate regulator and the future of the legal services regulated area.
Find out moreReshaping Legal Services
A sector-wide strategy from the Legal Services Board (LSB)
View the documentSupport for probate accredited firms
Practical guidance for probate practitioners, including the latest regulatory updates, helpsheets, and compliance information.
See more