Solicitors Regulation Authority SRA rules are there to protect solicitors and law firms. Here at Butt Miller, we are proud to act on behalf of members of the legal profession, offering a fully compliant and up-to-date service for businesses, individuals and on behalf of your clients.
The legal services industry is a highly specialist area requiring accountants to have detailed knowledge and understanding of the stringent regulations and rules involved.
Welcome to Butt Miller, Chartered Accountants for the legal sector
At Butt Miller, we go beyond the basics, specialising in tricky areas of accounting and tax for legal professionals. We aim to inspire and create, not just wait and react. By implementing proactive and proven methods to keep your law firm financially sound, we are helping you stay prominent in the competitive legal market.
If you’re operating in the legal industry and need the support of a professional team of legal accountants, we can help.
Our specialist team has detailed knowledge and expertise in working with the specific SRA accounts rules and reporting requirements. We have experience with the tax positions of solicitors firms and their clients, including the complexities of capital gains and inheritance taxes.
Contact Butt Miller today to discuss our accounting services for legal professionals in more detail.
What makes accounting in the legal sector different?
Solicitors and UK law firms often hold client money. This money doesn’t belong to the legal practice but to the person instructing the legal professionals instead.
The SRA (Solicitors Regulation Authority) has a detailed set of regulatory obligations that all legal firms must follow to keep client money separate from the law firm’s money and ensure that clients do not suffer losses.
As accountants for legal professionals, it is our job to guide law firms through complex compliance rules and regulations, ensuring they operate in line with the SRA. We have a deeper understanding of the legal sector and hone our accounting skills specifically for the individual law firms we work for.
Legal professionals we work with
At Butt Miller, we work with a number of law firms in the UK. We are more than happy to accommodate your needs and travel where necessary to offer our professional support since many law firms still use paper-based processes. However, we also have the technical capabilities to work remotely if needed.
Law firms
Our expertise covers corporations, traditional partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and sole practice businesses. So, however, your firm is structured, we can help with what can often be time-consuming compliance issues.
Solicitors
We work with several solicitors, ranging from sole traders to limited companies. Their activities range from conveyancing to commercial disputes to probate and family matters. Some are based solely online, while others are office-based and retain paper files. Whatever you need, we will adapt our approach to fit your specific circumstances.
Our specialist accounting services for legal professionals
At Butt Miller, we offer specialist services tailored specifically for legal professionals. We understand the intricate landscape of accounting for the legal sector and the various responsibilities involved in managing finances for law firms and solicitors.
From regulatory compliance to handling financial statements, our accountants for legal professionals are dedicated to keeping your firm in top shape.
SRA audits
Solicitors and law firms based in England and Wales who hold client monies are required by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to have their client accounts audited by an external accountant.
SRA audits will need to be performed annually unless you meet specific exemption requirements.
Our team will handle the audit process with the utmost care and precision, ensuring your firm complies with the SRA rules.
This task is separate from preparing a law firm’s annual accounts, and neither needs to be undertaken by the same firm. We can tailor our SRA audit services to suit your needs. We have a number of clients for whom this is the only service we provide.
SRA accounts rules
Law Society rules are there to ensure that firms authorised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority handle client money in a specific way – ensuring compliance and preventing any client from suffering financial loss.
As part of our review, we will examine these systems to ensure they are robust enough to meet their purpose. We will trace a selection of items through the system, ensuring that they have been accounted for in accordance with the rules.
Our tests will include examining receipts and payments in both the client and business bank accounts, tests on transfers and bill treatment, the timeliness of transaction logging on the system, and balance treatment once the task has been completed.
We will also examine a selection of client files to ensure they have been set up correctly, the transactions have been entered appropriately and chronologically, and the work has been carried out according to the client’s instructions.
Auditing and assurance services
As well as legal and regulatory obligations concerning SRA audits, we can also maintain the law firm’s bookkeeping records and ensure that your statutory obligations are fulfilled with regard to filing the business’s accounts and tax returns on a timely basis.
Tax advice
Alongside our accounting services, our tax team has considerable experience planning for a wide range of scenarios. Whether you’re a solicitor with your own practice, a partner in a law firm, or operate as a limited company, we can advise on your individual tax situation. Tax planning is central to the services we provide.
We will help your firm ensure complete compliance when filing tax returns and look for any available reliefs to ensure that only the correct amount of tax is paid.
We can help the fee earners in your legal team enhance the legal services you provide by supporting your clients with their specific needs and compliance requirements, including tax returns, advice on tax deductions and expenses, trust compliance, tax planning, and IHT reporting.
Our accountants for legal professionals can also provide expert witness services, including joint expert Capital Gains Tax reports for divorce courts and can advise the divorcing parties on the best structure for property transfers.
Business management
A legal business has the same basic financial reporting requirements as any other business sector. We understand how law firms operate, which is invaluable in providing high-quality accountancy services.
Our experience providing accounting services for non-legal sector clients helps us support lawyers with business financial matters, cash flow projections, and tax liability calculations.
Why choose Butt Miller as your legal accountant?
At Butt Miller, we take the time to really understand our client’s businesses and the goals they are looking to achieve and work with them to help them achieve these. With decades of experience helping numerous clients throughout the UK, we offer a range of accounting solutions designed to meet the specific needs of the legal industry.
We strive to build trust and confidence and ensure our clients fully comply with the statutory requirements. On a more personal level, we can help partners achieve their financial goals with good tax planning and support clients with their tax concerns.
Contact us today to discuss your accounting needs.