We were pleased by the SRA’s announcement (see www.legalrisk.co.uk/News) that it has dropped its plans to reduce the level and scope of cover under the SRA Minimum Terms and Conditions (MTC), which we have opposed. Our opposition has been founded on decades of experience defending and advising solicitors who have found themselves either underinsured or uninsured.
Despite the unrivalled breadth of cover provided by the MTC, there are still some traps for the unwary. Perhaps the most significant is aggregation, under which multiple claims from broadly similar or related causes may be subject to one policy limit – a particular issue for firms doing volume work who may derive false comfort from the fact they only handle low value matters.
Successor practice provisions contain a number of traps. Examples are the differences in the Legal Ombudsman scheme provisions, and unexpected problems which may arise if a firm’s successor switches regulator. We advise many firms on the insurance aspects of mergers and disposal of practices as well as coverage issues and disputes.
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