When closing down your practice, you should, if possible, plan the closure well in advance, in order for it to be closed in an orderly manner. The protection of the best interests of clients are paramount, but disorderly closure of a law practice can also cause adverse impact on the courts and other stakeholders dealing with the firm, such as those on the other side of a case or transaction or regulatory bodies.
Firms merge and close all the time for many genuine reasons. If the process is planned and implemented properly, no problems should arise. However, if clients’ interests are considered to be at risk, the SRA might have to intervene (for example, if you are insolvent, abandon your practice, become unwell or do not secure client files). If the SRA does this, they will seek to recover the very significant cost of the intervention from you.
When you decide that you wish to close your firm, we can guide you through the closure requirements and help you ensure that the SRA can see that the closure is being conducted in an orderly manner.