How to be SRA compliant part 2: 9 ways Osprey can help law firms stay compliant with the SRA Code of Conduct 

Compliance with the SRA Code of Conduct is a critical aspect of a law firm’s day-to-day operations. It ensures that solicitors and legal firms adhere to high standards, maintaining public trust and upholding the integrity of the profession.  

In this part 2 of the 3-part guide, we will explore how Osprey Approach can help law firms stay compliant with the SRA Code of Conduct, providing practical tools and features that streamline compliance efforts across various aspects of legal practice. 

For the SRA transparency rules, please visit here.

How to stay compliant with the SRA Code of Conduct 

1. Ensure your firm’s policies are clear and accessible 

The SRA Code of Conduct requires firms to establish and maintain clear policies, ensuring that all solicitors and staff understand their duties. Osprey Approach allows law firms to document all essential policies and procedures in a centralised system, making it easy to update, share, and access the latest guidance. This helps ensure consistency and reduces the risk of non-compliance due to misunderstanding or lack of clarity. 

How Osprey helps: 

• Centralised policy repository for easy access and updates. 

• Firms can track and manage review dates within Osprey by assigning them to internal matters, ensuring updates are completed on time and aligned with regulatory requirements. 

• Document tracking to monitor changes and revisions. 

2. Streamline client care and communication

The SRA Code of Conduct emphasises the importance of providing excellent client care. It’s essential that clients are kept informed throughout their legal matters, ensuring they understand the costs, risks, and progress of their case. Osprey’s client care features enable law firms to create standardised client care letters and automate key communications, reducing administrative workload while ensuring clients receive timely, clear, and transparent information.

How Osprey helps:

• Customisable templates for client care letters and documents.
• Automated prompts for sending important client communications.
• Easy tracking of client interactions and updates.
• Transparent and self-service updates shared via the client portal, including milestones and timelines.

How Osprey helps:

• Secure, encrypted storage of client documents and data. 

• Access controls to limit data access to authorised users. 

• Regular system backups to prevent data loss. 

5. Effectively manage client funds and financial transactions

The SRA Code of Conduct requires solicitors to handle client funds with integrity and transparency, ensuring compliance with the SRA Accounts Rules. Osprey Approach helps law firms manage client finances accurately and transparently, supporting proper record-keeping, financial transactions, and reporting.

How Osprey helps:

• Integrated accounting tools that support accurate record-keeping and financial management, helping firms comply with regulatory requirements.
• Real-time tracking of client funds, enabling visibility into financial transactions and balances.
• Customisable reports for financial audits, ensuring compliance with the SRA Accounts Rules.

6. Mitigate risks with integrated risk management tools

Effective risk management is essential to maintaining compliance with the SRA Code of Conduct. Osprey Approach includes integrated risk management features that help law firms proactively identify, assess, and mitigate risks throughout the client journey. These tools ensure that risks are documented, managed, and acted upon, supporting ongoing compliance with the Code.

How Osprey helps:

• Integrated risk assessment workflows for each matter, including AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and other compliance checks to ensure thorough risk analysis at every stage.

• Ongoing risk tracking and management throughout the case lifecycle, enabling continuous monitoring to mitigate risks as they arise.
• Customisable reports to help document and review risk management processes, supporting audit trails and compliance checks.
• Integration with InfoTrack for streamlined client due diligence, making it easier to perform checks during the onboarding process and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.

7. Stay compliant with anti-money laundering regulations

Compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations is vital for law firms to meet legal obligations and protect against financial crime. Osprey Approach streamlines AML processes by integrating with InfoTrack, providing law firms with efficient tools for conducting client due diligence and maintaining compliance.

How Osprey helps:

• AML workflows built into Osprey to guide law firms through the client onboarding process, ensuring all steps of AML compliance are followed consistently.
• Integration with InfoTrack, allowing firms to perform real-time client identity verification and transaction checks directly within the platform.
• Comprehensive audit trails, automatically logging AML checks and outcomes to support regulatory compliance and internal audits.
• Ongoing monitoring tools, ensuring AML checks can be conducted at key stages throughout the client journey to maintain compliance.

With Osprey’s integration with InfoTrack and built-in AML workflows, your firm can confidently navigate AML regulations while reducing administrative burden.

8. Monitor compliance with internal and external regulations

To maintain compliance with the SRA Code of Conduct, law firms must regularly monitor and review their adherence to both internal policies and external regulations. Proactive tracking helps identify areas for improvement and ensures consistent compliance across the firm. Osprey Approach provides tools to support internal audits and generate reports that align with regulatory requirements.

How Osprey helps:

• Built-in audit tools to facilitate regular internal compliance reviews, helping firms identify and address potential issues.
• Customisable compliance reports that provide detailed insights into adherence to SRA regulations. Integration with Power BI allows firms to create dynamic dashboards for tracking key compliance metrics.
• Comprehensive tracking of compliance actions, enabling visibility across all departments to ensure firm-wide accountability.

9. Provide ongoing staff training and development

Ensuring that staff are well-trained and up-to-date on regulatory requirements, legal ethics, and firm policies is a vital component of the SRA Code of Conduct. To support this, Osprey Approach provides unlimited training, empowering teams to use the software tools effectively for compliance, monitoring, and risk management.

How Osprey helps:

• Unlimited training sessions for staff to maximise their understanding and use of Osprey’s compliance features, workflows, and reporting tools.
• Tracking of completed training to ensure staff are equipped to utilise risk management and compliance solutions effectively.
• On-demand access to training resources to reinforce learning and provide ongoing support for firm-wide adoption.

By prioritising continuous development, law firms can enhance compliance, improve operational efficiency, and ensure staff confidently use tools that align with regulatory requirements.

How Osprey helps law firms maintain SRA compliance

Staying compliant with the SRA Code of Conduct is a complex, ongoing process that requires careful management across a range of practice areas. Osprey Approach provides law firms with a comprehensive suite of tools designed to support SRA compliance, from standardising client communication workflows to managing risk and ensuring consistent policy implementation.

By integrating Osprey’s case management system, firms can streamline their compliance efforts, reduce administrative workload, and ensure they meet the highest standards set by the SRA.

With Osprey’s compliance monitoring capabilities, firms can maintain confidence in their adherence to regulations, reduce risks, and demonstrate accountability to regulators.

Book a consultation to discover how Osprey Approach can help you effectively complete client and matter risk assessments across your teams. 

For further advice and best practices you can view parts one and three of our SRA transparency guides:

How to be SRA compliant part 1: A guide to the SRA Code of Conduct | Osprey Approach

How to be SRA compliant part 3: The 5 common SRA Transparency Rules pitfalls that most SME law firms face and how to overcome them

Disclaimer

This guide is not intended as legal advice. For detailed guidance on the SRA Code of Conduct, please visit the official SRA website.