Part of our series of common legal questions and their answers, we look at the steps for applying to the Court of Protection to be a deputy. Read more...

The By Lawyers Criminal Offences App has been updated to reflect changes to several sentencing guidelines published by the Sentencing Council and effective from 1 April 2024. Read more...

A new Enclosure – Domestic violence orders document has been included in the Domestic Violence Orders guide. Read more...

Following feedback, we have added precedents for Variation of a domestic agreement and Termination of a domestic agreement. We have also reviewed the Cohabitation agreement and Nuptial agreement to add automation and efficiencies.

A new article about cohabitees rights sets out the problems and solutions that currently exist. Read more...

The Immigration Appeals guide has been updated to include new forms for proceedings in the Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber). The matter plan now also includes precedents for a Brief to counsel, Skeleton argument and Witness statement for use in Immigration matters. We invite you to explore this updated publication. Comments and feedback are always welcomed.

The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 heralds the biggest change to divorce law for decades and a new guide tailored to fit the new process has been published. The commentary and matter plan both guide practitioners through the new process, and new letters reflect the updated terminology.

We have published a new article on Using Retainer Instructions which we hope By Lawyers users will find helpful.

Following user feedback we have published two new drafted commercial leases which are available on the Commercial Lease - Acting for Landlord matter plan. In addition to the Law Society standard leases, we now have a new commercial lease drafted in By Lawyers plain English style. The Commercial lease - Optimised presentation is formatted to present matter-specific information in the initial pages of the document, with the boiler-plate clauses which need no amendment in the following pages. A new Commercial lease - Standard presentation is also available. The commentary has also been updated with a discussion of the reasons why the optimised style is more useful for clients and practitioners - not least because all the amendments take place within the first few pages of the lease. Both styles contain all the lease considerations that are usually required. We also have increased the number of optional clauses available to insert into these leases where relevant including: Landlord’s conditions of consent to underletting clause Landlord’s conditions of consent to assignment clause Landlord's break clause Tenant's break clause Parking space clause We invite you to explore these new documents. Comments and feedback are always welcomed.

We are very pleased to announce the release of a Letters of Administration guide. The guide covers all aspects of practice and procedure when acting in the administration of an estate where there is no will, or there is a partial intestacy. The guide assists practitioners with all aspects of the estate administration from applying for a grant through to distribution. The commentary is practical and easy to understand and is supported by numerous helpful precedents. Key content includes law and procedure relating to the intestacy rules and the impact that they have on the distribution of the estate to creditors, claimants and beneficiaries. A number of new precedents have been published, including: 6 examples for the content of an administrator’s statement of truth; A full suite of letters to administrators, beneficiaries and third parties; and A very useful precedent Estate Summary Pack. The Letters of Administration guide is an invaluable resource for all practitioners who deal with estate administration, including those with limited experience in this area or those supervising junior lawyers.

Many quality schemes, including LEAP’s own ‘Best Practice Scheme’, require firms to obtain feedback from clients. We recognise that this is often dealt with by way of a survey platform and there is space in the Firm Details table for a feedback weblink to be listed. This link now drops into the By Lawyers letters to clients finalising matters, if the firm has the link set up.

InfoTrack’s property report is an opportunity to do conveyancing differently. Having seen a couple of demonstrations of the new ‘property report’ feature from InfoTrack it is clear that the use of clever technology to simplify the lives of conveyancers is here to stay. Drawing information from a number of sources into one place, the property report is mostly completed before a practitioner has even touched their keyboard, but is fully customisable to ensure that clients receive tailored information. Land Registry information, search results and replies to enquiries are all included. The InfoTrack enquiries platform was a revelation, and a revolution, to this author. Hyperlinks to InfoTrack have been incorporated into the matter plan and there is a new Letter to seller’s solicitor with amended contract and draft transfer – Enquiries via InfoTrack which alerts the other side to the process.

We have published a new commentary, A summary of the key obligations of the Anti-money laundering guidance for the legal sector which sets out the essential information that practitioners need to know to ensure that they comply with the requirements of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. The new commentary can be found in the Compliance requirements folder on every By Lawyers matter plan. The goal of By Lawyers is take the intimidation out of the law and ensure that our clients enjoy practice more. As a result, all By Lawyers commentaries are published with a focus on providing a sensible appreciation of law and practice in England and Wales.

We are pleased to announce a new Short residential tenancy disputes guide, with detailed commentary including rent arrears, noise nuisance and anti-social behaviour and deposit disputes. Repossession proceedings are stepped through in detail when acting for the landlord and acting for the tenant. Tribunal and court proceedings are discussed, as well as the current impact of COVID-19. The comprehensive matter plan is divided into two folders; Acting for the landlord and Acting for the tenant. Precedents that practitioners will find useful include: Letters and notices to tenants in breach of their tenancy agreements; Letters and enclosures for a rent repayment plan; Letters and enclosures relating to the use of a deposit protection dispute resolution scheme; A library of carefully drafted common possession notices under both s 8 and s 21 of the Housing Act 1988; A full suite of litigation letters and documents, and example content for claim forms and defences. This Short residential tenancy disputes guide is an invaluable resource for practitioners who regularly conduct landlord and tenant matters, as well as those with limited experience or those supervising junior lawyers. We invite you to explore the new guide. Comments and feedback are always welcomed.

As practitioners may be aware, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme increased the length of time that temporary high balances were protected in bank accounts from 6 months to 12 at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. This protection has been reduced to 6 months again from 1 February 2021. The Practice Management guide has been amended accordingly.