Conveyancing: Law Society lobbies for changes to building safety legislation

By Gazette Reporter >>

(28 July 2023)

The Law Society is lobbying hard for changes to complex building safety measures which are proving burdensome and potentially costly for residential conveyancers.

Centred around last year’s Building Safety Act, reforms introduced in the wake of the 2017 Grenfell Tower disaster expose the profession to potentially ‘unacceptable’ levels of risk that could also bump up indemnity insurance premiums.

‘The complex implications of the legislation and the potential requirements it places on solicitors could be significant,’ Law Society president Lubna Shuja writes in today’s Gazette.   

‘We have been listening to members’ concerns and making sure their views are heard by decision-makers.’

Among examples cited are obligations contained in Part 1 and Part 2 of the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook. Shuja notes that ‘solicitors are expected to explain complex requirements from the legislation to lender and lay clients, which may fall outside their current expertise’.

Some of the changes sought by solicitors are being implemented in draft regulations, but others require primary legislation or are still under discussion, Shuja adds.

(Courtesy: The Law Society Gazette)