Conflicts of interest—law firms and solicitors


Published by a ÑÇÖÞÉ«ÇéÍø Practice Compliance expert
Practice notes

Conflicts of interest—law firms and solicitors


Published by a ÑÇÖÞÉ«ÇéÍø Practice Compliance expert

Practice notes
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Conflicts of interest can cause difficult and serious problems for solicitors and law firms, both from a compliance point of view and in your client relationships. If a conflict of interest arises, or there is a risk of one arising in the course of your work, it is imperative to:

  1. •

    have systems and controls in place to enable the conflict to be identified

  2. •

    know whether you can act or continue to act for the client(s) involved

  3. •

    understand the safeguards that may be needed to manage the conflict

The SRA Codes of Conduct (the SRA Code for Solicitors, RELs and RFLs (Code for Solicitors) and the SRA Code for Firms) refer to two types of conflict of interest as shown below:

Type of conflictTerm used by SRABrief description
Own interest conflictOwn interest conflictWhere your duty to act in the best interests of any client conflicts, or may conflict, with your own interests in relation to that matter or a related matter
See below: Own interest conflict
Client conflictConflict
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